In this episode, we share an introduction to full nodes. Speaking with the Parity community support lead, Thibaut Sardan, we walk through what it means to set up the Parity Ethereum client, explore what the difference is between this and a light client, help define some of the commonly used language and answer some frequently asked questions. Big thank you to 1kx for inviting us to the Full Node co-working space to record this episode! Links: Parity FAQ Parity UI and Light Wallets...
May 03, 2018•42 min
In this weeks episode, Fredrik and Anna speak with Elias Haase and Rob Hitchens from B9Lab about how a curriculum can be developed to introduce developers to the concepts and languages in the blockchain space. We discuss some of their process, the unique qualities of teaching in this space and how important it is that the people building core infrastructure consider the impact of their decisions on society in the future. Links: B9Lab on Twitter B9Lab Be sure to follow us on twitter @zeroknowedge...
Apr 26, 2018•53 min
In this episode, we kick off the Zero Knowledge Proof series with our very own 'Intro to Zero Knowledge' in which we go through a couple examples that describe the underlying concept of this important field of research. Basically, the Zero Knowledge hosts are talking about Zero Knowledge Proofs on the Zero Knowledge Podcast. It promises to get meta. Links: Where's Waldo example Str4d presenting the Billiard Balls example at ZK0x01 Sudoku ZKP example Eli Ben Sasson presenting STARKs Read transcri...
Apr 19, 2018•42 min
In this episode, Fredrik sits down with Jon Choi from the Ethereum Foundation to discuss the latest scalability grants and what the plans are for the Ethereum Foundation grants in general. We also delve into what a business model for core infrastructure could mean and how to avoid the tragedy of the commons where no one is willing to invest in vital infrastructure because of the lack of immediate incentive. Finally, we discuss the general ecosystem, how we can learn from each other, how and what...
Apr 12, 2018•40 min
We welcome Jack back to the show to discuss what's been going on in our world for the past month. We share a little review of our recent event - the Zero Knowledge Summit - and an update from the Taiwan Sharding Workshop. We also discuss the role of testnets and explore the purpose and practice of ASIC resistance. Links to things talked about in the episode: Fredriks talk about Rust smart contracts & wasm Ethereum Sharding Research Compendium Zero Knowledge Youtube channel Zero Knowledge Twi...
Apr 05, 2018•41 min
Plasma is a new type of scaling solution that Karl is helping to develop, and Phil tries to tear it apart. Phil also introduces the topic of storage rent, which is an uncomfortable truth we'll have to face sooner rather than later. We sit down and try to dig through and define what Plasma is, what the pro's and con's are and what potential use-cases the technology has. Unfortunately, the second half of the storage rent conversation was lost, but what's there is still valuable enough to share. Ho...
Mar 22, 2018•44 min
This week we sit down with JP Smith from the software security firm Trail of Bits. Trail of Bits started as a traditional infosec company doing audits and R&D. Over the past year, the company has been getting into doing audits and building tools for the blockchain space. We talk about what audits are and how to think about them, how you should work to secure your smart contracts using Trail of Bits tools along the way and share some stories and conversations from the world of security. Links...
Mar 15, 2018•53 min
Fredrik has a chat about consensus algorithms with Parity Technologies in-house consensus expert Robert Habermeier. We cover what a consensus algorithm is and how they work. We try to explain some common terms like safety and liveness, what a fork choice rule is and how real-world constraints like networking play a role in your algorithm design. -- Robert Habermeier
Mar 08, 2018•33 min
In this episode, we do a deep dive into the DFINITY protocol project and their recently released whitepaper. Using a randomness beacon, DFINITY aims to achieve an efficient and fair PoS system with strong safety and liveness guarantees. We speak with Robert Lauko, a Research Associate working on the project, about the ongoing development of this new blockchain, the Blockchain Nervous System and DFINITY's approach to on-chain governance. DFINITY Website: https://dfinity.org/ DFINITY Github: https...
Mar 01, 2018•43 min
The gang catches up on what's been going on in the blockchain world for the past month, sharing some nuggets of learning around bloom filters, Proof of Authority, upcoming events, the Dfinity paper and some comments on what all the fuzz around this ERP is.
Feb 22, 2018•31 min
In this episode, we talk about what it takes to be a blockchain developer. Fredrik shares some of his insights and interviews Gavin Wood, co-founder of Parity and Ethereum, about how he got into this space as well. We also dig into what properties a good blockchain developer should have.
Feb 15, 2018•39 min
In this episode, we sit down with John Palmer and Marcus Molchany to discuss their new project Pragma, a tool designed to make deploying smart contracts much easier for developers who are new to the space. We also delve into programming languages and the role of testnets and talk about the challenges of staying agile and testing assumptions when you're dealing with immutable technology. Check out withpragma.com
Feb 08, 2018•46 min
In this episode, we will be talking with Liz Steininger, the CEO and MD of Least Authority - a Berlin based company focused on building an affordable, ethical, usable, and lasting data storage solution. They are dedicated to Free and Open Source software, end-to-end cryptography, user-friendly interfaces, and a sustainable economic model. We sat down to discuss her experience with decentralised communities, the challenges of open source technology and how the blockchain dev community will likely...
Feb 01, 2018•44 min
In this episode, we invite André, a Parity dev, to join us in a review of the latest activity in Parity and the general blockchain space. We cover bootnode infrastructure, database issues, the updated yellowpaper and more.
Jan 25, 2018•23 min
Part 2 in our series on decentralized storage: Solutions. In this episode, we look at the problems decentralised storage are trying to solve, interesting projects trying to tackle these problems and some of the implications. We also have a look at what properties you should keep an eye out for when looking at decentralized storage solutions and what you may want to consider before jumping into mining. Links to some of the things we talk about in this episode: Storj IPFS Filecoin MaidSafe Sia Blu...
Jan 18, 2018•56 min
Part 1 in our series on decentralized storage: Looking back. Fredrik and Anna talk about some history and memories of peer-to-peer technology, file sharing and decentralized storage. We dig into our own history and involvement with p2p technology, file sharing, how it rose to fame and then disappeared into the cold P2P winter.
Jan 10, 2018•46 min
In this episode, Anna and Fredrik have a look back at 2017 and the changing blockchain ecosystem with ex-Ethereum Foundation and current-Parity core dev, Marek Kotewicz . We also share our predictions about what we can expect to see next year in crypto land. FYI: opinions are our own, and we definitely won't be giving financial advice :P Blocksize research: https://www.bitcoinunlimited.info/resources/1txn.pdf ParityDB: https://github.com/paritytech/paritydb...
Jan 02, 2018•42 min
In this episode, Anna and Fredrik are joined by 3 fellow Parity employees to talk about what first got them interested in blockchain and the whole decentralised scene, how the greater community has evolved over the last few years, and what we can expect for the coming year. Our guests: Afri , Community Manager, Support and all around contributor Maciej , Core Developer Fabian , Business Development...
Dec 18, 2017•36 min
We talk about what we've been working on for the past week and what's been going on in the community and our lives.
Dec 12, 2017•19 min
We go over what Hard Forks are, what they mean and what this particular one, Byzantium, brought to Ethereum.
Oct 20, 2017•38 min
Wherein we talk about Proof of Work, what it is and how it has developed and why we want or might not want Proof of Stake instead.
Oct 09, 2017•39 min
Jack, Anna and Fredrik talk about their experience at RustFest 2017 in Zürich. Parity Technologies was one of the main sponsors and so we went there with a crew and had a booth. Many interesting conversations were had, along with great talks.
Oct 04, 2017•29 min
