Frequently Asked Questions

This section is designed primarily for people who are not familiar with web3 / crypto to help get familiar with some of the terms that often come up in this newsletter:

What is web3?

It is a term used to describe everything being built on blockchain. The idea is that web2 is the internet we are familiar with in 2024, and we are moving towards blockchain based websites which is a new era, hence called web3. To help even more:

  • Web1: static websites where the publisher wrote the content (ie. the dawn of the internet)

  • Web2: more social websites where users started to generate content (ie. social media like Facebook)

  • Web3: decentralised data where people engage via their wallets on blockchains.

There is still debate about whether web3 will actually succeed web2…. maybe something else will come along and supercede blockchain. But right now there are millions of talented people actively building and investing in web3 and if it is successful, one of the reasons will be due to the way participants are rewarded (ie. the main topic of his newsletter).

Why is web3 relevant to Future Earn?

Future Earn’s scope covers any way in which we might earn money in future so it is not exclusively related to web3. However, most of the initial signs of truly innovative ways to earn money are coming out of web3.

This is because blockchain technology is very good at tracking individual actions, and digital tokens provide the currency or money system to enable rewards.

Digital Tokens? Is this Crypto?

Whether you call it crypto, cryptocurrencies or digital tokens it is all the same. It is basically a new form of online money which can be created for any website, and has real world value. The global regulatory environment is still emerging - ie. it isn’t illegal but it isn’t completely regulated - but it is not going anywhere.

Typically, each platform will have it’s own (or even more than one) token. So the Solana Blockchain has its own token called SOL. Or the Karate Combat platform has $KARATE and so on.

Wallet?

If you think about digital tokens or crypto being the new form of money, then you will need a new kind of wallet to hold that money.

There are lots of different wallets and they are used for different blockchains. For example:

  • Metamask: used for the Ethereum blockchain.

  • Phantom: used for the Solana blockchain.

Some platforms will come with their own wallet (like Sweat Economy or BULB), and others will let you use your own one. You will need to get used to having multiple wallets (and carefully tracking your passwords).

If you’ve never used crypto wallets before there are 2 key things to points out:

  1. They come with ‘private keys’ which is usually a 12 word combination you need to carefully write down; and

  2. Like anything online they can be hacked, so my appoach is to use them for relatively small amounts of money and then for larger amounts move them to safer places. Rather than go into here, do some reading on ‘how to keep your crypto safe’ - there is plenty of information out there on the web.

Try not to let concerns about this stop you getting started. Your current mobile phone or bank account could be hacked, so don’t let any preconceived notion around crypto scams stop you trying to understand and benefit from this much larger theme.

NFT (Non-Fungible Token)

A non-fungible token is a unique digital identifier that is recorded on a blockchain and is used to certify ownership and authenticity. It could be artwork, music, anything - it is web3’s way to certify provenance.

It is percieved to be a better system because blockchain is not centralised (ie. it is not a central person or organisation keeping records), all of the blocks are created and validated by separate nodes or computers, making it impossible for a bad actor to change information.

So, the main thing about NFTs is that once ownership is yours that is recorded forever, and while you can sell or transfer it, that ownership and string of transacions is forever recorded on the blockchain.

NFTs are very relevant for Future Earn because they create the system for humans to register and track every digital creation they make. For example, when I lookd at the BULB platform I found you can create (also called mint) an NFT of any blog post you write. This allows you to sell it, and get royalties each time it is on-sold.