You might have heard the words Smart contracts, but still don’t understand what it means, here is what you need to know about Smart Contracts.
What are Smart Contacts?
Smart Contracts are simply programs stored on the Blockchain that are executed when certain conditions are met. It’s basically used to automate agreements without the involvement of a middle man or time loss.
Smart contacts exist on decentralized and distributed Blockchain Networks. They can also be programmed to trigger other smart contracts into action or create new events when they are executed.
History and Characteristics
In 1994, Nick Szabo, an American Computer scientist and cryptographer, introduced smart contracts, he simply wanted to bring in the idea behind electronic transaction methods into the digital realm.
Moreover, the introduction of Ethereum contributed immensely to the popularity of smart contracts. To effectively create Smart contracts on the Ethereum network, one needs to know and understand the Solidity Language.
Smart contracts are open-source, they execute autonomously and immediately and they are very fast too. Every transaction is stored and recorded, which means the parties involved in the transaction can go back and access it anytime.
Smart Contract Development
Smart Contract development pays extremely well. This is due to the inflow of capital into the space and the limited number of developers as well, but this might probably change anytime soon as more people are coming into the space.
In other to be a smart contract developer, it is advisable to learn and get used to basic programming languages like JavaScript and C++.
If one already has an existing knowledge in the aforementioned languages, learning specific languages based on the network involved, won’t be a big deal. Starting with Solidity which is the programming language for Ethereum network is a good head start.
