What is WEB3.0:
The basic principle that WEB3.0 will follow is decentralization. No central authority to dictate, hold or govern the usage of the data.
Today, when you login into any social media platform, you provide your identity details (like email id, name, password…).
That data is stored with that Social media company, along with your other data (like what you watched, what you liked, which pages you visited).
This data is not with you, but it is with that big company.
Now imagine a world, where your identity is securely stored on a blockchain platform. Now you have control of your data (your identity…your email.)
So we can say that WEB3.0 is a decentralized internet, which runs on blockchain technology.
Deep diving into WEB3.0
Web 3.0 will be trustless, self-governing, verifiable, and robust and includes built-in payments in the form of cryptocurrencies.
Apart from Decentralization, ‘Digital Identity & ‘Presentation of Data in Semantic form’ are also important features of WEB3.0
Read on….
- Decentralization
Here, applications are not centralized but run on a peer-to-peer (P2P) network via a blockchain.
It focuses on upgrading the backend of the internet.
2. Difference between WEB1.0, WEB2.0 & WEB3.0
Web 1.0: It was static in nature. You can read the various pages, which were listing data/information.
Web2.0 :
With Web2.0, you are able to interact that is you were able to read & write. Think of all social media platforms, which came into the picture after WEB2.0.
Also, Web 2.0 was more focused on the front end.
It allows users to interact with each other through different platforms. But users are not in control of their own data.
Also, big companies, owning websites can track them without the necessary approval from the user.
Also, with this rich personal data, big companies can ‘monetize/use’ this data.
This happens by always showing your totally personalized advertisement & keep on hooking you/engaging you into the platform.
You are almost glued to this 24/7.
WEB3.0 :
Web3.0 will allow users to have read, write, execute & ownership permissions.
Web3.0 is focusing more on backend database which can help users to create quality content & have control on the data.
It includes platforms built by developers or companies with which people can not only interact but also take part in maintaining the platforms or build new applications on top of it.
Web 1.0 and web 2.0 are defined by the HTTP protocol. The protocol enables resources to be accessed (via a URL) and also files, particularly HTML documents.
It is a client-server protocol that currently provides the foundation of all data exchanges over the Internet. The term client-server means that there is a requesting side (a client – usually a web browser) that calls for information from a server (a computer that serves up information).
The protocol works by virtue of Domain Name Servers (DNS) servers.
With Web 3.0 that mechanism will change.
In Web3.0, instead of the current DNS system, IPFS ( InterPlanetary File System) will be used.
The IPFS is not centralized around a group of root servers like the HTTP protocol. The goal in the design of IPFS, which originated from blockchain technology, is to create a peer-to-peer file system (Remember BitTorrent)
IPFS separates the act of seeking information from the act of retrieving it. It does so through content addressing.
In content addressing, you apply a hashing algorithm to some content (such as a web page) and it generates a unique key that acts as its address.
Now, you provide the network with that address, and a server that holds the information sends it to you.
- Monetization of data :
With Web 3.0, users are not just content generators but participants in the network.
With Web3.0, users have complete control over their data and can use it as per their own choice. Users are also free to determine the value of their work after it has been added to the network.
This is not possible in the current Web2.0 (as big tech companies are holding & controlling the user data/content).
Web 3.0 model can also allow users to be compensated for their contributions.
So, after you have uploaded a photo or written an article, you may get rewarded with tokens (cryptocurrency).
So, no central authority while dealing with financial transactions.
- Digital Identities :
Blockchain has advanced the cause/journey of Digital identities & this is also a feature of Web 3.0.
In WEB2.0, we have heard a lot of incidents of cybercrime (identity theft to click fraud & much more).
As the connection between two computers is not properly authenticated, and currently cannot be authenticated, it can lead to cybercrime.
In Web3,0, everything that is involved in such an interaction had a verifiable identity.
Hence it will reduce the probability of fraud and deception.
With Digital IDs, individuals can only have one verifiable identity, since each ID has to be linked to a unique credential, like a birth certificate. Similarly, organizations can only have one verifiable identity.
- Presentation of data in a semantic form :
Web 3.0 will also improve the presentation of data (that in a semantic form).
To get an inkling of this, try using Google’s Knowledge Graph (which places blocks of organized data to the right of some of your search results).
Berners-Lee had coined the term ‘Semantic Web’ to describe a web in which machines would process content in a humanlike way (i.e., a “Global Brain” where all data would be connected and understood both contextually and conceptually).
Try searching say ‘India vs the USA ‘ on google as well as on WolframAlpha. You will be able to appreciate the difference between the output results given by both.
WolframAlpha was released on May 18, 2009 and is based on Wolfram’s earlier product “Wolfram Mathematica”, a computational platform for calculation, visualization, and statistics capabilities.
Here, users submit queries and computation requests via a text field. WolframAlpha then computes answers and relevant visualizations from a knowledge base of structured, curated data that comes from other sources ( other sites, books, papers..)
Try searching on current search engines for a specific product ( Say Best deal for a 20 KG washing machine for delivery in 2 days).
You will get a lot of web links.
But that is not good from a consumer perspective.
The consumer is looking for a range of information, offering possible choices.
That kind of capability will be part of Web 3.0 by virtue of semantic technology. It will save buyers and sellers a good deal of time in the sales cycle.
Companies to watch for
- Steem : It is a blockchain-based blogging and social media website. Users can gain a cryptocurrency, STEEM, for publishing and curating content.
- Brave Browser: Brave is a web browser focused on user privacy/ This browser is powered by the Basic Attention Token (BAT). It is decentralized, with different nodes serving content to the browser users.
- Filecoin : It aims at replacing current cloud storage providers like Dropbox and Google Drive by creating a decentralized file storage system that is very secure and private.
- Livepeer: It’s a decentralized video streaming protocol where everyone who participates gets paid for it.
In this protocol, broadcasters can earn tokens from their viewers to share quality content, while the nodes who run the network also get paid tokens from both broadcaster and viewer.
You can watch my videos related to technology and fintech at my YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@
