Web 3: A Minimalistic Introduction

Block Chain

Cryptocurrency 

Web3

Decentralization 

Non-fungible Token(NFT)

Bitcoin

…

 

If you comprehend more than 3 terms listed above, do me a favor, get out of this page. Your level of knowledge is probably way beyond me, so just get out. If you still want to read more in this article, fine, I will share some thoughts and see if it matches yours.

So, what exactly is Web 3? How could it change the way you browse the internet? Well, Web 3 aims to decentralize the entire internet via re-arrange the location of the data using distributed deployment….

Ok, enough, in English, Web 3 means you can own everything you created on the internet. Yes, you probably have already created tons of stuff on the internet, like Facebook pages, photos, posts, articles, and more. However, once you create your data, photos, and articles on internet platforms like Facebook, Twitter, or Reddit, those data no longer belongs to you. Including your threads on Heyup, of course. We are just kind enough to allow you to claim your ownership.

Web 3 there becomes meaningful because your data is saved differently compared to what we have today. Now, the platforms save your data. For example, when you make a thread on the Heyup community, the Heyup server saves your thread. In Web 3, it’s different. The thread will be broken into bits and pieces, and saved separately on multiple servers. So, any time someone reads your thread, the browser collects the fragments from different servers and resembles them into one readable file. Hence, ideally, no one owns the thread except yourself. 

Yes, and… that’s simply it. However, how does it make a difference to us, to the internet users? It may not mean anything if you are just a viewer. It will not fundamentally change the way you browse the internet. However, the separation of data may improve the speed you access certain content on the internet. 

 

It could also mean a lot. If you are a content creator, most of the revenues you create on your data will belong to you. Ideally, no platforms or internet giants will step in and take the most out of your revenue. So, the fruit of labor will not be stolen by anyone except for some service fee. Woohoo, that seems perfect, no exploitation, and everyone deserves what they did. If Carl Marx resurrects from the ground, he probably calls it an unexpected success of internet communism. (Not really, he was an atheist.)

 

However, is it really so good?

 

Just open your eyes and wake up from the ideal world, and problems will pop up immediately. Even if we could perfectly deal with all the technical problems such as internet traffic speed, infrastructure build-up, and reluctant internet giants, what comes next still seems not so promising. Although we can successfully change the cyber environment, we cannot change the fact that the world is working in a capitalist system. People will try and try hard to do whatever they can for profit. The service providers can become giants. Big multinational companies in reality, can still try to own a single thing at the early stage and try to profit whenever you watch it. 

 

Just imagine you found an old video from your favorite YouTuber on Web3, but it was owned by a company years ago. They will still profit from your consumption, and it does not go to the Youtuber’s pocket. The YouTuber still cannot do anything to take its ownership back because the owner company made a deal with Youtube years ago. Miserable, right? 

 

To sum it up, Web 3 may change the internet environment, but by how much? Who knows.