Coqui33 thanks for your post, it was very informative, but as a newbie I still have lots of questions.  Part of the confusion is that the term Bitcoin often refers to a fraction of a Bitcoin.  Santoshi's article states "We define an electronic coin as a chain of digital signatures.". How does that chain of digital signatures get stored in a wallet?  Each time a coin (or fraction thereof) a new block is added to chain.  Does that mean the digital signatures get longer and longer?  A block in the chain contains the addresses of both parties.  Are those public addresses which correspond to private addresses?  Are those private addresses the privkeys you refer to?  Do I have privkeys for every bitcoin ( or fraction thereof) I receive?  Should I consolidate them by doing a transaction to myself.

I apologize for so many questions.  Thanks for any replies.