A year ago, 27-year-old software developer Roy Breidi was dreaming of launching a startup related to the digital currency bitcoin.Problem was, he “didn’t really understand what’s the magic behind it.”So he took an online course called “Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies” from Coursera.It’s one of many workshops and bootcamps popping up to help people in all industries -- especially software developers -- get the hang of the blockchain, the technology underlying bitcoin, and parlay that knowledge into more exciting, and sometimes better-paying jobs.Within months, Breidi had quit his job and started working full time at Shake, which lets people spend with a bitcoin-based debit card.Recently, the company won funding from Boost VC, and Breidi, co-founder and chief technology officer, moved to San Mateo, California, where his backers provided temporary housing and an office.Though he’s not getting paid yet and is living off savings, Breidi hopes to make money off his equity.“The sky is the limit,” he said.With banks and insurers starting to tinker with the blockchain, as a tool to record transactions and asset transfers, and venture capitalists investing more than $1.1 billion in related startups, there aren’t enough developers who have mastered the software.

listed 136 jobs with “blockchain” in the description as of Sept.“The supply of people that have extensive blockchain experiences is pretty low,” said Jered Kenna, an entrepreneur who may be hiring a blockchain expert this fall.“And the demand is quickly increasing.bitcoins wat zijn hetSometimes they get five job offers a day.”For a Gadfly column on blockchain hopes versus reality, click here.bitcoin to nzd chartAn experienced blockchain developer can command $220,000 a year, Kenna said.bitcoin list nodesHis strategy, would be to hire “someone with a lot of experience to lead and a few others that had just graduated from a blockchain bootcamp or were more junior.” The number of developers is projected to rise rapidly.bitcoin sevilla

About 250 people are true masters, said Jeff Garzik, one of the few experts working on the bitcoin blockchain.Globally, 7,000 to 8,000 people can develop for the blockchain with various levels of proficiency.Their ranks could grow to 100,000 in 18 to 24 months if more industries move from testing to deployment, said William Mougayar, an investor and author of “The Business Blockchain.”Some 35,000 people have taken the introductory Coursera program since late 2015, said Arvind Narayanan, an assistant professor of computer science at Princeton University who teaches the class.bitcoin raspberry pi osThe next session, set for this month, has 46,000 enrolled, Coursera said.More hands-on workshops are popping up from New York to Sydney to Luxembourg.bitcoin lewebCourses lasting several days to months teach the basics of cryptography and the programming language Solidity, building on developers’ existing skills (knowledge of Java and Python programming languages is a plus).bitcoin otc price

They explain how applications on the shared blockchain work differently.“You have to program in a mindset where you know everything is public,” said Joshua Gancher, who took a recent bootcamp at Cornell University.Tuition for more advanced programs isn’t cheap.bitcoin hfByte Academy in New York plans to offer a full-time, eight-week program this fall for $10,000.bitcoin bowl 2014 locationThe Luxembourg School of Business conducted a two-day bootcamp in April for 17 people, ranging from lawyers to a Deloitte developer, who each paid 1,200 euros ($1,350).“For us it’s really important that we send people to camps like that for Deloitte to be part of the blockchain ecosystem,” said Lory Kehoe, a blockchain lab lead at the consulting firm.In November, Deloitte will hold its own, five-day blockchain bootcamp in Brussels for about 30 staffers.

Eventually, bootcamps could become available to clients, he said.Many companies, like Google-parent Alphabet Inc., have run bootcamps for their own employees.This spring, 25 young developers at Capgemini Financial Services took an eight-week, full-time course.The consultancy hopes to have 100 employees go through by yearend, according to Bart Cant, the company’s blockchain community leader.“There’s only probably 100 blockchain experts in the world,” Cant said.“Most of them are at startups.People are liking that environment, it’s difficult for them to come to a more traditional environment.”To make programs more affordable, some universities have turned to sponsors. to offer its August workshop to 25 young people, said Brian Forde, the departing director of digital currency at the MIT Media Lab.Of course blockchain developers will only flourish if the technology does, and if tests companies are running now expand into wider, practical use.It could take several years for a large number of high-paying blockchain jobs to materialize, according to Dave Hoover, co-founder of Dev Bootcamp, a bootcamp for web developers.“To me it’s a matter of when, because I believe blockchain is fundamentally game-changing technology,” Hoover said.

“It’ll probably happen faster than it happened with the web.”More than 80 alternative currencies exist in the United States alone.From BerkShares in western Massachusetts to Bridgetown Bucks in Portland, Ore., cities and regions across the country print dollar alternatives to promote homegrown trade.But one alternative currency—that's completely digital and worldwide—has taken the main stage in the aftermath of the recent financial panic in Cyprus.Get started with a free financial assessment.And despite the fact that the bitcoin lost half of its value in April, thanks to better-than-expected economic news and a stock market rally, the digital currency remains more popular than ever—popping up in all sorts of places: You can spend bitcoins at any merchant that accepts them using your mobile device.You can transfer bitcoins from your virtual wallet to other bitcoin users.You also can cash in your bitcoins at online exchanges for other currencies.RELATED: Why Is Everyone Talking About the Trillion Dollar Coin?

But the rapid rise of bitcoin may leave you wondering what to do with this virtual money—and whether you should invest in it or, for that matter, even use it.Bitcoin's origin is shrouded in mystery.The first coins were created in January 2009 using a protocol published by a hacker or group of hackers going by the pseudonym "Satoshi Nakamoto."Computers produce the digital currency using a free, open-source program called a bitcoin miner.It requires a lot of processing power to mine bitcoins, and people who run bitcoin miners often work in groups to split the costs and share the rewards.They produce the currency at a predetermined rate, which limits the supply.There are more than 11 million bitcoins in circulation today.Only around 21 million will be made, in total, due to a hard limit built into the bitcoin code.But you have plenty of time before that happens: Bitcoin watchers don't expect the currency to hit that maximum until 2140 because the code cuts the number of new bitcoins that can be mined in half every four years.

RELATED: Bubble Trouble: Could Banks Lead Us Into Another Financial Crisis?A big part of bitcoin's appeal: No central authority regulates the currency; funds are transferred from person to person online instead of a bank or clearing house, keeping transfer fees very low.From February 1 to April 10, bitcoin's value surged 1,230%, from $20 to $266.Since some fear that unprecedented action by central banks worldwide will lead to the long-term devaluation of major currencies—such as the dollar and euro—people have turned to the bitcoin as a way to hedge against bad central banking policy.Thus far, bitcoin's production has run smoothly, but the currency has experienced extreme swings in value.In less than a day, the value then plunged to $184, and by the end of April, a bitcoin was worth $140.Cyber criminals have been behind some of the currency's price volatility.On April 21, the largest bitcoin exchange—Mt.Gox in Tokyo—was victim to a cyberattack that prevented users from converting bitcoins into major currencies for about four hours.

The response from exchange officials at the time: "While these attacks are a nuisance and a disservice to all bitcoin holders and enthusiasts, they are also part of the growing pains of this incredible new technology."Despite the risks, some people appear to be making a small fortune from bitcoin.Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss—the twins made famous in the movie "The Social Network"—claim that they own 1% of all bitcoins in circulation, which is now worth about $12 million."At some point, that narrative will shift to 'virtual currencies are here to stay.'We’re in the early days," Cameron Winklevoss told The New York Times.So how can ordinary investors get in on the action?You first need to create a virtual wallet to use bitcoins, which you can do for free on some websites, such as Blockchain.info and Coinbase.Once you've done this, you can receive and send bitcoin payments directly.If you don't have any bitcoins, you can buy them on an exchange, such as Coinbase.Fees for buying bitcoins typically range from 0.25% to 1% per transaction, depending on the size of the transaction and the exchange you use.

So it can be pricey if you buy bitcoins in small lots.RELATED: How Much Will Your Dollar Buy In The Future?"It's an interesting experiment," says Axel Merk, manager of the Merk Hard Currency Fund."People want an alternative to currencies that are manipulated by central banks."According to Merk, more than 60 investors have inquired about his fund investing in bitcoins, but he has no plans to do so because he thinks that there are better and more stable opportunities in currency markets.He's not alone in his thinking: Since the size of the bitcoin market is so small, there's hardly any interest from mutual funds to own the virtual currency.For some perspective, Bitcoin's total market capitalization only amounts to $1.2 billion.That's only 0.03% of the nearly $4 trillion—yes, trillion—that changes hands on currency markets each day.All the bitcoin buzz has, however, attracted scrutiny from regulators.The Department of Treasury issued rules in March to make bitcoin and other virtual currencies subject to the same level of regulation as other forms of currency in an effort to more closely watch transactions because the digital currency has been used to purchase drugs and other illegal items and services online.

RELATED: 12 Money Myths We Could Do Without The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is also examining whether bitcoin falls under its jurisdiction."It’s not monopoly money we’re talking about here—real people can have real risk in these instruments, and we need to ensure that we protect markets and consumers, even if what at first blush appears to be ‘out-there’ transactions," Bart Chilton, a commissioner at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, told the Financial Times.The Department of Homeland Security seized funds from Mt.Gox, which processes about two-thirds of bitcoin currency conversions, on May 14, saying that the exchange failed to register itself as a money transmitting business in the U.S.There are also practical concerns for the average consumer.Just ask Forbes writer Kashmir Hill, who used nothing but bitcoins to pay for things over the course of a week in San Francisco."I sometimes had to live on the fringes to get by," she wrote."It’s hard to convince someone who has never heard of bitcoin before to accept it as payment.