What kind of internet do you want?

What is Web3 series

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What's Wrong With Web2?

Let’s chat about why web2 has problems like monopolies, data mining, and inefficient energy usage. When the web began it offered the promise of connecting people and information around the world, but it’s become a place where just a few companies control access, users are spied on and resources are wasted. What happened? Can it be fixed?

What is Web3?

Web1, web2 and web3 refer to different eras of the web. In this video we look at the history of the web, why it became centralized and controlled by a handful of companies, and how web3 will re-decentralized the web, restore trust through verifiable transparency, and give users digital ownership. Web3 will replace closed platforms with open protocols, just as the web1 replaced closed platforms like AOL, Compuserve & Prodigy.

What is Blockchain?

We're talking all about blockchain technology - what blockchains are, the invention of blockchain, the first blockchain to go mainstream, and why the Bitcoin blockchain unlocked web3!

What Is Public Key Cryptography?

In this video we break down the basics of cryptography - what it is, how it works, why it’s been essential to the development of the web and how it’s used with blockchain and web3. If you only remember one takeaway from this video we hope its this - never share your private keys!

Four Things Governments Need to Know About Blockchain

The web was always intended to be an open space — of, by & for the People. But the web has become monopolized by a handful of walled garden platforms who control the infrastructure, because when the web began, the technology didn’t exist to build an open source protocol for indexing & distribution.

What is Proof of Work?

We’re talking about something so essential to Web3, that it wouldn’t exist without it - and that’s Proof of Work. In this video, we’re breaking down what it is, the important benefits it provides, and of course, discussing the problems it faces!

What Is Bitcoin?

Today we’re talking about Bitcoin! It's an essential part of web3. Beyond all the hype, the future of technology and Bitcoin are inextricably linked. We're diving into the 5 basic things you need to know about Bitcoin - what it is, how it works, how to get it, how to store it, and why it has value.

What Are Stablecoins?

Stablecoins are meant to be a digital currency that has a fixed unit of value rather than a free floating market price like Bitcoin. There has been a lot of drama, controversy and confusion about stablecoins this year so we are going to break down the basics and talk about what they are, how they work, and the purpose they serve on web3.

What Is Proof of Stake?

One of the most important aspects of blockchain technology is the security of the ledger - the way the decentralized network of computers is able to verify blockchain transactions and determine which branch of the blockchain is correct. Proof of Stake was developed in 2012 and is now in use by some big projects including Ethereum, Cosmos, Solana, Cardano, Tezos and dozens of others. Lets chat about what Proof of Stake is, why it was introduced, and how it works, and some of the advantages and disadvantages it offers.

Crypto VS. Web3

Lets chat about crypto vs web3 - how they are different and why they have taken the tech industry, and the world, by storm. While many may use them interchangeably, crypto and web3 are not synonyms. Web3 is an umbrella term that cryptocurrency falls under, but web3 is larger and encompasses other protocols as well. So let's talk about the categories of web3 and where cryptocurrency is involved.

What web3 Regulation Needs

US regulation of crypto, blockchain, and web3 has become a very hot topic. With both the House and Senate having hearings on the collapse of FTX this week, its clear regulation is coming. But the details of regulation matter and the stakes are high, well intentioned regulation with harmful unintended consequences looms. Lets chat about what web3 regulation needs.

How the uncertain regulatory landscape is pushing web3 out of the US

The US has led the technology sector for more than 30 years, it was the leader of both web1 and web2 because the regulatory landscape provided the framework entrepreneurs & innovators needed to build businesses. However, the lack of clarity about what regulations apply to web3 infrastructure and unpredictable enforcement against entrepreneurs by the SEC is holding back web3 in the US. If the US wants to stay ahead in tech, it needs to provide clear and carefully constructed regulations that foster innovation and growth.

What Are Bitcoin Smart Contracts

We are talking about smart contracts - a revolutionary technology that will be an essential part of web3. At its core, the internet is a global network of connected computers that allows us to share information and communicate with each other. Since its invention at the beginning of the 90’s the world wide web has had the potential to be so much more – it could be a platform for open communication, innovation, collaboration, and economic growth, and clearly it’s met a lot of that potential, but the centralized infrastructure of web2 has been holding it back. Decentralizing it is how it will reach its full potential, which is what we mean by the term Web3, and a big piece of how that will happen is with self-executing code, or what’s become known as “Smart Contracts."

What are smart contracts? Part 2: Turing Complete (Ethereum)

Today we're talking about turing complete smart contracts. Last week we talked about the general concept of smart contracts - where the idea came from, what they are and how a simple scripting version of them can work with a network like bitcoin. We are taking it a step further and talking about turing complete smart contracts.

What is Ethereum?

After Bitcoin, Ethereum is the second most well-known and valuable cryptocurrency, however, they have different use-cases. While the purpose of Bitcoin is value - whether value transfer or a store of value - the purpose of Ethereum is to execute smart contracts.

How Arweave Solves the Decentralized Data Persistence Problem: A Journey through Web3 Evolution

Join Devon James as he takes us on a fascinating journey through the evolution of decentralized file storage protocols, from BitTorrent to IPFS, Filecoin, and finally, Arweave. In this first part of a four-part series, Devon discusses the challenges faced in the decentralized web space and how Arweave offers a promising solution for long-term preservation of data in a scalable way. Learn about the importance of a permissionless information space in ensuring freedom from tyrants, and how protocols can provide tools for the application layer to address content moderation responsibly. Don't miss out on this insightful exploration of the quest for a truly permanent and immutable data storage layer for the web!

The Future of Data Storage: How Arweave's Permaweb Revolutionizes the Internet

Join Devon James as he explores Arweave's innovative approach to permanent, decentralized data storage. Learn about the fascinating history of storage costs and how Arweave's unique pricing model ensures your data will be stored forever. Discover how Arweave's mining process is efficient and scalable, and how their technology solves major challenges like the tragedy of the commons. Get a glimpse of the future of data storage with Arweave's Permaweb and stay tuned for upcoming videos on using and running Arweave!

Upload Files to the Permaweb with Arweave: Akord, Ardrive, and Bundlr | Web3 Made Easy

In this episode of "What Kind of Internet Do You Want?", Devon James introduces you to three popular platforms for uploading files to the Arweave permaweb: Akord, Ardrive, and Bundlr. Learn how these innovative web3 technologies are reshaping the way we store and share information online, and how you can use them to create a more resilient, open, and censorship-resistant internet.

Non-Custodial Wallets for Arweave: ArConnect and Keystone Pro

Devon James dives deeper into using Arweave, a protocol for permanent information storage. He walks viewers through the process of setting up and using two non-custodial wallets for storing and using Arweave tokens: ArConnect, a popular chrome browser extension, and the Keystone Pro, a hardware wallet that recently added support for Arweave. Devon explains the difference between custodial and non-custodial wallets and the importance of keeping tokens under personal control. Don't miss out on this informative episode and be sure to subscribe to the channel for more insights into the world of web3!

Articles

The Most Important Web3 Use Case No One is Talking About

Introducing Web3 Working Group, a nonprofit to expand the possibilities of web3 infrastructure By Amy James, Co-Executive Director Since Bitcoin was first introduced, the financial applications of blockchain technology have taken center stage, but web3 is about so much more than cryptocurrency. Most of the well known projects — development work, trader activity, and regulator attention — have been focused on the financial aspects of the technology like DeFi, NFT’s, ICO’s and stablecoins. But web3 is bigger than financial services — it is reshaping the infrastructure of the web itself, transforming the services we use everyday from centralized platforms to open protocols. Infrastructure is the foundation of prosperityWeb3 will have an impact on all our daily lives — not through DeFi, but through infrastructure. Everyday, internet users depend on centralized platforms for file storage, cloud processing, video transcoding, API queries and content indexing — turning these into decentralized protocols will make the web open and accessible to everyone, providing a free and fair marketplace for communication and ideas. The implications of this technology are huge, but the transformative power of web3 infrastructure hasn’t yet gotten the attention it deserves. My husband Devon and I have worked in the web3 infrastructure space since 2014, before the term web3 was commonly used. When he read the Bitcoin whitepaper, Devon saw that blockchain technology could be used for all kinds of applications, and because we had backgrounds in the entertainment industry, we were particularly excited about how it could be used for content distribution. Being so early to web3 infrastructure, we faced a lot of pushback. But we’ve also been lucky to connect with visionaries who understand that decentralizing the infrastructure of the web will allow it to reach its true potential. After we received encouragement from Sir Tim Berners-Lee during our presentation at the inaugural Decentralized Web Summit in 2016, I read his book Weaving the Web about building web1. I learned how he founded the W3C to support the adoption and growth of the WorldWideWeb, and I dreamt that someday a similar organization would come about to support web3. So I’ve been incredibly excited to launch the Web3 Working Group to educate about decentralized infrastructure. We’re thrilled to introduce Web3 Working Group, a new 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization providing education about how web3 infrastructure will decentralize the web and permanently restore user control of cyberspace. We will advocate for web3 builders working to replace the centralized control of web2 platforms with transparent and permissionless protocols through incentives aligned with users. We’re excited to have the support of great partners like Arweave, Livepeer, Akash, and The Graph with $2 million in funding for us to reach our goals. With this funding we are bringing back What Kind of Internet Do You Want?, the video series I created in 2019, expanding outreach with social media content, educating regulators and creating the resources developers need to build fully decentralized applications. So far, we have produced a series of primer videos explaining the basic ideas — the problems with web2, what is web3, what blockchain, proof of work consensus, public key cryptography are, and more. If there is a web3 topic you think we should talk about or developer resources you need, please reach out to us at https://web3wg.org or on social media.

Read the article on medium.web3wg.org