Dogecoin is a cryptocurrency that was created in December 2013 by software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer. It started as a lighthearted joke based on the popular "Doge" internet meme featuring a Shiba Inu dog. Despite its humorous origins, it evolved into a legitimate and widely recognized digital currency. Its core philosophy revolves around being a fun, friendly, and accessible alternative to the more serious and complex cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. Key Characteristics Technology: It is a fork of Litecoin, which itself is a fork of Bitcoin. It uses a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus mechanism, but unlike Bitcoin's SHA-256 algorithm, it uses Scrypt technology. This makes mining Dogecoin less energy-intensive and allows for faster transaction times. Supply: Unlike Bitcoin's capped supply of 21 million, Dogecoin has an inflationary supply. Initially, there was a cap of 100 billion coins, but this was later removed. There is no maximum supply; 5 billion new DOGE are minted every year indefinitely. This was designed to encourage spending rather than hoarding (as a true currency would). Speed and Cost: Dogecoin blocks are processed every 1 minute (compared to Bitcoin's 10 minutes), making transactions faster and cheaper. Transaction fees are typically very low. Community: The "Doge" community is one of its biggest assets. It's known for its generosity and fun-loving spirit, famously funding charitable causes and sponsoring sports teams and events (like NASCAR driver Josh Wise and the Jamaican Bobsled team). The Elon Musk Factor A major driver of Dogecoin's popularity and price volatility has been Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. He has frequently tweeted about Dogecoin, often calling it the "people's crypto." His tweets have repeatedly caused the price to surge dramatically. His influence is so significant that he is often jokingly referred to as the "Dogefather." $BTC