Your Guide to Mastering Web3 Development

Hello fellow developer! Welcome to the world of Web3. This comprehensive hands-on guide will equip you with all the tools needed to build the next generation of decentralized blockchain applications.

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Introduction to Web3 Stack

But before we dive into the technology, it‘s important to grasp the massive potential and shift that Web3 promises compared to traditional centralized platforms.

Decentralized apps put users in charge rather than big tech corporations. They enable borderless community-owned networks facilitated by the open transparency of blockchains.

The numbers speak for themselves:

  • Over $120 Billion locked in DeFi protocols owned by users
  • 90+ million NFTs traded till date across gaming, metaverses and digital art
  • 500k+ developers building on Web3 protocols

So why build on Web3?

  • App data transparency and integrity powered by cryptography
  • User identities and ownership managed via wallets rather than usernames/passwords
  • Payments built using tokens and native crypto economies
  • Resilient data persistence via decentralized storage

This gives rise to new categories like SocialFi, CreatorFi and PlayFi that encapsulate social networking, content monetization and gaming with decentralized principles.

While the canvas is vast, mastering the underlying technology is key. So let‘s get started!

Choosing your Platform Layer

Every Web3 app starts with the foundational blockchain layer that powers the backend complexity.

The popular mainstream choice includes:

Ethereum

Pioneer for programmable smart contract transactions and an essential building block for NFT projects…

Code Sample: Deploying an ERC-20 contract

pragma solidity ^0.8.0;

import "https://github.com/OpenZeppelin/openzeppelin-contracts/blob/master/contracts/token/ERC20/ERC20.sol";

contract MyToken is ERC20 {

    constructor(uint256 initialSupply) ERC20("MyToken", "MTK") {
        _mint(msg.sender, initialSupply);
    }
}

Test this on the Hardhat local network covered later in the guide.

Polygon

Ethereum compatible chain that helps scale Dapps with faster and affordable transactions…

Sample Projects

  • Decentraland – Explore the 3D VR metaverse world
  • Aavegotchi – DeFi-integrated crypto collectibles

…cover more layers and development environments…

Managing User Identity

Unlike web2 apps, identity management in web3 is based on wallet addresses rather than usernames/passwords.

Let‘s look at integrating authentication flow using WalletConnect.

Connect via WalletConnect

Here is how the signup flow works:

  1. User scans QR code to connect wallet
  2. Authentication payload signed
  3. Confirm transaction in wallet
  4. User logged into decentralized app!

Code to initialize connector:

// Initialize session
const connector = new WalletConnect({
  bridge: "https://bridge.walletconnect.org" 
});

if(!connector.connected) {
  // create new session
  connector.createSession()  
}

The process for signing transactions works similarly.

We have unlocked the power of cryptographically connecting user wallets to decentralized apps!

Storing Data on Decentralized Cloud

While Google Drive and Dropbox may go down occasionally, Web3 apps need always-available persistent data storage. This reliability comes from distributed peer-to-peer storage protocols like IPFS, Filecoin and Storj.

Here is how easy it is to get started.

Building with IPFS

  1. Import the JavaScript client library
  2. Initialize the IPFS node connection
  3. Add files to distributed storage

Code Sample

const ipfsAPI = require(‘ipfs-http-client‘);
const ipfs = ipfsAPI({ host: ‘ipfs.infura.io‘, port: ‘5001‘, protocol: ‘https‘ });

const file = fs.readFileSync("/data.txt");  

ipfs.add(file, (err, result) => {  
  if(err) {
    console.error(err)
    return
  }

  const hash = result[0].hash;
})

This content-addressed hash can be shared publicly for access!

…cover other storage options…

Building Intuitive Front-ends

Let‘s explore integrating blockchain data into web-based app frontends:

Display Wallet Balance

import { useState, useEffect } from "react";
import { ethers } from "ethers";

function WalletData() {

  const [balance, setBalance] = useState(0);  

  useEffect(() => {
    // Ethers.js provider 
    const provider = new ethers.providers.Web3Provider(window.ethereum);

    const getBalance = async () => {
      const balance = await provider.getBalance(walletAddress);  
      setBalance(ethers.utils.formatEther(balance));
    }

    getBalance();
  }, []);

  return (
    <div>
       <p>Wallet balance: {balance} ETH</p>
    </div>
  );
}

This reusable React component fetches dynamic on-chain data to display in app UIs!

…cover other front-end libraries/frameworks…

Testing Tools for Sandbox Environments

Before deploying on public networks, every Web3 app goes through rigorous simulation testing. Let‘s see them in action:

Hardhat Network

Local Ethereum network designed for development and testing needs.

Code Sample

describe("Token contract", function () {
  it("Deployment: Checks total supply", async function() {

    // Deploy contract
    const Token = await ethers.getContractFactory("MyToken") 
    const token = await Token.deploy(10000)

    // Test state
    const total = await token.totalSupply() 
    assert.equal(total.toString(), "10000")
  })
})

This replicates real-world test cases before mainnet launch!

…cover other testing tools…

Congratulations on completing this Web3 development starter guide! You are now ready to architect the future of decentralized applications.

Check out these additional resources for open-source code, tutorials and community forums to take your learning further:

  1. Buildspace – Learn Web3 by building projects
  2. Web3 University – Courses on all things blockchain
  3. Moralis – Cross-chain development ecosystem
  4. Cryptozombies – Fun way to learn DApp development

So open your favorite code editor, get your wallet address setup and let‘s start building the decentralized future together!

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