Blockchain

Since Bitcoin was open sourced in 2009, we've been reading about how cryptocurrencies are the new internet. But how do they actually work? Lucy Wyman offers a deep dive into blockchains, covering what a blockchain is, how it works, the cool math and theory that it uses, and applications beyond cryptocurrencies. Read more.

Tracy Kuhrt offers an introduction to Hyperledger Indy, a distributed ledger built for decentralized identity. It provides tools, libraries, and reusable components for creating and using independent digital identities rooted on blockchains or other distributed ledgers. Read more.

Hyperledger Sawtooth is an open source modular platform hosted by Hyperledger for building, deploying, and running distributed ledgers. Kelly Olson offers an overview of Hyperledger Sawtooth, shares current development efforts on the project, explains how to get started with the code, and details different ways you can contribute to Hyperledger Sawtooth 1.0. Read more.

John Feminella explains the core cryptographic and distributed-systems properties that make the blockchain work as he walks you through building your own cryptocurrency from scratch. Read more.

Myrle Krantz explains how open source and transparent distributed systems are supporting financial inclusion and offers an overview of Fineract CN, the cloud-native version of Apache Fineract, built as a microservice architecture, and Stellar, an open source blockchain implementation for transferring fiat currencies in a secure, transparent manner. Read more.

Personal transportation is on the cusp of the first major revolution in 100 years. Valentin Bercovici discusses the unexpected role blockchains will play in giving us all mobility choices we soon won't be able to live without. Read more.

The blockchain is a formerly niche idea that’s on the path to becoming a standard technology (think responsive design or containers). The sweet spot for the blockchain is transactional data. Using an ownership-tracking example, Erin Morrissey walks you through the technical ideas behind the blockchain to show how each contributes and explains why any of it even matters. Read more.

The existing caller ID database is typically out of date and can't be trusted. Mack Hendricks explains how the existing decentralized caller ID database could be replaced with blockchain technology. More importantly, the blockchain could be used to authenticate calls to reduce telemarketing calls and fraudulent calls. Read more.

Deb Nicholson explains why, before “disrupting” existing systems by replacing them with the blockchain, we must ensure that the power and potential to improve lives is real and reasonably evenly distributed. We owe it to the future to make good early decisions and to refrain from overselling the blockchain’s potential to be a force for good until we’re certain it is. Read more.

DApp: It's not a dance move; it's the future. Faisal Abid takes you through decentralized apps (DApps), explaining what they are, how they work, and how to build them. Read more.

Hyperledger was formed with the vision of establishing a community that brings together the smartest minds to solve the challenges of delivering blockchain technology for the enterprise. Christopher Ferris explains how Hyperledger's "greenhouse" is not only incubating new technologies but also entering into the collaboration and consolidation phase. Read more.

Steven Wagner explains how the Decred project has taken blockchain technology one step further by decentralizing the process of political decision making by implementing on-chain voting by users. Read more.