Steemit Crypto Academy – Season 3 - Week 6 - Post for @pelon53

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Question 1 - Explain the Delegated Proof of Stake, DPoS algorithm

Consensus algorithm is one of the most important aspects of any blockchain. When it comes to blockchain technology, there are various consensus mechanisms that exist and are used for mining and to validate transactions on the blockchain. One of the main purposes of mining or validation is to add new blocks on the chain and secure the network. We all know that bitcoin was the first blockchain to utilize a consensus mechanism known as proof of work consensus mechanism or mining, where the miners make use of high computational mining rigs to solve the complex mathematical problems on the network and to add new blocks and validate transactions, while also getting rewarded. However, over the years, the proof of work consensus mechanism has shown to have a few drawbacks which is why many other consensus mechanisms were created.

The delegated proof of stake (DPoS) consensus mechanism or protocol works differently compared to the famous proof of work. It is was developed Dan Larimer who is popular for his works on bitshares, steem and EOS. The delegated proof of stake (DPoS) consensus mechanism or protocol makes use of an election process in which coin holders in the network, vote for witnesses who are assigned the responsibility of adding new block and validating transactions on the blockchain network. A popular example of blockchain that utilizes the delegated proof of stake consensus algorithm are Steem blockchain, EOS blockchain, Tron blockchain etc.

Since the delegated proof of stake consensus algorithm was created based of the proof of stake and also created as another alternative to the proof of work and proof of stake. It has a lot of benefits and has proven to be a very efficient consensus mechanism. The delegated proof of stake (DPoS) basically works like a digital democracy system where witnesses are voted in by coin holders who are known as stake holders on the DPoS network, these witnesses or witnesses reach consensus in order to added new block to the chain and validate transactions on the network.

Depensing on the delegated proof of stake blockchain network, the might be different rules that govern the network. However, all DPoS mechanisms utilize the same concept. A fixed number of witnesses who are also called witnesses, ranges from 21-101, these witnesses or witnesses who voted in by the coin holders (who stake their coins on the network), are assigned the role of becoming block producers on the network. Block producers add new block and validate transactions and in turn, are rewarded for creating new blocks on the chain.

The voting weight of each stake holder on the network is dependent on the amount of coins they hold. Stake holders cannot only vote for witnesses or block producers, they can also delegate their stake to another stake holder to vote on their behalf. On DPoS, witnesses or block producers take turns and add new blocks every few seconds. In sime delegated proof of stake networks, witnesses are required to have a certain amount of stake on the network, this stake serve as a commitment. The delegated proof of stake (DPoS) consensus mechanism has proven to be energy efficient and offer high performance.

Question 2 - Explain What are Ricardian contracts on the EOS Blockchain?

The Ricardian contracts is a very common term in the EOS blockchain. It is kind of similar to smart contracts, however, it is very different from smart contracts. The ricardian contracts is basically a digital contract or an agreement that is executed on the EOS blockchain without any intermediaries. It defines the terms and conditions of interaction between two or more parties involved. The ricardian contracts is both machine readable and also human readable contract that is signed digitally. This contract saves all the information from a legal document in a digital format which is both machine and human readable. The The Ricardian contracts serves as a contract or legal document protocol which securely integrates the agreement between two or more parties digitally via the EOS blockchain. One of the main benefits of the Ricardian contracts is its high level of security due to being used on the blockchain.

Question 3 - Explore the official EOSREX interface (eosauthority.com)

The eosauthority website is a very valuable tool for the EOS community. To explore the eosauthority website, we have to visit the official website at https://eosauthority.com

The Navigation bar

On the front page of eosauthority the navigation bar contains all the tools such as Wallet, Events, Tools, EOS Credit.

Wallet - The wallet section is the direct link to the user wallet dashboard to access wallet account on the EOS blockchain. Here, users can add their existing EOS account to access their EOS and other EOS based tokens.
Events - The event section shows the scheduled current EOSIO Events.
Tools - The tools section contains important tools like accounts, BP information, voting, voting analysis, development tools, participate and other initiatives.
EOS credit - The credit section links to the nexo platform for Instant Crypto Credit Lines.

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The EOS Explorer

This is where users can search for any EOS account or transactions by inputting the account name, block, transaction etc.

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Statistics Area

The statistics area shows the different EOS statistical data such as price, market rank, yesterday’s highs/low, yesterday’s change, yesterday’s volume.

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The Side Bar

The side bar contains all the important sections of the site and tools to have access and manage user accounts.

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Dashboard - This is basically the wallet dashboard of the user account. On the dashboard, users can view their account details, charts, and all the available tokens. Users can also send transactions from the dashboard area.

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Wallet - This is the where users can interact with their EOS wallet, view all the available EOS tokens and also view all the transaction details and blockchain info about their wallet.

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Rex - This is where users have access to REX tools for their account.

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Powerup - This is where users can powerup some of their EOS as CPU or NET.

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Manage CPU/RAM - The section has all the tools for users to manage the CPU and RAM of their EOS account. Here, users can stake their EOS for CPU, NET or buy and sell RAM.

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Manage keys - This section is where users can manage their wallet keys, with the tools to change permissions on their account.

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Vote - The vote section contains the tools that enables users to vote for block producers. The vote sections contains the list of the block producers of the EOS blockchain and is ranked according to the number of votes received.

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Create account - On the create account section, anyone can create an EOS account in an intuitive and straight forward way.

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Bid name - This section allows users to bid for a premium name. There are a list of available premium names where users can choose any premium name and place a bid on. The list is ranked according to the highest price.

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Alerts - Users can connect other social accounts like email to receive alerts.

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Trade your tokens - This is a section that contains decentralized exchanges where users can trade their EOS tokens.

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Question 4 - Download the Sqrl wallet, explore and explain how to obtain CPU, RAM and Network

After downloading and installing the Sqrl wallet, The next thing was to explore the Sqrl wallet interface.

Select network

To change the blockchain network, click on the network dropdown at the top left. At the moment, there are 5 networks to choose from. Telos Mainnet, Telos Testnet, EOS Mainnet, EOS Testnet, WAX Mainnet.

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Wallet

The wallet section shows the balances, wallet details and info of the account. Users can send and receive coins, stake coins for CPU and NET, and buy and sell RAM.

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Governance

The governance section is where users can vote for block producers, set proxies and other governance related activities.

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T-REX

This section contains the REX account summary and information

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Tools

The tools sections contains important tools to manage the wallet, manage the account, change permissions, wallet tools like app integrations, blockchain networks, smart contracts, airdrops/custom tokens and more.

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How to obtain CPU, RAM and Network

To obtain CPU and Net on the Sqrl wallet, click on the Send, Receive and Stake button, select managed staked. From the manage staked section, input the amount of CPU and NET you want to stake and click on update staked balances. You need to have Telos in your wallet in order to be able to stake them for CPU and NET.

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To obtain RAM, click on the Send, Receive and Stake button, select buy RAM. Enter the amount of RAM you want to buy and click on Buy RAM. You need to have the required amount of Telos to be able to buy RAM.

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Question 5 - Show the price of the REX token. And explain what it is used for

To view the price of REX token, we have to visit the https://eosauthority.com website, click on the side bar and select REX. The eosauthority website is an amazing tool that makes it easy to view information and details on the EOS blockchain and other EOS related blockchains. Scroll down and locate REX value. From the graph, we can see that the price of REX token has increased and has gone up to the current price of 0.0001010817227308684 EOS.

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Rex Token is mainly used by the EOS users to receive network rewards. To receive the network rewards, the users have to hold EOS tokens and lend their EOS to REX in exchange for the REX tokens. This is done at a ratio of 1:1. These REX tokens cannot be transferred or sold and can only be used to exchange between an account holder and REX. Users who hold the REX token collect a proportional share of REX revenue over that period time. The REX token is distributed at a 1:1 ratio which means that there will never be fewer amounts of EOS tokens in REX than there are REX tokens held by account holders. Users can exchange their REX tokens for EOS at any time.

Conclusion

When it comes to blockchain technology, there are various consensus mechanisms that exist and are used for mining and to validate transactions on the blockchain. The delegated proof of stake consensus algorithm is one of the most popular blockchain mechanisms and was created as another alternative to the proof of work and proof of stake. It has a lot of benefits and has proven to be a very efficient consensus mechanism. The EOS blockchain is one of the most popular blockchain delegated proof of stake blockchains. When it comes to transaction speed and no transaction fees, the EOS blockchain is up there as one of the top blockchain networks for fast transactions and feeless transactions.

@pelon53