user15328: Conceptually, even if the network doesn't have any "real" transactions, the very act of mining creates new transactions to be mined. Self fulfilling prophecy. 
So, what is the real purpose of mining if the network is virtually dead? I suppose at that point the currency would be worth nothing and no one would mine it.
This is a bit of a philosophical question :-)
Likewise, is this similar to how pre-mining works? Where the creators mine the coin ahead of it's release?

user4276: The generation of new coins does create transactions, per se. This is a block reward from the Eligius pool. After the block is found, this transaction is included in the next block. If miners do not build on that block, then the reward is never given. Now, it's not a transaction, technically, but in the spirit of this question, yes, it is basically the same thing.
When Satoshi first started Bitcoin, it was probably just him and a few friends. I haven't looked, but I would bet that at least the first few blocks in the chain have no transactions except the block reward. That wasn't a problem at the time and I don't see why it would be now. The miner would still have to do the proof of work, even though there was no work.
Pragmatically, if the Bitcoin network devolved to a state where no one was trading it, yes, it would be because it was dead and worthless. There would probably still be a few miners, like me, that would continue to mine for a while, just in case it made a comeback some how.
Premining, I believe comes in two types. The first is as you suggest: A small group of people mine the coin privately for a time; whether there are transactions during this time or not doesn't really matter. The second is that the genesis block has a higher reward; sometimes it is much, much higher than the following blocks.

user8717: The goal of mining is essentially to (i) create new coins out of thin-air and (ii) to secure the network from double-spending attacks.
So no, the act of mining does not create new transactions to be mined, and it does not create work for itself. It validates transactions and keeps the nodes of the network on the same state.

15328: <p>Conceptually, even if the network doesn't have any "real" transactions, the very act of mining creates new transactions to be mined. Self fulfilling prophecy. </p>

<p>So, what is the real purpose of mining if the network is virtually dead? I suppose at that point the currency would be worth nothing and no one <em>would</em> mine it.</p>

<p>This is a bit of a philosophical question :-)</p>

<p>Likewise, is this similar to how pre-mining works? Where the creators mine the coin ahead of it's release?</p>
 4276: <p>The generation of new coins does create transactions, per se. <a href="https://blockchain.info/tx/da6196cc25039d95fae74830087d68d9d4b07ce29a727067126841956559ea56" rel="nofollow">This is a block reward from the Eligius pool.</a> After the block is found, this transaction is included in the next block. If miners do not build on that block, then the reward is never given. Now, it's not a transaction, technically, but in the spirit of this question, yes, it is basically the same thing.</p>

<p>When Satoshi first started Bitcoin, it was probably just him and a few friends. I haven't looked, but I would bet that at least the first few blocks in the chain have no transactions except the block reward. That wasn't a problem at the time and I don't see why it would be now. The miner would still have to do the proof of work, even though there was no work.</p>

<p>Pragmatically, if the Bitcoin network devolved to a state where no one was trading it, yes, it would be because it was dead and worthless. There would probably still be a few miners, like me, that would continue to mine for a while, just in case it made a comeback some how.</p>

<p>Premining, I believe comes in two types. The first is as you suggest: A small group of people mine the coin privately for a time; whether there are transactions during this time or not doesn't really matter. The second is that the genesis block has a higher reward; sometimes it is much, much higher than the following blocks.</p>
 8717: <p>The goal of mining is essentially to (i) create new coins out of thin-air and (ii) to secure the network from double-spending attacks.</p>

<p>So no, the act of mining does not create new transactions to be mined, and it does not create work for itself. It validates transactions and keeps the nodes of the network on the same state.</p>
