Foundations

What this page explains#

Build the entry path into Kaspa without stopping at a slogan. This category explains the network identity, the reason blockDAG vocabulary appears, the first operational branches, and the boundary between historical context and current protocol claims. This page sits in Foundations. It gives the topic a plain-language handle first, then shows the working idea, the mechanism, the source trail, and any limits that still matter. This category gives the reader durable handles before any source walk begins. It keeps identity, motivation, vocabulary, history, and first practical routes separate so a later consensus or developer page does not have to carry every introduction at once.

The writing follows a simple Kaspa documentation pattern: answer the practical question first, then link outward for details. The closest public sources for this page are WIKI-HOME, WIKI-KASPA, WIKI-GETTING-STARTED, WIKI-FAQ, WIKI-BACKGROUND. Local notes can help choose what to explain, but public-facing references resolve to upstream websites, repositories, papers, release pages, or docs.

How to think about it#

The practical model starts by naming the layer that owns the topic: wallet use, node operation, consensus, transaction validation, Toccata script behavior, tooling, or research. From there, the page shows which public source can support the explanation and where the explanation becomes incomplete.

For Foundations, the model is built around these anchors: Kaspa is taught first as a proof of work network before the guide routes into blockDAG, UTXO, operations, and source review; Kaspa documentation pages shape flow and tone, while implementation, KIPs, releases, docs, and papers support stronger claim classes; History, tokenomics, and background reading stay separated from current protocol mechanics; Unresolved or volatile material remains needs checking instead of becoming public certainty; Public guide citations resolve to upstream sources that the Kaspa community can inspect. This model is useful, but it does not encode every constant, branch, error type, or edge case. Those details belong in the source path and the source notes.

How it works#

1. Kaspa is taught first as a proof of work network before the guide routes into blockDAG, UTXO, operations, and source review. Foundation pages introduce why Kaspa needs these words before they explain the internals. The first-contact model is that proof of work gives blocks an objective work signal, blockDAG structure keeps parallel block information in view, and GHOSTDAG is the later ordering bridge. Source-level validation belongs in the consensus and core protocol pages.

2. Kaspa documentation pages shape flow and tone, while implementation, KIPs, releases, docs, and papers support stronger claim classes. Foundation pages turn a short public idea into a stable learning path. The explanation names why the topic appears, which later page carries the mechanism, and what source class can support stronger claims. The goal is orientation that does not pretend to be implementation proof.

3. History, tokenomics, and background reading stay separated from current protocol mechanics. Foundation pages turn a short public idea into a stable learning path. The explanation names why the topic appears, which later page carries the mechanism, and what source class can support stronger claims. The goal is orientation that does not pretend to be implementation proof.

4. Unresolved or volatile material remains needs checking instead of becoming public certainty. Foundation pages turn a short public idea into a stable learning path. The explanation names why the topic appears, which later page carries the mechanism, and what source class can support stronger claims. The goal is orientation that does not pretend to be implementation proof.

5. Public guide citations resolve to upstream sources that the Kaspa community can inspect. Foundation pages turn a short public idea into a stable learning path. The explanation names why the topic appears, which later page carries the mechanism, and what source class can support stronger claims. The goal is orientation that does not pretend to be implementation proof.

This mechanism section is intentionally shallow-to-deep: it gives the first usable explanation, then names the later page where source-level mechanics belong. Foundation pages must not smuggle in covenant, ZK, or readiness claims unless the Source List and Source Notes support that exact bridge.

How to check it#

When using this page for a wiki article, keep orientation separate from mechanics. The page can name the path and the next concept, but detailed wallet, node, mining, consensus, transaction, or Toccata behavior belongs in the downstream page that carries the stronger Source List.

Expanded Category Guide#

This category carries the public entry path. Its pages should introduce Kaspa identity, Kaspa documentation orientation, source discipline, terminology, history, and tokenomics without drifting into trading or hype.

Use this category as a curated path. Start with the category README to understand the boundary, then read the mechanism pages, then follow source-path or open-gap pages for claims that need stronger evidence. If a page contains needs checking rows, keep those claims visibly unresolved until a reader reads the cited public source directly.

The category should not be treated as final authority by folder name alone. The authority comes from page Source Notes, Source Lists, public URLs, and the status labels attached to each claim.

Related Pages#

• foundations
• what-is-kaspa

Topic pages#

• What Is Kaspa: Kaspa is introduced as a proof of work cryptocurrency network whose core learning path quickly leads into blockDAG consensus, UTXO transactions, node operation, and source-backed verification.
• Why Kaspa: This page explains the problem Kaspa is trying to address before it introduces deeper protocol terms.
• Why blockDAG Matters: This page gives the first transition from ordinary chain intuition into Kaspa's blockDAG model, while keeping paper vocabulary separate from implementation behavior.
• Getting Started: A practical start page points readers toward the first action they are trying to take: hold keys, run a node, mine, build, or study source behavior.
• Terminology: Kaspa terminology should be introduced as a working vocabulary that connects wiki prose to implementation terms.
• FAQ: The FAQ uses question-led sections to answer common Kaspa questions directly while pointing deeper pages to source-checked explanations.
• Background Reading: Background reading is a research shelf, not a shortcut around implementation review.
• How This Guide Uses Sources: This page teaches the source hierarchy used by the v1 guide so public wiki prose does not confuse orientation, implementation, releases, KIPs, papers, tools, and local experience.
• Kaspa documentation Flow And Contribution Style: This page records how the guide borrows the useful information flow of wiki.kaspa.org without copying its prose or weakening source discipline.
• Timeline: Timeline material gives dates and sequence without converting history into current operational advice.
• Prehistory: Prehistory is useful context for how Kaspa emerged, but it is not a source for current protocol mechanics.
• Tokenomics: Tokenomics pages explain supply, emission, genesis, fees, and miner incentives without drifting into trading claims.

Topic notes#

This category is accepted when the subpages explain the actual topics, not merely the source links. Each subpage carries public source IDs, claim labels, Open Questions, and a path from first contact into source review.