Constant Learning in a Wild West
I came into web3 a couple of years ago. I'm not even sure when, unlike most who can say the year. I learned about bitcoin and was converted to the cause but for some reason I did not buy any bitcoin. It was all a philosophy for me. The good thing about that is that I began by learning and not trading. I came to understand the technology through "Mastering Bitcoin" by Antonopoulos. Then a while later "Mastering Ethereum", along with a few other choice podcasts and blog posts. This firm grounding in how blockchains work, especially Proof of Work, set a strong foundation for subsequent developments in the field.
And then I burned out, I got sick of the very idea of blockchains. Much of this was because I got involved in the trading side of things, and spent less time on the tech itself. And so now, after a break of about 8 months, I find myself behind and out of date. I am passé - my knowledge, my skills, my awareness, the very paradigms I hold that are supposed to help me make sense of what is happening. What I realize I have to do is to repeat the process I began with. A few choice texts. Running a node. A lot of research into technicalities. Learning fundamental concepts repeatedly, in various ways, to make sure I truly understand it.
Bitcoin has moved enough that it requires a fresh look. Not just at the underlying tech, the specs, but also at the state of play with mining and use cases. Bitcoin has evolved, and it is a fine, subtle evolution. Ethereum poses a major task. Ethereum 2.0 is something I understand at a superficial level, as I think most do, certainly most that are interested only in price, and this isn't enough. I know more about what ethereum was than what it is and that's not good enough. And then there are the other major chains. I know so little about Solana, other than it is a contender for adoption and is possibly less decentralized. Cosmos is a vague chain too. How do these chains differ to ethereum? How are they being used? What kind of community involvement do they have? Use cases?
It is a cliche now that web3 is moving so fast that no one can keep up. This is true and it won't stop many of us from trying. To be at the bleeding edge of web3 one must specialize. To keep up with web3 one needs to focus on one field, likely one sub field and perhaps further specializing into sub-sub fields. There is also a need to have a working knowledge of the broad concepts of web3 as a whole, to understand fundamental concepts like Layer 2's, major chains and their structures like Cosmos and IPFS, to be versed in DAO's and how to navigate them.
Each of these 'fields' and many more are fundamental to web3. There will be more to come too. And each of these fields will continue to evolve, some in dramatic ways, almost completely changing their structure and operation.
More than web2, web3 will split society into those that create, those that consume, and those that build and develop. Web2 made a new class of people, the techno-literate class, the classic silicon valley programmer and engineer with a culture and philosophy that spread throughout the world and became the most attractive and sought after lifestyle for many educated middle class. Web3 is an evolution not just of tech but of culture as well. Many of the principles of this new culture are forming, and it remains to be seen whether the idealism and classic liberalism will hold in the face of enormous wealth and power.
What I believe is unavoidable is a further concentration of power and skill as web3 becomes the dominant information network. The barriers to entry are greater than that which existed for web2, certainly for web1. The programming is more difficult and takes longer to learn. There are fundamental concepts of cryptography that require deeper study. No doubt there will be abstraction and as always those that take the deeper, un-abstracted path will gain more skill and power. Especially in the early days of wild west exploration and discovery. The initial learning curve is steep and what more it will remain steep for years to come. There is no leveling off in sight. Once a dev has gone past the beginner's phase and gained some skill they will have to keep learning, keep on exploring. There will be no rest, no coasting. Constant learning on a level not seen before.
Imagine a class of explorers constantly discovering new lands, new environments with new laws of physics and biology. They explore, discover, lay down plans for towns and paths for those following to come, and then they move on to discover more. Towns die quickly as users move on to what has been newly discovered, and the builders who stayed to settle down have become users, consumers, losing their privileged positions as they lose their skill and knowledge. How many could keep up such a pace?
Photo by Daniel Burka on Unsplash