What is EOS? | Cryptoradar's Beginner's Guide to EOS

EOS has been touted as the leading contender to Ethereum and is currently one of the top 10 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Like Ethereum, it allows developers to create decentralized applications known as dApps on their platform. Whether you are looking to understand more about this blockchain, or you want to start trading in the coin already, this article contains everything you need to know concerning EOS.

What exactly is EOS?

In a nutshell, EOS is a decentralized infrastructure that allows the development, hosting and deployment of commercial-scale decentralized applications (dApps) on its network.

The EOS.IO software that runs EOS was developed by a company based in the Cayman Islands called block.one. Block.one’s chief technological officer, Daniel Larimer, was also the founder of other esteemed projects such as BitShares and Steem.

Similar to web-based applications, EOS allows businesses and individuals to develop blockchain-based applications by providing core services. These include providing security and authentication, giving permissions, hosting data and communication between different apps on the system.

It comes with its own web-toolkit interface that makes it a self-sufficient app development and deployment platform similar to the App Store or Google Play.

What’s the difference between EOS.IO and EOS?

EOS.IO is like the operating system that manages and controls the EOS blockchain-network. EOS is not only the name of the blockchain network, however, but also the name of the cryptocurrency built on top of this network.

To be eligible to use the network, developers simply need to hold some EOS coins and not necessarily spend any. A token holder without any dApps can also rent out their bandwidth to an EOS member who needs more bandwidth at the time.

What goal does EOS want to achieve?

EOS’ goal is to improve on earlier blockchains that support smart contracts by building a highly scalable and flexible system. The resulting technology is a blockchain system that can theoretically scale to millions of transactions per second while eliminating user fees and enabling development and execution of apps.

The system is supposedly capable of supporting thousands of commercial-standard dApps without crashing the system. This is achieved using asynchronous communications and parallel execution of programs across the network. The system also handles various modules separately. For instance, verification is performed separately from execution or hosting.

What’s the difference between EOS and Ethereum?

While EOS does a lot of things that Ethereum does in terms of running decentralized applications, it does so quite differently.

First, Ethereum uses its own programming language that developers must learn from scratch. On the other hand, EOS supports a host of popular programming languages which developers can leverage to create apps.

Similarly, Ethereum has been trying to solve its flexibility and scalability issues that currently hinder the number of transactions the system can handle per second. EOS adopted a delegated proof-of-stake algorithm that is more flexible, user-friendly and can scale quickly and easily.

Advantages of EOS

• Convenience for developers – EOS comes with all the features necessary for a developer to build, host and deploy dApps. For instance, it comes with a web toolkit and in-built libraries such as role-based permission systems all designed to help a developer become more versatile.
• Governance – Anyone with EOS coins is qualified to vote in the process of how EOS is operated. The tokens also determine the bandwidth allocated to each user.
• Very low transaction fees – The EOS network is built to have a fixed inflation rate of 5% annually. This overhead is used to pay miners who validate transactions and sponsor three random dApps voted for by users in the EOS network. Transaction fees are practically non-existent on EOS.
• Speed and scalability – EOS processes and validates transactions very quickly, thanks to its parallel processing technology.

Disadvantages of Monero

• Alleged centralization – EOS is governed only by 21 block producers at every moment and the overall governance of the system depends on the votes of the users. This extremely low number of blocks combined with the possibility of low voter turnout have raised issues among critics concerning EOS’ principle of democratic leadership.
• Strong competition – besides Ethereum, EOS faces strong competition from other cryptocurrencies such as Tron, Rchain and NEO.

How to Buy EOS

Nowadays, there are many marketplaces that offer the purchase of EOS for US dollars, euros or pounds. Just follow these four steps to buy EOS in no time:

1. Find a cryptocurrency exchange
2. Sign up for a cryptocurrency exchange
3. Buy EOS using US dollars, euros or pounds
4. Store EOS securely

1. Find an EOS exchange

You shouldn't just choose any cryptocurrency exchange. The below list outlines key factors which should influence your decision for a marketplace that suits your needs:

• User experience: the user interface and functionalities of many exchanges may be confusing at first. Nevertheless, an intuitive user interface helps you make better informed investment decisions and reduces the risk of unnecessary mistakes.
• Fee structure and rates: Trading fees as well as payment fees can range from as little as 0.1% per transaction to 10% per transaction and more. Hence, always look for a good trade-off between pricing and user-experience.
• Payment methods: make sure that your preferred cryptocurrency exchange offers payment methods that suit your wants and needs.
• Security & trust: make sure to choose a platform that follows security best practices. Read reviews by real users to learn more about the trustworthiness and support provided by the different marketplaces.

How to use Cryptoradar to find a cryptocurrency exchange

Cryptoradar helps you find a suitable cryptocurrency marketplace, providing you a comprehensive yet compact overview EOS marketplaces.

Make sure to use the filters on the left side of the website to narrow down your list based on your wants and needs.

2. Sign up for an EOS exchange

Signing up to an exchange is actually one of the easiest parts of the process. Simply enter your personal details to get started.

After registration, however, you need to verify your identity. To do so, you will either be asked to upload identification documents to the marketplace (e.g. a copy of your passport and a recent utility bill as proof of residence), or you will be asked to jump on a short video chat with a support agent who will verify your details remotely.

3. Buy EOS using US dollars, euros or pounds

Finally, you're on the brink of making your first EOS purchase! Yet, before you can actually buy cryptocurrency, you need to deposit money on the marketplace. This can either be done through bank transfer or instant payment methods like credit cards or Skrill.

Once your payment is received by the cryptocurrency exchange, you can go ahead and buy EOS. This is actually the easiest part of the whole process. On most marketplaces it’s as easy as selecting the purchase amount (in US dollars, euros or pounds) and clicking the buy button.

4. Store EOS securely

Optionally, you can withdraw and securely store EOS after your purchase. Keep in mind that you should not leave large amounts of cryptocurrencies on marketplaces as they are popular targets of hackers.

A popular software wallets supporting EOS is Exodus. Hardware wallets supporting EOS include Trezor and Ledger.