Rollups, on the Bitcoin Network (Here’s What That Means)

Article source, here.

TL;DR

• ‘Rollups' are batches of transactions that are 'rolled up' and squeezed into (what would usually be) a single transaction.

• A new rollup solution has been proposed on Twitter; with the claim that it will let users retrieve and store data on the Bitcoin blockchain.

• The problem is, it doesn't help with saving blockspace for BTC transactions, it's less secure, and there's no easy way to put data on and off the chain.

Full Story

Remember as a kid, when your mom would say "you're allowed one (one!) treat."

...and instead of picking a single candy bar, you'd get her on a technicality and pick a party bag of 'fun size' Snickers.

Crypto rollups work in a similar way.

'Rollups' are common on the Ethereum network - batches of transactions are 'rolled up' and squeezed into (what would usually be) a single transaction.

Which saves on transaction costs and frees up space in the transaction queue.

On Sunday, Rollkit posted its new rollup solution on Twitter; with the claim that it will let users retrieve and store data on the Bitcoin blockchain.

But here's the problem:

A rollup on a Layer-1 blockchain (like Bitcoin) doesn't inherit any of the security of the blockchain.

And that's fundamentally what Bitcoin is known for - a slow, but super secure network.

So people have called out that it's just an alternative, much less secure, Layer-1 blockchain that puts more data on the Bitcoin network.

It doesn't help with saving blockspace for BTC transactions, it's less secure, and there's no easy way to put data on and off the chain.

We're filing this one under: "Points for creativity, but we'll stick with Layer-2 rollup solutions for now"