Assets, Ethereum

What Apps Are Built on Ethereum?

Ethereum is a decentralized platform that runs smart contracts: applications that run exactly as programmed without any possibility of fraud or third party interference.

These apps run on a custom built blockchain, an enormously powerful shared global infrastructure that can move value around and represent ownership of property. This enables developers to create markets, store registries of debts or promises, move funds in accordance with instructions given long in the past (like a will or a futures contract) and many other things that have not been invented yet, all without a middleman or counterparty risk.

The project was bootstrapped via an ether presale in August 2014 by fans all around the world. It is developed by the Ethereum Foundation, a Swiss non-profit, with contributions from great minds across the globe.

On traditional server architectures, every application has to set up its own servers that run their own code in isolated silos, making sharing of data hard. If a single app is compromised or goes offline, many users and other apps are affected.

On a blockchain, anyone can set up a node that replicates the necessary data for all nodes to reach an agreement and be compensated by users and app developers. This allows user data to remain private and apps to be decentralized like the Internet was supposed to work.

NOTE: WARNING: Before using any app built on Ethereum, it is important to know that there is no guarantee of security or reliability. Ethereum is a decentralized platform and therefore requires users to be vigilant and aware of the risks associated with apps built on it. Additionally, the Ethereum network is constantly undergoing upgrades and changes which can lead to bugs or security flaws in the apps that are built on it. Therefore, users should always ensure they are using the most up-to-date version of an app before interacting with it in order to minimize potential risks.

The Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) makes this possible even without a central server. Anyone can run an Ethereum node and take part in processing transactions on the network to earn ether, the cryptocurrency native to Ethereum.

Miners are rewarded based on their share of work done, rather than their share of the total number of blocks mined.

Decentralized applications have many advantages over traditional apps:

They are censorship-resistant: no single entity can shut them down.
They are fraud-resistant: there is no single point of failure that could be exploited.
They are tamper-proof: once deployed to the blockchain, they cannot be modified without consensus from all parties involved.

They are available 24/7: there is no downtime, and no need for maintenance windows.
Updates can be rolled out seamlessly: users do not need to download new versions or update their software.

In conclusion, apps built on Ethereum take advantage of the decentralized nature of the platform to provide users with censorship-resistant, fraud-resistant, tamper-proof applications that are available 24/7.

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