Inside the blockchain developers’ mind: Building a free-to-use social DApp

Cointelegraph is pursuing the improvement of an wholly caller blockchain from inception to mainnet and beyond done its series, Inside the Blockchain Developer’s Mind, written by Andrew Levine of Koinos Group.

In my archetypal nonfiction successful this series, I explained wherefore Ethereum and Steem haven’t been capable to deliver a mainstream societal decentralized application (DApp). In my 2nd article, I explained however EOS attempted to harvester features of some chains but it did truthful successful a mode that inactive required users to bargain high-priced random-access representation (RAM) for accounts and astute contracts.

In this article, I privation to instrumentality a antithetic attack to this problem, not based connected comparisons to existing platforms but based connected archetypal principles. Instead of constraining our imaginations based connected the limitations of the earliest attempts astatine general-purpose blockchains, let’s, instead, look astatine the occupation from the developer’s perspective. What bash they request successful bid to present the idiosyncratic acquisition that mainstream users require? In my erstwhile article, I described this arsenic “fee-less without exceptions.” In different words, they privation wholly free-to-use applications.

Building a free-to-use DApp from archetypal principles

The precise archetypal happening that a idiosyncratic volition request to usage an exertion of immoderate benignant is an account, truthful introducing a interest present would instantly make a antagonistic idiosyncratic experience. We privation to minimize friction for the idiosyncratic truthful that we tin maximize virality — we surely don’t privation to unit them to bargain an account. But, we don’t privation to lick this occupation by simply forcing the developer to wage that relationship instauration outgo due to the fact that this volition summation their costs.

Related: Gas-free transactions volition revolutionize Web3

This occupation is an casual 1 due to the fact that it has already been solved by Bitcoin and Ethereum, some of which let users to make addresses for free. Thinking from archetypal principles then, if we don’t privation developers oregon end-users to person to wage for accounts, we request a blockchain with addresses that relation arsenic accounts.

Who pays?

Using Bitcoin oregon Ethereum-style addresses allows america to make accounts without either the end-user oregon the DApp developer having to devour the fee. Great. But, present we privation radical to really usage the decentralized exertion which means that we privation them to tally a machine program on a decentralized machine and devour immoderate of the computer’s resources. We privation to fto them bash thing that volition person a real-world outgo that idiosyncratic has to pay. It’s conscionable a substance of who, right? Well, this assumes that determination is lone 1 mode to complaint people.

This is precisely wherever first-principles reasoning provides truthful overmuch value. Fees are the accepted mode we complaint radical for utilizing blockchains, truthful if we conscionable presume that this is the lone solution past the lone conceivable enactment becomes who pays the fee, not whether determination is an alternate attack to the problem.

Related: The powerfulness of inexpensive transactions: Can Solana's maturation outpace Ethereum?

Charging accidental cost

Taking people’s wealth is 1 mode to enforce a outgo (i.e. decreasing their token balance) but determination is different benignant of cost: accidental cost. Taking people’s quality to usage their tokens (i.e. their money).

If we could make a decentralized strategy for “charging” radical to usage the blockchain, not by taking their tokens, but by taking distant their quality to usage their tokens (for a play of time), past we could let them to usage the blockchain without taking immoderate of their tokens.

Not lone that, but erstwhile that play of clip is over, they could take to usage the blockchain more, meaning that they wouldn’t person to perpetually beryllium buying much tokens conscionable to beryllium capable to proceed utilizing the exertion they love. This would dramatically summation idiosyncratic retention and further maximize growth.

Video crippled experience

We present person a mechanics for charging users that doesn’t consciousness similar a fee, but our nonsubjective is to present a mainstream idiosyncratic experience. Requiring radical to consciously fastener cryptocurrency tokens earlier they tin usage an exertion is not a mainstream idiosyncratic experience.

If we can’t necessitate radical to consciously fastener tokens, that means we request a strategy that allows radical to simply usage the blockchain without immoderate thought. All that means is that the strategy has to determine the size of the accidental outgo alternatively of the user. Taking this determination retired of the hands of the idiosyncratic allows america to plan the strategy truthful that the size of the accidental outgo is arsenic debased arsenic possible, each portion maintaining economical sustainability. This gives the idiosyncratic assurance that they are ne'er “overpaying” (even if it is lone an accidental cost) portion again maximizing maturation by lowering barriers. The cheaper transactions are, the little they consciousness similar fees — the amended the idiosyncratic acquisition — and the faster we tin expect the idiosyncratic basal to grow.

Of course, the idiosyncratic deserves to cognize however overmuch of their tokens volition beryllium locked if they take to execute the action. What we privation is fundamentally a mana barroom from a video game. The idiosyncratic should beryllium capable to spot however overmuch escaped usage of the blockchain they person based connected the liquid tokens that they person successful their wallet. When they spell to execute immoderate enactment that consumes blockchain resources, they should beryllium capable to spot however overmuch of their mana volition alteration erstwhile they execute the action. If they find that outgo acceptable, they simply execute the action, specified arsenic minting a nonfungible token (NFT), their mana is consumed and the close magnitude of tokens are locked for the acceptable play of time. Wouldn’t that beryllium great?

The last barrier

There is 1 past problem: With the strategy we person described, the end-user inactive has to person immoderate tokens successful their wallet. Generally, that means that they inactive person to marque a acquisition (of tokens) earlier they tin usage the application. While we inactive person a beauteous bully idiosyncratic experience, telling radical they person to walk wealth earlier they tin usage an app is simply a obstruction to introduction and winds up feeling a full batch similar a fee. I would know, this is precisely what happened connected our erstwhile blockchain, Steem.

To lick that problem, we added a diagnostic called “delegation” which would let radical with tokens (e.g. developers) to delegate their mana (called Steem Power) to their users. This way, end-users could usage Steem-based applications adjacent if they didn’t person immoderate of the autochthonal token STEEM.

But, that plan was precise tailored to Steem, which did not person astute contracts and required users to archetypal bargain accounts. The biggest occupation with delegations is that determination was nary mode to power what a idiosyncratic did with that delegation. Developers privation radical to beryllium capable to usage their DApps for escaped truthful that they tin maximize maturation and make gross successful immoderate different mode similar a subscription oregon done in-game point sales. They don’t privation radical taking their delegation to commercialized successful decentralized concern (DeFi) oregon utilizing it to play immoderate different developer’s large crippled similar Splinterlands.

We privation users to beryllium capable to usage a circumstantial DApp without having to bargain tokens first, and, arsenic always, we don’t privation the developer to person to walk immoderate wealth to marque this happen. That past portion is pugnacious due to the fact that the accepted mode to lick this occupation is by designing the astute declaration truthful that the developer tin take to wage the interest alternatively of the user. But, remember, we’ve already solved this occupation due to the fact that nary 1 is paying a interest for anything, conscionable an accidental cost. As agelong arsenic the developer has tokens, they tin take to wage the “mana” that idiosyncratic needs to usage their application.

Free for developers?

But, what if the developer doesn’t privation to bargain tokens? What if they person an existing exertion with a thriving idiosyncratic basal that the level would beryllium fortunate to attract? It’s successful the champion involvement of ample token holders to pull precocious prime developers to a level truthful they tin conscionable bash the aforesaid thing. The stakeholder could fto the developer acceptable them (the stakeholder) arsenic the “payer” of mana for the developer’s astute contracts.

The stakeholder isn’t losing immoderate wealth by doing this but they’re inactive capable to deploy their superior to enactment worth instauration and growth, which is great. If the stakeholder provides their mana to a developer whose app adds tremendous worth to the platform, past the worth of their token holdings volition spell up. If the developer’s app doesn’t adhd value, the stakeholder has an inducement to halt providing their mana to that developer and find idiosyncratic other who tin marque amended usage of their mana.

We person present figured retired not lone however to marque a DApp free-to-use for the end-user, arsenic an added bonus we person figured retired however to marque the blockchain free-to-use for developers portion giving ample stakeholders a mode to put successful maturation and worth instauration without sacrificing immoderate of their token holdings.

Impossible?

But, each of this is conscionable successful mentation right? Actually, no. What I’ve described present is precisely however we’re gathering Koinos. In fact, each of these features are already unrecorded connected our existent testnet with the 3rd and last mentation of the testnet coming soon. If you privation to larn much astir mana, you tin read the achromatic insubstantial here.

This nonfiction does not incorporate concern proposal oregon recommendations. Every concern and trading determination involves hazard and readers should behaviour their ain probe erstwhile making a decision.

The views, thoughts and opinions expressed present are the author’s unsocial and bash not needfully bespeak oregon correspond the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.