Blockchain changes the way the world works, how startups are funded, and brings a whole new set of developer challenges. Blockchain developer with a background in the appropriate programming languages may find themselves working on complex, transactional systems.
Learn the technology of the future
Enterprises in all industries are looking for new ways to integrate Blockchain into their business operations to ensure efficiency, security and accuracy. For example, IBM operates a Blockchain Platform – the only integrated, business-ready platform that covers the entire life cycle of a multi-organization blockchain network. Blockchain technology can solve many difficulties in different industries, such as the food industry. Food safety-related issues such as contamination, food-borne diseases and waste are largely due to the lack of access to information and the lack of traceability of this information. It can take weeks for the exact point of contamination to be identified, resulting in further illnesses, lost sales and product waste.
The blockchain works well for these kinds of challenges because it provides a trusted means of exchanging information. In the case of the food supply chain, all stakeholders – producers, suppliers, processors, distributors, retailers, regulators and consumers – can access the trusted information they need from the source of the goods to the retailer.
Blockchain developers are in demand, but how do you get that qualification? The best way to become a blockchain developer is to acquire appropriate skills. As a developer looking for a deeper understanding of how Blockchain applies to the business, budding Blockchain specialists can start with some tutorials that teach them about the blockchain fundamentals, use cases, and distributed ledgers.
What technology should Blockchain developers work with?
- Bitcoin: Bitcoin is written in C ++ and is by far the largest crypto currency. The DLT technology makes crypto-currency possible, but crypto-currency is not the only application of blockchain technologies. Bitcoin development opportunities are diversified, and most companies that currently rent former Bitcoin developers are small to medium-sized, fast-growing companies with innovative business models
- Ethereum: Ethereum is very interesting because it’s a whole environment that offers a crypto currency, but also the potential for smart contracts and the development of distributed applications that use ethers as “fuel” to get the crypto currency and the ability to develop a new class of applications. Ethereum is a very exciting area for developers and uses solidity (similar to JavaScript) to compile code for the Ethereum Virtual Machine
- R3: Developer jobs in R3 are best suited for those with a background in capital market systems. The business case is fully focused on the financial markets and it would be a steep learning curve for anyone without a business experience
- Hyper Ledger: The Linux Foundation has launched Hyper Ledger as a project for a specific consortium of members developing various platforms, including Burrow, Fabric (IBM), Iroha, Sawtooth (Intel). Hyper-ledger is probably a common method used by companies to take advantage of the blockchain revolution. This is a very interesting area for blockchain developers
How Blockchain developer acquire the necessary knowledge
- Meet ups: The Blockchain community is a tight group of people around the world, many of whom have been believing in the opportunities offered by Blockchain for several years. The big news is that the community is very supportive and has many developers sharing their knowledge with others
- Books for Blockchain Developers: In order to understand the impact of cryptography on structuring data, classic guides that provide an introduction to the topic can actually help
- Training and Courses: There are some really wonderful courses for developers and business people, which are offered again and again
- IBM: IBM also maintains a number of open source sample applications and blockchain-related functions. The IBM developerWorks Blockchain Developer Center is another very useful resource for learning more about blockchain technology. There are free tools, articles, blogs, samples and tutorials, and new content is added almost daily to Blockchain developers
Take advantage of Blockchain open source
One of the reasons why it is so easy to work with Blockchain today, even with minimal experience, is open source. When developers use open source from start to finish, they can easily start with blockchain. Developers who are quickly familiar with blockchain development can access a variety of IBM Developer Journeys that have recently been released. These include open source code, documentation, APIs, and more to help developers program better, faster, and smarter. Here are a few projects to help you get started: Learn how blockchain technology can run on a Linux mainframe Create to-do list application with blockchain Implement an asset transfer application using blockchain Create a blockchain application to display and interact with a network via a web interface
Working with the Hyperledger composer
To succeed as a blockchain developer, programmers should become familiar with the Hyperledger Composer. Hyperledger Composer is an application development framework that simplifies and accelerates the creation of Hyperledger Fabric applications. Hyperledger fabric applications are a common, unchangeable ledger for recording the history of transactions; it promotes a new generation of transactional applications. The Composer programming model is based on the definition and deployment of a business network definition that includes a data model that defines the name and structure of assets, participants, and transactions in the business network. The business network also specifies transaction processor functions (written in ES5 JavaScript) that are automatically executed on a hyperledger fabric when customers submit transactions. Composer defines JavaScript APIs to submit transactions and create, retrieve, update, and delete assets within asset registries. Composer helps to realize a business solution and to quickly implement it on a fabric block chain.
Stay up to date
In order to maintain their market value in the digital age as a blockchain developer, programmers should ensure that they are constantly educated. New technologies are born fast and continue to evolve just as fast. If Blockchain developers are sure that their knowledge is up to date, they will quickly find a solution to current problems. Technical reputation and education are two important building blocks that allow Blockchain developers to maintain the relevance of this new technology. If they do not participate online in exchanges with other developers, they will want to get started as quickly as possible, for example through social media groups.