Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP)
Bitcoin Improvement Proposal or BIP is a proposal submission for Bitcoin to improve or change the structure of the project. Bitcoin is an open-source and decentralized software. Therefore, for updates such as fixing bugs or improving performance in the Bitcoin system, the open public uses the proposed method.
Who can submit a BIP?
Everyone can propose a BIP for Bitcoin. However, there are steps for the proposal to follow for approval.
Steps of Approval for BIT
- The Draft submission
- Assigning BIP number: If the proposal fits the format and is completed, the editor of the BIPs assigns a number for the proposal and publishes it.
- Community consensus: There must be no legitimate arguments against the BIP after the BIP’s publication. Furthermore, most of the community must agree to the BIP. In addition, the community can also help the author(s) improve their idea for the draft.
- Implementation of the code: This step differs from the BIP type, but generally, the community starts to implement BIP with planned coding stages and activates it when it is ready.
Types of BIPs
In the Bitcoin system, there are three major types of BIPs.
- Standard BIP: This proposal type is about changes in the methods of Bitcoin, such as network protocol. It requires unanimity from the community for acceptance. One important quality for this type is that this proposal can also affect the BIPs.
- Informational BIP: Informational BIPs, just like the name, is about informing the community about the updates. These proposals are about the general guidelines and information about the support. It can be ignored by the community.
- Process BIP: It is about improving the project when it comes to this type of BIP. These proposals can not be ignored; therefore, it requires a consensus. The difference between the Standard BIP is that the features that come from the Process BIPs are about the external environment applications of the Bitcoin.
