I've read the article published by Bitcoin Magazine a few days ago and I can't get the thought of how awesome Qtum is out of my mind. Full Disclaimer: I've chosen to learn to develop smart contracts upon the Qtum Blockchain because of its unique support for both the Ethereum and Bitcoin networks in addition to the wonderful Qtum community, clean software code and the availability of tons of documentation on Qtum development.
The ability to support the x86 virtual machine and not just the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) has sooo many advantages I'm excited for. The article lists the following:
- Programming Language Support
- Standard Library
- Optimized Gas Model
- Unlock the full power of the Account Abstraction Layer (AAL)
- New possibilities for smart contracts
- First-Class Oracles
- Blockchain Analysis
- Alternative Data Storage
- Explicit Dependency Trees
One of the biggest, most novel ideas is the ability to actually award developers and award the smart contracts themselves by allowing cheaper Gas cost for using limited features. That way simple smart contracts do not use the same Gas as more complex smart contracts. This is huge and when you think of IoT (Internet of Things) where machines are talking to machines, or tiny embedded devices and sensors that do very simple work, it will drastically reduce the Gas cost.
I'm also a big fan of Standards Libraries mainly for the security implication of relying on tried and true, tested code. Security should be at the forefront of everyone's mind when it comes to developing smart contracts. The entire software industry today is based onstandards libraries like Nuget packages, STL, etc. This creates an even wider opportunity for developers. Not to mention the partnership Qtum recently made with Qihoo 360.
Qtum is on the right track. Their ambition isn't too great nor too broad, but rather ambitious enough and focused. I'm more likely to respect Crypto projects that have a focus area that it does really well. Long live Qtum!
To make this super clear. Qtum helps bridge the gap but is its own chain in its own right. A community member wrote up a really nice explanation I want to post here:
@moxie Are you the moxi who wrote the article? There is some false information on that page. In the comment section moxi writes: "Yes, your thinking is spot on! Qtum has the ability to move smart contracts between the two chains. ", which isn't true. Qtum is built using Bitcoin and Ethereum code but operates independently of both networks (Bitcoin isn't even touring complete with their Scrypt system). When Qtum says they bridge the gap between the two communities, what they are trying to say is that due to the fact they borrow code from both projects, both their ecosystems are compatible with QTUM's i.e. Bitcoin payment gateways can be made to support Qtum aswell with minor modifications and Ethereum Smartcontracts can also be very easily ported to QTUM. People from both communities can be united in the Qtum project. I think a lot of people don't really understand this.
//Support Me?
BTC - 1L19KwFizQa8d5XvbqXrDdsRADvmDePtzr
ETH - 0x3275cf9B6412e031AEC4502521a6C8E515B1a0fa
LTC - LN8WC6kXspe6z7vo9q4kS3BewKkAPf9Nzd
DASH - XotdWpZais9jB9uns2dMLKUyBvSd5aBmed
DOGE - D5K3nXUfP7JjJruQA1KWg7pnXQ1sRu7g5t
What do you think between EOS vs Qtum ?
I think EOS has a very strong platform as well. EOS will have until this summer to really showcase what they can do no their platform in practice. They call EOS Blockchain 3.0, but Ethereum can easily morph from 2.0 to 3.0 as well implementing scaling solutions like the Raiden network. But we'll have to see after we have something working in the real-world.
With so many infrastructure protocols out there I have not had time to get my head around them all (I am not a coder, just someone who is very keen to see where blockchain tech can take us) up until now Qtum has been one that has slipped through my research net. I say till now as I agree, the concept of a smart contact protocol being able to function across the two may players is something that sounds awesome. I truly believe that interoperability is a very important component of any successful ecosystem moving forward. Am I to understand that Qtum has the ability to move smart contracts between the two chains? or is it simply (not that I think that it is simple) that it has the ability to deal with each chain separately? one more question if I may, do you know if the platform intends to expand its repertoire to th likes of Neo et al. Cheers for the post and serious food for thought, I will definitely be looking at Qtum more closely . J
Yes, your thinking is spot on! Qtum has the ability to move smart contracts between the two chains. And it doesn't just stop there. The thing is, I know a lot of people love Wanchain and it's ambitious goal of cross-chain support across everything. However, I feel that's SUPER ambitious, whereas we have Qtum which already exists and it's actually working. This is kinda what I alluded to about a project that has the right amount of ambition and focus. And yes, Qtum will expand and with x86 support feature many languages like NEO. I can't wait until we see C# support on Qtum for example.
To make this super clear. Qtum helps bridge the gap but is its own chain in its own right. A community member wrote up a really nice explanation I want to post here:
"@moxie Are you the moxi who wrote the article? There is some false information on that page. In the comment section moxi writes: "Yes, your thinking is spot on! Qtum has the ability to move smart contracts between the two chains. ", which isn't true. Qtum is built using Bitcoin and Ethereum code but operates independently of both networks (Bitcoin isn't even touring complete with their Scrypt system). When Qtum says they bridge the gap between the two communities, what they are trying to say is that due to the fact they borrow code from both projects, both their ecosystems are compatible with QTUM's i.e. Bitcoin payment gateways can be made to support Qtum aswell with minor modifications and Ethereum Smartcontracts can also be very easily ported to QTUM. People from both communities can be united in the Qtum project. I think a lot of people don't really understand this."
Thanks Moxi, I will pop over to their site and see what I can gleam, or can you suggest where I may be best suited to get info updates? I will hit the follow as I am sure you will have more to say yourself. Cheers J
Qtum's discord channel "QtumNexus" is really good!