Four, how can ordinary users participate in SCDO mining?
Question 31: How can ordinary users participate in SCDO mining?
Answer: Anyone can participate in mining by running the SCDO mining node software. The general steps are as follows: First, download and install the SCDO node program from official channels (official website or GitHub).
Next, start the program to synchronize blockchain data and create a miner account. When creating an account in the SCDO network, you can specify the shard to which the account belongs, which will determine in which shard you will mine.
Then, configure the mining hardware (such as a GPU) and start the mining command, and the node will begin participating in the PoW computing competition. SCDO mining supports multiple platforms, and common operating systems like Windows and Linux can run node software, allowing both CPUs and GPUs to participate in calculations.
For beginners, the official provides detailed mining tutorials and one-click startup scripts, making the process relatively simple.
In summary, as long as one has basic computer operation skills and meets the hardware requirements, anyone can become an SCDO miner, contribute to network security, and earn rewards.
Question 32: What hardware and software requirements are needed for SCDO mining?
Answer: In terms of hardware, although CPUs can also participate in SCDO mining, a GPU that supports OpenCL/CUDA is usually required for higher efficiency.
The officially recommended minimum configuration is a GPU similar to NVIDIA GTX 1060.
As network difficulty increases, GPU configurations also need to be enhanced; higher-performance gaming GPUs or professional computing cards will have more advantages.
In terms of memory and storage, running a node requires several GB of memory and at least several dozen GB of hard disk space for blockchain data. Software-wise, one needs to install the node/mining software released by SCDO.
The software is compatible with Windows and Linux and includes full node functionality and mining modules.
Additionally, a stable internet connection is needed to stay synchronized with the network, as well as the latest GPU drivers and necessary libraries (like CUDA Toolkit). The mining algorithm for SCDO is ZPoW, which mainly relies on GPU computing power, so the requirements for CPUs are low, but GPU drivers and software environments must be configured correctly.
After installing the software, you can start by specifying the wallet address, mining threads, and other parameters through the command line or configuration file. Overall, a computer with a mid-to-high-end GPU and a good network is sufficient to meet the basic requirements for SCDO mining.
Question 33: Is the SCDO mining process complex? Does it require professional skills?
Answer: Compared to some early cryptocurrencies, the mining process of SCDO is simplified and user-friendly, requiring no very specialized technical background.
After downloading and installing the node software, most parameters have default values, and beginners only need to configure the wallet address, shard selection, miner name, etc., according to the tutorial to start mining.
The official and community provide one-click startup scripts and GUI tools to help users quickly connect to mining. For those unfamiliar with command lines, graphical mining programs developed by the community can be used, where users can simply input their wallet address and click a few buttons to get started. It should be noted that if multiple GPUs are running simultaneously, it may be necessary to manually set parameters like thread counts; after upgrading the GPU or drivers, ensure to recheck compatibility.
Overall, SCDO mining does not require programming skills and does not involve complex mining pool protocol configurations (if it is solo mining).
Users only need to follow the guide and will soon see the process of submitting computing power and finding the nonce in the node log. When your node successfully mines a block, the wallet will receive the corresponding reward. The community also has forums and chat groups where miners can seek help if they encounter problems.
In summary, the threshold for SCDO mining is low, and one can get started with basic learning, requiring much less expertise compared to participating in early PoW projects.
Question 34: What are the block rewards and issuance mechanisms of SCDO?
Answer: SCDO adopts a token issuance mechanism similar to Bitcoin - issuing token rewards to miners by generating new blocks through mining, with a limited total supply. Regarding block rewards, the reward for SCDO's genesis block is 6 SCDO per block, decreasing over time.
According to official settings, every 3,150,000 blocks mined (about 4 years), the block rewards will undergo deflation adjustments: the initial rewards will be 6, 4, 3, 2.5, 2, 2, 1.5... gradually decreasing. The total supply of tokens across the network will ultimately stabilize at 300 million SCDO.
Block generation time is about 20 seconds, so theoretically, around 180 blocks can be generated in an hour. There is no pre-mining in the issuance mechanism; all SCDO coins are mined block by block by miners. When a new block is created, new coins are rewarded to the miner who discovers the block, and the transaction fees contained in that block also belong to the miner.
As time goes on, block rewards will decrease until they are completely mined, at which point miners' income will mainly come from transaction fees. This issuance mechanism ensures that the growth rate of tokens gradually decreases, the supply stabilizes, and is conducive to the long-term value stability of the tokens.
Question 35: Does SCDO mining have a halving mechanism? When does it reduce?
Answer: Yes, the mining rewards of SCDO follow a 'reduction mechanism', similar to Bitcoin's halving every four years, but the specific values decrease in predetermined steps rather than precisely by half each time. According to the white paper, the mining rewards will be adjusted approximately every 3,150,000 blocks (about 4 years).
SCDO initially rewards 6 SCDO per block, dropping to 4 after the first halving, 3 after the second, 2.5 after the third, then 2 for two more times, and finally 1.5 for the last two times, maintaining at 1.5 until mining is completed. This process can be seen as a refined version of gradual halving (6->3->1.5).
Based on a block generation speed of 20 seconds, the first halving is expected to occur about 2 years after the mainnet launch (around 2023, when the reward drops from 6 to 4), and subsequently, there will be a reduction approximately every 2 years. By the time the last halving is completed, it will require about 8 adjustments, possibly taking over 16 years, during which the vast majority of the 300 million tokens will be mined.
The halving mechanism means that over time, the new supply of SCDO will gradually decrease, tightening market supply. This deflationary model helps maintain the scarcity of the tokens and encourages miners to join the network early to earn more rewards.
However, the reduction in rewards will also lower miners' income, so miners need to rely more on transaction fees as a supplement. In summary, SCDO's reduction mechanism is similar to Bitcoin's cycle but with a smoother step, ensuring a stable transition in the token release curve.
Question 36: What other income can miners earn besides block rewards?
Answer: In addition to the new coin rewards generated by each block, miners can also earn transaction fees as income. When miners pack a block, all transaction fees (Gas fees) paid in that block belong to the miner. This income depends on the number of transactions in the block and the Gas price for each transaction.
At the current stage of SCDO, since transaction fees are very low and trading volume is still growing, the proportion of fees in miners' total income may not be high. However, as network applications increase and transactions rise, even if block rewards gradually decrease, fee income will progressively become an important source of returns for miners.
In addition, miners, as early participants, can also benefit from the rise in token prices if they hold onto the SCDO coins they mined for a long time. Although price fluctuations are uncertain, if one is optimistic about the project's future, the value of the mined coins may appreciate.
However, it should be noted that prices are not guaranteed; the main income still comes from block rewards and transaction fees themselves. SCDO does not have additional mining incentives (like foundation subsidies) or MEV income, so the current composition of miners' income is primarily the new block rewards + the fees from that block.
Therefore, miners should assess whether these two parts of income can cover electricity costs and equipment costs when considering investment.
Question 37: How is the mining difficulty of SCDO adjusted?
Answer: The SCDO network maintains a stable block time of around 20 seconds through a difficulty adjustment algorithm. The specific mechanism is similar to Bitcoin but improved because SCDO has multiple shards and various algorithms. Each shard chain dynamically adjusts its mining difficulty value based on the recent block interval. If blocks are generated too quickly, the difficulty will increase; if blocks are generated slowly, the difficulty will decrease, pulling the average block generation speed back to the target value. Similarly, under the multi-algorithm framework of ZPoW, each computing task also has its independent difficulty parameter, and the network adjusts its difficulty based on the frequency of finding blocks with that algorithm. Overall, SCDO's network difficulty adjustment is more frequent and precise.
Bitcoin adjusts its difficulty every 2016 blocks (about 2 weeks), while SCDO may adjust smoothly in response to changes in computing power within every few blocks or fixed time window.
Due to sharding and parallel mining, the system must ensure stable inter-block intervals while balancing the efficiency of multi-shard collaboration. Therefore, the difficulty adjustment algorithm is quite critical in SCDO. Observations from actual operations show that SCDO's difficulty adjustment can effectively adapt to the fluctuations in miner computing power, ensuring stable network operation.
For miners, when a large amount of new computing power joins, the difficulty will rise quickly to maintain competitive difficulty; conversely, when computing power decreases, the difficulty lowers to ensure blocks are not significantly delayed or idle. This way, the overall block generation and economic issuance of the SCDO network remain balanced and orderly.
Question 38: Can SCDO be mined with a CPU?
Answer: Theoretically, yes. The ZPoW algorithm of SCDO is designed to be CPU-friendly, reducing the overwhelming advantage of GPUs over CPUs. This means that even with just a CPU, it is possible to find valid solutions and mine blocks. However, in reality, as the total computing power of the network increases, the success rate of pure CPU mining will be relatively low. GPUs still have certain advantages in parallel computing (especially when multiple GPUs work together), so most miners opt to mine using graphics cards.
Under the current network difficulty, a regular CPU may have a computing power gap of several magnitudes compared to a mainstream GPU. Therefore, the probability of a CPU mining a block alone is very low, and it mainly serves to support network transaction verification and exploratory mining. However, in the early stages of the network or on shards with lower computing power, CPU miners may have a chance.
In summary, CPU mining can serve as an entry test or for supporting the network, but to continuously earn income, at least a qualified GPU is still needed. One can also consider utilizing the idle computing power of the CPU on the mining machine as part of the computing power contribution. SCDO aims to keep the threshold as low as possible, so future optimizations of the algorithm to improve CPU's income share are not ruled out, but currently, GPU mining remains the mainstream method.
Question 39: Are there SCDO mining pools available to assist small miners?
Answer: Since SCDO adopts a PoW mechanism, there are no protocol barriers to forming mining pools. Currently, some third-party pools have emerged in the community to support SCDO mining (although not as well-known as Bitcoin and Ethereum, enthusiasts can set up their own).
The role of mining pools is to allow many small power miners to come together to mine and share profits, thereby increasing the probability of individual miners obtaining stable income.
After small miners join the pool, even if their computing power is not enough to mine blocks individually, they can periodically receive rewards based on their share of power from the pool's block rewards. Of course, pool operators usually charge a certain percentage as a fee. Users should pay attention to the reputation and technical reliability of the pool when choosing one.
It is worth mentioning that in the early stages of the SCDO project, there was a greater encouragement for individual independent mining to promote decentralization rather than over-relying on mining pools. However, with the development of the network, the emergence of mining pools is a natural result. The steps for participating in pool mining usually involve using the mining port and account settings provided by the pool (the pool may require filling in the wallet address as the account).
If no public mining pools can be found temporarily, small miners can also consider building small mining pools with like-minded individuals to share computing power. In conclusion, SCDO allows for the possibility of pool mining, providing a smoother income pathway for small power miners, but the degree of centralization of the pool also requires community attention and prevention.
Question 40: What are the differences between SCDO mining and Bitcoin and other PoW mining?
Answer: SCDO mining differs from classic Bitcoin mining in several aspects:
1) Different algorithms: Bitcoin uses SHA-256 hashing, relying entirely on computing power; SCDO adopts ZPoW, with more diverse calculation types and different hardware requirements, allowing CPUs to participate.
2) Hardware differences: Bitcoin mining now almost requires professional ASIC miners, while SCDO primarily uses general GPUs, allowing ordinary computers to participate, which means a broader participant base.
3) Block generation time: Bitcoin averages 1 block every 10 minutes, while SCDO generates about 1 block every 20 seconds, resulting in more frequent block generation and faster transaction confirmations.
4) Reward mechanism: Both have a halving deflation model, but Bitcoin's total supply is 21 million and halves every 4 years, while SCDO's total supply is 300 million and gradually decreases. The initial single block reward of 6 SCDO is slightly lower than Bitcoin's 50 BTC (in the early days), but SCDO's block generation is fast, resulting in a higher overall annual output.
5) Energy consumption and environmental protection: Bitcoin mining consumes a lot of electricity, while SCDO is relatively more energy-efficient (but total energy consumption depends on the overall network computing power scale, just with higher hardware utilization).
6) Mining difficulty: Bitcoin adjusts its difficulty every 2016 blocks, while SCDO performs smoother continuous adjustments; additionally, SCDO features parallel mining across multiple shards, making the overall architecture more complex.
7) Degree of decentralization: In theory, SCDO achieves broader decentralized mining by limiting hardware advantages, while Bitcoin has seen computing power concentrated in a few mining pools due to the industrialization of mining machines. In summary, SCDO has a lower mining threshold, faster speed, and a more complex mechanism, but the basic concept is still similar to Bitcoin: maintaining on-chain security through proof of work and issuing new coin rewards to miners.