Really want to participate on this one but I only have a computer on my work and the laptop in my house is unreliable because it's an archaic Lenovo model. What does running a bitcoin node do? I'm curious about that because I want to explore the old stuff that other people used to do with bitcoin. Does running a node means that you're like a validator for the network?
Bitcoin is a blockchain. The native token of this blockchain is BTC.
When you press the "send" button on your wallet, or when you watch your balance and the balance is updated, the wallets must be connected to a "provider" of this information.
What do they do?
1. They connect with the rest of the nodes and they exchange block and transaction info to keep the whole network up to date.
2. They keep a local copy of the blockchain so they can't be "scammed" by fake transactions or by people who pretend to own BTC that they don't actually own.
3. They validate the validity of every transaction and every block
So why should you run a node?
1. So as you have the copy of the blockchain
2. So as you can use it to communicate with the rest of the network
3. So as you can validate yourself every transaction and be helpful for the network
4. For privacy reasons. You can't broadcast a transaction, or update the balance without using a node. If you use another person's node, then they will know everything about this transaction and the addresses that you use. So, using your own node is an easy way to fix it.
I can't stress enough how important nodes are for Bitcoin. They are the heart of the whole network. Miners too, of course, but nodes are easier to run and yet, not too many people run them.