Web3 For Dummies
The Relevance of Web3 and NEAR
Web 3.0 consists of a profound change in the infrastructure behind the network as we know it today. Artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, advanced cryptography, and decentralised systems are laying the foundations of a new approach to the Internet characterized by a greater awareness, and consequent greater control, of users.
Why is Web3 relevant?
The term “Web3” has been around for the past twenty years, but only recently its development has caught the attention of a wider audience. In fact, as the problems of Web2 become more painfully obvious by the day, a growing number of people are looking for an alternative, able to guarantee privacy and freedom while maintaining and improving user experience.
The idea of a Web3, the idea of a decentralized, open and inter-communicable network, was born to precisely to create a human-centered internet, a safer, fairer and more transparent web, based on the idea of multiplying profit centers by sharing the value, in an open network. NEAR Protocol is committed to these objectives and its open source infrastructure is the cradle of cutting edge projects that are going to materialise the promise of a human-centered Internet.
How does NEAR contribute to the development of Web3?
There are three core components that make up NEAR’s infrastructure. The first is blockchain technology, which allows states to be publicly stored. The second are the servers that provide computation services and security to the network, called Validator nodes. The third and last is the custom code deployed to the blockchain that is executed and saved by validator nodes.
Permissionless protocols like NEAR allow anyone to run a node, create an account and interact with the network regardless of any sociological, geographical or demographical factor. Moreover, the rules of the protocol are not subjectively imposed by a single entity but they are open and democratically shaped and importantly, fully verifiable. That means that no central entity or government can shut down the sites and services built on the protocol as these are operated through a consensus mechanism by independent participants.
These components allow for the creation of decentralised applications (dApps) that are able to provide the same Web2 experience on the front end while enhancing the beck-end connecting it to public Web3 infrastructure. This system allows users to retain ownership of their personal data and to avoid the inconveniences of centralised networks.
How can I start transitioning from Web2 to Web3?
Developers coming from a Web2 reality can quickly get started on NEAR by following NEAR Academy, a free course that teaches in an easy and interactive way how to integrate blockchain solutions to Apps. NEAR Academy offers a great overview of Web3 and the implications of its development and makes it easy for developers to build the future of the Open Web.
LaDevochka is a writer for 4NTS Guild. You can check out their Medium for more content or follow them on Twitter.
