Take bitcoin, it consists of blocks, which are equations. A reward is given for solving each equation. But only a machine can solve this equation: a processor or a video card. People who buy cryptocurrency mining equipment are called miners. Other cryptocurrencies are mined according to a similar principle. Bitcoin (BTC) is the first and most famous cryptocurrency in the world.
The second most important digital cryptocurrency is Ether (ETH/Ethereum). There is a difference between bitcoin and ethereum. Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer payment system, while Ether is a digital currency and a platform that allows you to create and run smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps).
The Ethereum network also allows the creation of other cryptocurrencies using the Ethereum protocol (BTC and ETH operate on separate protocols and their processes are not connected to each other).