In any period of accelerated change, like the one we have recently experienced, there will be some adaptations that can be viewed as positive, some as negative. Often our situation or perspective will determine in which of these categories we view things. For example, it is believed that the supply-chain shortages that were experienced during the pandemic are driving countries to be more independent and self-sufficient going forward, leading to an overall reduction in ‘globalization’ trends in general. Whether you think this is a good thing or a bad thing will depend on your point of view.
However, one area that defies this trend and is growing rapidly now involves the development of what have been called ‘Web 3’ technologies. These are essentially less centralized applications built to replace many things that we currently experience through a centralized entity. For example, interacting socially with your NFT community on Discord [Web 3] instead of posting on FB [Web 2]. (Note that I’m using the terms ‘less centralized’ instead of ‘decentralized’ which you will hear a lot in the Web 3 context. More on this later 🤔). Because most Web 3 entities are founded on blockchain technology, they are naturally borderless and can operate largely independently from nation state boundaries. The opportunities represented by these projects also tie in nicely with additional trends that have been accelerated by the pandemic and that many will view as positive. These are the increased ability to work remotely and increased access to high quality, online educational content.
Putting it all together, if you’re interested in working remotely with a global outlook in a thriving technological space, Web 3 may be for you. One of the best strategies can be to learn enough to get a job in this area, at which point your learning curve can continue. Because Web 3 is so new and growing quickly there are opportunities for those with the right skills but not necessarily a lot of experience. After all, it’s hardly been around long enough for anyone to have an extensive resumé in the space. If you’re looking to tool up, here are some ideas along with economical educational resources from Udemy to get you on your way.
Web Development
Of course, Web 3 entities still need plenty of web development. The front end is still operating pretty much the same as before, even if key elements of the back end are on chain. HTML, CSS and JavaScript along with their associated libraries are essential skills. This comprehensive Web Development course lead by Angela Yu from The App Brewery, a leading coding bootcamp in London, covers these and much more including bank end elements like Node.js and databases. There is also an extensive section for React as well as an introductory section for Web 3 development! This course is frequently offered at close to the minimum sale price on Udemy, an incredible value. Besides all the code and resources there are also 65 hours of video instruction. At this writing the course has been taken by over 600,000 students, wow! Angela is an excellent instructor and explains new concepts in a helpful, intuitive way.
Smart Contract Deployment
The biggest adjustment to the back end of websites for Web 3 is the ability to deploy the functionality associated with smart contract and protocols on the blockchain. While there are other chains, Ethereum remains the major player. The language to learn to write smart contracts and protocols to run on the Ethereum blockchain is Solidity. This course led by Stephen Grider offers 24 hours of video instruction and has been taken by over 100,000 students.
Communication
If coding and web development isn’t really your thing, you’ll be happy to know that the ability to manage communication for Web 3 communities is an important skill for which there are a number of openings. While Telegram groups may be an option in certain cases, by far the most popular option for many NFT communities and DAOS is to host their communications hub on Discord. This communications platform started out as a VOIP communications option for gamers, so that they could talk and play at the same time, but it later expanded as a communications tool for communities, which is pretty much anyone. You can use it to make voice and video calls, text messaging and to run ‘servers,’ which are the private chats that many communities are using today. This Discord course on Udemy can be completed more quickly than those for web development, containing only 5 hours of live instruction.
Getting started in Web 3? Drop me a line and let me know what you’re up to 😊
