links

BOINC : http://boinc.berkeley.edu
Gridcoin : http://gridcoin.us
Gridcoin Wallet Download : http://gridcoin.us/Guides/gridcoin-install.htm

overview

Gridcoin is a cryptocurrency that pays miners to crunch projects from BOINC (Berkeley Open Infrastructure Networked Computing). BOINC is a volunteer network for people to "lend" their computing power to researchers. In a sense, it's similar to mining Bitcoin or similar currencies. To be clear, it's not going to make you money, but it's a way to be charitable while making some money back.

This is the simple setup for a wallet. Comment/upvote if you want to see a guide for installing BOINC and getting rewards to your wallet.

installation

Use the download link above to get a copy of the setup file, and (unless you have multiple drives to keep blockchains in)select all the default options. If you have Linux machine or want to modify options like where your wallet is stored, view the same download link for other installation options.

The only part the confused me, personally, was downloading the blockchain. The wallet didn't explicitly state any information about the process and took quite a few hours. Run your gridcoinresearch.exe file as administrator and wait (a LONG time) for it to load. You'll need to enter your email address when setting up the client, but that's nearly the only thing you'll need to do.

I recommend encrypting your wallet to maintain security. This option is in Settings/Encrypt Wallet on the top. Use a complex password, but keep in mind: if you lose your password or if your drive fails, you will lose your Gridcoin.

That's all it took for me, and I only posted this article because of how confusing the process can be. If you have any questions, comment below, and upvote this post to see more guides/tech news.