Breaking down crypto from token to transistor.
This resource will allow you to understand in depth how most NFTs work on a fundamental level, how contracts are created, and the ability to review and audit contracts, and give members a general and deep understanding on Web 3. Key concepts will be genereal programming concepts, networking concepts, differentiating L1/L2 Networks (Layer 1 / Layer 2), and the breif underlying concepts behind computer science, describing hardware architecture, allowing people to understand how technology works down to a chemical level, granting a foundation allowing one to understand how crypto, and any form of software is able to work on a machine at the physical level
The foundation of programming lies in ones ability to formulate problems, think creatively about problems, and solutions, and is a great way to enhance ones problem solving skills. Usually the solutions we will look at and build will resemble an "algorithim", a step by step list of instructions that if followed exactly will solve the problems in consideration.
(Optional) About Solidity: Solidity is a high level programming language, like Python. The code is broken down (compiled), and processed by an EVM (Etherum Virtual Machine) enviorements used to run code on bulit on the Etherum platform. Influenced by Python, C++, and JavaScript. Other languages that are "not" high level could be machine language ( 0s and 1s), assembly language (Which is almost always broken down into machine language), and C, and other languages bulit out of assembly, more can continue to be built out. Keep in mind there may be different assmebly languages for different types of hardware architecture.
Computers, like the brain, are a tool. It is how we use the tools avaialble that determine our fate. One of the innate desires many of us have is to understand the world around us. It is through the discoveries and creations of physics, the small acts of manipulating the location of electrons, through neurological synapses in our brain, our through the wiring of a computer, how we do so can either help us or hurt our process of understanding the world around us, and inherently ourselves.
This is why it was determined to be fundamental in the process of teaching web devlopement, to also teach the history behind crypto, to allow Conductors to have a deeper understanding of not just the technology surrounding them everyday, but the electrons within that technology, the roots of those particles, and the roots of our very selves.
Computers have opened the doors to a variety of concepts, and ideas, previously inaccesible to mankind. A beautiful example of this idea is portrayed here in the Crypto anarchists manifesto. A document referenced in Satoshi Nakomoto's Bitcoin white paper: https://activism.net/cypherpunk/crypto-anarchy.html
Logic Gates: A computer circuit with inputs and one out put. They can be combined to have multiple outp puts as well. Logic gates come from another branch of math called boolean algebra. The concept here is that we are attempting to do calculations with only 1s, and 0s. and are representing logical statements. For example, "Do you have hot dogs and fries?" or "Do you have Hot Dogs, or Fries?" both are different questions. We will soon learn how a computer differntiates those two statements, represents logical operations, (rather adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing, we can use "And", "Or", & "Not", and combine these all together, to build computers. Let's take a look a dive into how a computer adds numbers, shortly after that we will take a deeper look at how the atoms and molecules are able to function and behave in the ways they do.
Architecture: Hardware architecture describes the way we organzie these "Logic gates". Lets take a look at the archeticture of an ALU. This is the Arithmetic Logic Unit, the part of the computer that focuses on arithmetic. In this scenario we are able to use "Ands", "Ors", "Nots", and other variations of those, to replicate our standard arithmitic. (ex: 12+7=19)
This discusses logic gates, which are built using semi-conductors.
How a CPU works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNN_tTXABUA&t=9s
Learn about the how logic gates and transistors are built here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcrBqCFLHIY
How computers do math: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBDoT8o4q00&t=580s
These 3 videos together will give you a wonderful foundation on how the general PC works. (Keep in mind, there are several ways logic gates can be organized to preform seperate tasks. This is why we have CPUs, and graphics cards. Incidentally the architecture in a GPU (grpahics card) is more effecient at running the algorithms used to mine Bitcoin, which is why they are so desired by miners)
It's great to have general concepts of computers, routers and networks, networks protocols, and encryption. It isn't required, but contionously deeping our knowledge on those subjects intitally, and as we go along, can help our minds better grasp and understand exactly what is happening under the hood. The less it seems like magic, the closer we get to the wizardly realm.
In the Crypto Conductors Discord, you can find many guides that may help you with your journey, as well as others like you. Don't be afriad to reach out for help; finding a partner to learn with, or a community that is engaging can be a great way to get questions answered, and excel your learning. Check out some of our guides written by one of our members! https://github.com/spo0ds/Journey-to-become-a-Blockchain-Engineer.
You can find other repositories by Spo0ds as well, or below or additonaly great resources to help accel your pathway into web 3:
CushyCrypto.com
LearnWeb3.io
HashLips Intro To Solidity
CryptoZombies
After gaining a basic understanding of Solidity programming, it's time to start understanding all the ways smart contracts are built, and broken. Congratsus on making it this far!
In this part we will complete Capture The Flag challenges. Make sure to view our Wallet-Set-Up channel to set a meta-mask wallet up. Many of the games are interactive;
1 Ethernaut: https://ethernaut.openzeppelin.com/
2 Capture The Ether https://capturetheether.com/
3 Damn Vulnerable Defi https://www.damnvulnerabledefi.xyz/
Try to avoid searching for solutions online until you are have absolutetly run into a dead end. Remember to try thinking from different perspectives.
This 16 minute video can help one understand how to think from new perspectives better: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M64HUIJFTZM There is a great write up of the Paradigm CTF solutions by Christoph Michel, one of the top auditors: https://cmichel.io/paradigm-ctf-2021-solutions/
DeFi stands for Decentralized Finance. The concept of decentralizition has been brefied in BRAIN DATA category in discord. Make sure to react with the student role to gain access. In short DeFi is an umbrella term to describe all financial networks, platforms, assets, and applications built on a blockchain that does not rely on a single institution or organization to work. (This differs from Banks, brokers, and third party payment systems such as PayPal, or MoneyWire)
Below are some useful resources for learning more about the DeFi ecosystem if don't feel familiar enough with the concepts:
Finematics; review a few videos that peak your interest. These sources are great at digging deeper into the more complex concepts in web 3: https://www.youtube.com/c/Finematics
Smart Contract Programmer: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJWh7F3AFyQ_x01VKzr9eyA
Defi-Learning MOOC https://defi-learning.org/f21
The buidling process can be a difficult start. What to build and where to begin? One suggestion I always like to make is find things that bring you pain or may be tedious, that you can proivde potential solutions to technologically. As you draft your concept up, be sure to share it with others of various diversities, especially those qualified in the fields you are beginning to enter, as they will provide great insights.
Once you have a good concept of what you would like to try to build, write out an outline of your approach, and what the UI and EX would look like. If you have the skills, begin building out basic prototypes, and drafts of either. look into emerging technologies, and reach out to their team! Perhaps they would be willing to partner or fund your projects, especially if that project is deemed a public good.
From here, you have created a foundation for something to buidl, and remember, if you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together!
At this point, you've completed the above chapters and are ready to start building as a Conductor! Congratulations, and welcome to the club! Stay up to date with the latest web 3 news. Some of the best sources are on twitter. Here are some accounts that may be good to follow, and be sure to continue interacting the in Conductors discord servers!