What is ETH?
Tags: webdev, codenewbie, blockchain, 100daysofcode
Published: 2022-03-01 22:04:00

Hi 👋, I recently have had the pleasure of learning web3 through @LearnWeb3DAO community, it has been nothing short of amazing. Everything is explained thoroughly and the community is always there ready to assist you.

As I was going through the freshman track I came across ETH also called ether. Well enough about me, let us talk about ETH or should I rather say ether. First of all, Ethereum is a form of digital money that is used primarily on the Ethereum platform, which can be transferred immediately to people you are familiar with over the internet usually for a lower fee.

Ethereum was conceived in 2013 by programmer Vitalik Buterin. Additional founders of Ethereum included Gavin Wood, Charles Hoskinson, Anthony Di Iorio, and Joseph Lubin. In 2014, development work commenced and was crowdfunded, and the network went live on 30 July 2015.

Ethereum is an open-source, decentralized blockchain platform that uses native coin - Ether (ETH) to pay for transaction fees which are called gas fees in web3. We will get to gas fees a bit later on in our blog posts. Well, the platform is capable of performing everything from moving currency and Non-Fungible Tokens(NFT) that can represent any asset, which we will also discuss at a later stage in our blogs. To execute advanced processes through the use of smart contracts.

Developers can utilize the Ethereum network to run dApps (decentralized applications) and issue entirely new crypto assets known as ERC-20 tokens. By the way, you can learn all this via @LeranWeb3DAO, and also we will have articles on these topics going forward.

Let's talk about how it works, well basically it is based on Bitcoin's protocol and its blockchain design, although it is more than that. Hmm... I know right, you think it's based on Bitcoin protocol and blockchain design although it does more than that how?

Let me explain how it works, Ethereum stores entire transaction histories of its respective network, I mean every node on the network has to be downloaded to its current state of each smart contract within a network. Every state consists of thousands and thousands of transactions, of which they are grouped as blocks. Every block is then chained together to its previous blocks, creating a chain of blocks. Although something to note first, before the transaction can be added to the ledger, it needs to be validated which goes through mining.

A node is a point of connection within a data communication network

A ledger is a computerized record of all transactions of a business/individual has completed

A state is information held about an Ethereum address or smart contract

A smart contract is a computerized transaction protocol that executes the terms of a contract

Mining is a process when a group of nodes applies their computing power to complete a proof of work challenge

Just to wrap up about ether, let us talk about its advantages. Ethereum is immune to third-party interventions, it is not controlled by one entity or person. It can eliminate the possibility of fraud, corruption and it is tamper-proof. The decentralized platform apps are always online and don't switch off.

With everything we discussed, it is safe to conclude that, the decentralized nature and cryptographic security make the Ethereum network well protected against a hacking attack and fraudulent activities. The system of recording information makes it impossible to change, hack or cheat the system.

You have a different idea or opinion about Ether, let us discuss it further in the comments section, or let's connect via Twitter.