Web3 is currently “a buzz word” taking over the world. People are talking about Web3, Blockchain, Internet Of Things. There’s been a lot of preposition and debates, we are now at the Next big turning point and this brings the question- How did we get here? Here’s an overview:

Web1:

Back in the 1990s, there was an era of the internet that consisted of static pages and content in text or images. More like “a Read-only”, with only a selected few actively creating content. Web1 was really boring and just in time came web2.

Web2 :

Thankfully, Web 2 (where we are now, though a lot of people are transitioning from)was and is much more exciting. Web2 is the version of the internet most of us know and use today. Where Web1 was static and “read-only,” Web2 is “read-write,” and interactive. Under Web2, the internet became more usable: web2 was dynamic and users could consume, interact with, and create content on the internet themselves. The introduction of frontend technologies like Javascript, and backend technologies like PHP, allowed developers to program dynamic websites. User generated content and social networking created a new online age of creation and collaboration.

Today, we can read, write, view, and upload content on various platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, and other socials. We share, connect, and communicate with each other across the globe. One problem is that most of Web2 is now controlled by a few Big-Tech corporations, and all user activity is monitored.

Why is this a problem? In the centralized internet we know today, Apple can take a 30% cut on all paid-app downloads and in-app purchases, Twitter and Facebook can de-platform the POTUS, and the everyday consumer has less privacy, security, and control over their online information than ever before.

We also see a lot of data breaches happening all across web2 leading to reduced security and privacy for one's personal data. When a user's data gets breached its easy for them to become a victim of identity theft, personal attacks etc. Another problem is that there is no way for developers to build financial applications. There is no way to program money. A lot of us that are familiar with payment integrations will know of stripe, paystack etc. We can only integrate some payment processors.

Imagine if you could actually build and program money ?

What if money worked like email, as an Internet protocol anyone can study and build upon, no matter where in the world they are, no matter who they are?

That question caused the evolution phase web3.0

Web 3

According to Dryhurst and other Web3 fans, Web3 is an iteration of the internet where new social networks, search engines and marketplaces crop up that have no company overlords.

Although it’s still early days, Web3 is out there right now. Powered by blockchain, Web3 is already more open, fair, and empowering for individual users than Web2 can ever be. It solves the problems we face in Web2.

How? By removing the need for trust, and by removing the need for permission.

To interact with Web3 applications, all you need is a wallet. This wallet contains your private key, which is used to sign transactions. Those transactions are then checked, confirmed and processed by the blockchain. Just like databases in Web2 such as MongoDb, Cassandra etc.

Blockchains are really just databases, but the crucial difference is they are split across thousands of different nodes, rather than centralized on a few servers. Each node holds a complete copy of all data stored on the blockchain. Once data is verified, accepted, and written to the blockchain, it cannot be altered. This means blockchains enable secure, peer-to-peer transactions without human intermediaries. It also means anyone with a wallet can program and interact with them. No trust, no permission required. It is decentralized, distributed and open. You can see now why Web3 will change everything.

In Web2, we primarily use email and passwords; these are tied in some way to our identity.

In Web3, we can login using a wallet like MetaMask (the most popular browser extension wallet).These wallets don’t require any form of personal ID. Instead, they use public and private key cryptography.

Web 2.0 vs Web 3.0

There are a few fundamental differences between web2 and web3, but Decentralization is at its core.

Web3 enhances the internet as we know it today with a few other added characteristics. Unlike web2, web3 is:

• Verifiable

• Trustless

• Self-governing

• Permissionless

• Distributed and robust

• Stateful

• Native built-in payments

In web3, developers don't usually build and deploy applications that run on a single server or that store their data in a single database (usually hosted on and managed by a single cloud provider).

Instead, web3 applications either run on blockchains, decentralized networks of many peer to peer nodes (servers), or a combination of the two that forms a cryptoeconomic protocol. These apps are often referred to as dapps (decentralized apps), and you will see that term used often in the web3 space.

To achieve a stable and secure decentralized network, network participants (developers) are incentivized and compete to provide the highest quality services to anyone using the service.

When you hear about web3, you'll notice that cryptocurrency is often part of the conversation. This is because cryptocurrency plays a big role in many of these protocols. It provides a financial incentive (tokens) for anyone who wants to participate in creating, governing, contributing to, or improving one of the projects themselves. An example is Nestcoin

These protocols may often offer a variety of different services like compute, storage, bandwidth, identity, hosting, and other web services commonly provided by cloud providers in the past.

People can make a living by participating in the protocol in various ways, in both technical and non-technical levels.

Consumers of the service usually pay to use the protocol, similarly to how they would pay a cloud provider like AWS in the web2 world. Except in web3, the money goes directly to the network participants.

In this, like in many forms of decentralization, you'll see that unnecessary and often inefficient intermediaries are cut out.

THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW

You can see now why Web3 will change everything. It already is.

Huge earning potential, especially for developers and innovators, is a major driving force. Blockchain developer salaries already average around $100,000 per year, and this will only increase as Web3 adoption rises. Web3 also opens the doors to massive innovation.

This is all possible because blockchain technology removes the need for middle men through smart contracts - automated programmable protocols that exist on the blockchain. There are no gatekeepers that can monopolize or lock out individuals. That means anyone, anywhere with an internet connection and a small pool of starting funds, can enter the Web3 world of decentralized finance, gaming, and trading. Interested in the Gold rush?

Thanks to Zuri Team, you can get started Here.