Prompting new lessons

I will briefly expand on how we move on to each lesson...

When ready to begin the first lesson, or indeed move on to the next lesson, I will simply input the prompt "Please expand on Lesson 'x' ". This will give an outline of the things that I need to learn for that particular lesson.

Then we need to prompt: "Please begin lesson x". This will actually start explaining each sub section of the lesson.

Check the example for the first lesson below...

Me

Please expand lesson 1

ChatGPT

Lesson 1: Introduction to Solidity

Objective: To understand the fundamental concepts of Ethereum and Smart Contracts, and to get acquainted with the basic syntax and structure of the Solidity programming language.

Part 1: Overview of Ethereum and Smart Contracts

  • Ethereum Basics:

    • Introduction to Ethereum as a blockchain platform.

    • Understanding decentralized applications (dApps) and how they differ from traditional applications.

    • The concept of Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).

  • Smart Contracts:

    • Definition and purpose of smart contracts.

    • Role of smart contracts in Ethereum.

    • Real-world applications and examples of smart contracts.

  • Ethereum Networks:

    • Mainnet vs Testnets (Ropsten, Rinkeby, etc.).

    • Understanding the use of testnets for development purposes.

Part 2: Introduction to Solidity

  • Solidity Overview:

    • History and development of Solidity.

    • Why Solidity is the preferred language for Ethereum smart contracts.

  • Basic Syntax and Structure:

    • Structure of a Solidity file.

    • Understanding pragma directives.

    • Basic syntax rules in Solidity.

  • First Smart Contract:

    • Writing a simple "Hello World" smart contract.

    • Explanation of contract structure, including constructor and functions.

    • Compilation and basic interpretation of the smart contract.

Part 3: Development Environment Setup

  • Setting up a Solidity Development Environment:

    • Tools and IDEs: Remix, Visual Studio Code with Solidity extensions.

    • Installing and configuring necessary tools and extensions.

    • Creating your first Solidity project.

  • Introduction to Remix IDE:

    • Overview of Remix IDE features and interface.

    • Writing, compiling, and deploying a simple contract using Remix.

Assignments and Practical Exercises:

  • Assignment 1: Research and write a brief report on a real-world application of smart contracts that interests you.

  • Exercise 1: Set up your Solidity development environment. Install necessary tools and verify that everything is working.

  • Exercise 2: Write and deploy a "Hello World" contract on Remix IDE. Experiment with modifying the contract to include additional functions or change its behavior.

This lesson serves as the foundation of your journey back into Solidity and smart contract development. It provides a broad overview and basic hands-on experience to kick-start your learning process. Once you complete this lesson, you'll have a good understanding of what Ethereum and smart contracts are, why Solidity is used, and you will have taken your first steps in writing and deploying a simple smart contract.

Me

please begin lesson 1

ChatGPT

Let's get started with Lesson 1: Introduction to Solidity.

Part 1: Overview of Ethereum and Smart Contracts

Ethereum Basics

  • What is Ethereum?

    • Ethereum is a decentralized, open-source blockchain system that features smart contract functionality. It's a platform for building and running applications without any downtime, fraud, control, or interference from a third party.

  • Decentralized Applications (dApps)

    • dApps are applications that run on a peer-to-peer network of computers rather than a single computer. They are outside the purview and control of a single authority.

  • Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)

    • The EVM is the runtime environment for smart contracts in Ethereum. It's a quasi-Turing complete machine; the quasi part comes from the fact that computation is intrinsically limited through gas.

Smart Contracts

  • Definition and Purpose

    • Smart contracts are self-executing contracts with the terms of the agreement between buyer and seller being directly written into lines of code.

  • Role in Ethereum

    • In Ethereum, smart contracts are treated as autonomous scripts or stateful decentralized applications that are stored in the Ethereum blockchain for later execution.

  • Applications

    • Examples include voting systems, automated DeFi services, identity verification, and more.

Ethereum Networks

  • Mainnet vs Testnets

    • The Mainnet is the main network where actual transactions take place on the distributed ledger. Testnets like Ropsten and Rinkeby simulate Ethereum network conditions, allowing developers to test without using real Ether.

Part 2: Introduction to Solidity

Solidity Overview

  • History and Development

    • Solidity was proposed in 2014 by Gavin Wood, and later developed by the Ethereum project's Solidity team.

  • Why Solidity?

    • It's designed to target the EVM and is the most mature language for writing Ethereum smart contracts.

Basic Syntax and Structure

  • Structure of a Solidity File

    • A typical Solidity file starts with a pragma directive indicating the compiler version, followed by contract definition.

  • First Smart Contract: Hello World

    • A basic contract in Solidity starts with pragma solidity ^0.8.0; (or the version you are using).

    • A contract is declared with contract HelloWorld { }.

    • Inside, you can define a function to return a string.

Part 3: Development Environment Setup

Setting up Solidity Development Environment

  • Tools and IDEs

    • Remix IDE is a powerful, open-source tool that helps you write Solidity contracts straight from the browser.

    • For a more integrated environment, Visual Studio Code with Solidity extensions is recommended.

  • Introduction to Remix IDE

    • Remix is a browser-based IDE that provides an environment to write, debug, and deploy smart contracts.

    • It supports both Solidity and Vyper.

Assignments and Practical Exercises

Assignment 1

  • Research and write a one-page report on a real-world application of smart contracts. Focus on how smart contracts are used and their benefits.

Exercise 1

  • Set up your development environment. If you're new or prefer an easier setup, start with Remix IDE. If you're comfortable with local development environments, set up Visual Studio Code with Solidity extensions.

Exercise 2

  • Write a "Hello World" contract in Remix.

    • Start by creating a new file with a .sol extension.

    • Use the contract structure mentioned above and create a function that returns a string "Hello, World!".

    • Compile and deploy the contract in Remix's JavaScript VM environment.

This lesson is your first step back into the Solidity world. Take your time to understand the basics and get comfortable with the environment and the language syntax. Once you've completed the exercises, you'll have a basic but solid understanding of Ethereum, smart contracts, and the Solidity language.

PreviousPrompting the course sylibusNextExpanding parts of a lesson

Last updated