Chapter 3. The Ethereum platform
This chapter covers
The previous chapter introduced Dapps and the underlying concepts and technologies, among which is Ethereum. In this chapter, I’ll cover Ethereum in much greater depth, so you’ll get the foundation you need to develop Dapps on this platform effectively. I’ll begin by presenting the Ethereum wallet, a UI tool you’ll use to start interacting with the Ethereum P2P network by transferring some Ether, the Ethereum cryptocurrency. Then you’ll get a wide overview of smart contracts, the key technology that Ethereum introduced.
After learning about Go Ethereum, one of the many clients available on the platform, and once you understand the purpose of accounts, you’ll move to the next level and start interacting with the Ethereum network through Go Ethereum in several ways: with commands entered into the operating system shell, with instructions entered into the Go Ethereum console, and with HTTP requests. At that point, you should have acquired enough familiarity with the platform to progress with confidence through the rest of the book. It’ll be a dense but rewarding chapter. Let’s get started.
The Ethereum network offers two main graphical user interfaces: