What Blockchain Developer Skills Are Needed to Succeed?

The blockchain industry is increasing at an alarming rate. And it is hard to tell where the industry is headed next.

There are many different opinions on where it is going, and what jobs will be in demand, but all of them agree that there will be jobs. Even with all of the controversy around cryptocurrency at the moment.

With that in mind, in this article, we will discuss some skills and abilities that you should have if you want to succeed in this industry as a blockchain developer. These blockchain developer skills will help you succeed in this field.

What is Blockchain?

Blockchain is a digital ledger that records transactions or events without the need for a centralized authority.

This means that all data on the blockchain is stored in different locations and synced through peer-to-peer networks. So there is no way to can fail.

Transactions are validated by mining nodes and recorded as blocks. The blocks then form a chain that gets timestamped with each new block added to it.

After every few minutes, a new group of transactions is collected into another block. All these blocks together form what we know as a blockchain.

Also Check: How Does Blockchain Technology Help Companies

Types of Blockchain

Blockchain is of different types. There are mainly 4 types of blockchains;

1. Public Blockchain
2. Private Blockchain
3. Hybrid Blockchain
4. Consortium Blockchain

Public Blockchain

A public blockchain is a type of digital ledger that records transactions (in the form of blocks) between two parties without requiring any intermediaries.

Private Blockchain

A private blockchain is a permissioned ledger, where transactions can only be processed by authorized nodes. In this type of blockchain, the nodes are typically organizations or institutions that have agreed to share their data as part of a consortium or group.

Hybrid Blockchain

Hybrid blockchains offer the best of both worlds by combining the security and immutability of public blockchains with the privacy, speed, and cost efficiency of private blockchains. They operate in a similar fashion as standard blockchain networks but also allow users to create permission-based networks that can be made either public or private.

Consortium Blockchain

A consortium blockchain is a particular type of blockchain that does not allow for any outside transactions unless they have been approved by a certain group of individuals. There is no single entity that controls the entire system and all participants are equal.

Now let us what blockchain developer skills you will be needed to succeed.

Blockchain Developer Skills You Must Know

Here are 3 major blockchain developer skills that you should need to know to succeed in this career.

Cryptography

Blockchains offer improved security than traditional databases because the data is encrypted and distributed among participants. Cryptography is used to keep the records secure.

There are 3 types of Cryptography;

Secret Key Cryptography, Public Key Cryptography, and Hash Functions. Let’s elaborate below;

1. Secret Key Cryptography: Secret Key Cryptography is the most basic form of cryptography, and is considered to be a type of symmetric-key cryptography. The idea behind Secret Key Cryptography is that you have a key or password that unlocks your data, which means you need both the key and the data in order to unlock it.
2. Public Key Cryptography: Public key cryptography is a type of encryption that requires two keys: a public key and a private key. The public key is made freely available, while the private key is closely guarded. When someone wants to send you encrypted data, they use your public key to encrypt it. Once the message has been received by the recipient, he can use a private key to decrypt it.
3. Hash Functions: A hash function is a one-way encryption algorithm that is used for digital signatures, message authentication codes, and checksums. The function transforms a large amount of data into a smaller hash string with the same content.

Public key cryptography is a common cryptographic tool that uses a public key to encrypt messages and a private key to decrypt them.

It can also be used for digital signatures where the user’s private key is needed in order to verify that they are really sending you a message and not someone else who has managed to steal their keys.

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As such, it is important that you know what your users will need access or permission for when it comes time for managing permissions on your blockchain network.

Data Structures

Blockchain development requires a lot of data storage and processing. This requires proficiency in at least one of the following data structures:

1. Hash tables: A hash table (or hash map) is a data structure that uses a hash function to map keys to values.
2. Linked Lists: Linked lists are a simple data structure. They’re made up of a series of memory blocks, or nodes. Each node contains two fields: the first is a pointer that points to the next node in the list and the second contains data.
3. Binary trees: A binary tree is a data structure that stores information in a hierarchical manner. It has two types of nodes: leaf nodes and branch nodes.
4. Queues: A queue data structure is a linear data type that stores elements in the order they were inserted.
5. Stocks: A Stocks data structure is similar to a list of stocks, with each entry containing the company name, the number of shares available for purchase, and the price per share.
6. Graphs: Graphs are a data structure in which the nodes, vertices, and edges, or links, are weighted.

The requirements for blockchain developers require an understanding of all the above data structures, but they must be experts in at least one.

Algorithms

Learning Algorithms is one of the most important skills required for blockchain developers.

When it comes to blockchain, there are three main types of algorithms that can be used for creating transactions.

These include: Proof-of-Work, Proof-of-Stake and Delegated Proof-of-Stake. Let’s elaborate below;

1. Proof-of-Work: Proof-of-Work is a system in which miners solve cryptographic puzzles in order to verify transactions. At the same time, they also mine new bitcoins.
2. Proof-of-Stake: Proof-of-Stake is an economic measure that determines how much mining power someone has. It’s determined by one’s stake in the cryptocurrency or mining pool they have invested their funds.
3. Delegated Proof-of-Stake: Delegated Proof-of-Stake was created as a solution to problems associated with both Bitcoin’s energy consumption and block size limitations. In this method, anyone who owns some amount of tokens from a particular currency can vote on who gets to validate blocks within that currency’s blockchain in return for transaction fees.

The algorithm you choose will depend on the type of network you are working with and what your goals are.

Also Check: Tips for Protecting Your FinTech Data Assets

You may also need some other blockchain skills such as Solidity, Smart Contracts, Web3.js, Node.js, React, or Redux.

Conclusion

Blockchain is an emerging technology that can have a significant impact on many industries. With this in mind, it is important for developers who want to work with blockchain projects and get ahead of the curve to learn the blockchain developer skills necessary for success.

FAQs

Here are some related FAQs on blockchain development asked by users;

Q: What is blockchain technology and what does it do?

Ans: Blockchain is a digital ledger for recording transactions that uses cryptography, making the data immutable and secure.

Q: How does it work?

Ans: A blockchain database isn’t stored in any single location, meaning the records are truly public and easily verifiable. No centralized version of this information exists for a hacker to corrupt.

Q: What is a blockchain developer?

Ans: A blockchain developer creates and maintains the various components of a blockchain network.

Q: How can I learn blockchain developer skills?

Ans: The best way to learn blockchain skills is to gain knowledge in cryptography, Data structures, Algorithms, etc.