5 Top Great Blockchain Developer Tools

Ever since cryptocurrencies gradually started going mainstream, the word “blockchain” has become insanely popular, which isn’t surprising. If you’re the technology behind the biggest financial revolution of the century, I’d argue that you deserve all the praise.

The recent boom in crypto proved that the world is not yet ready for the futuristic digital currency, creating a whole lot of jobs without qualified professionals. One such job is that of a blockchain developer, which is still a hot market for anyone looking to go into development.

If you’re choosing blockchain development as a career, some of the basic things to learn are the different blockchain developer tools that professionals use. Since they’re not exactly common knowledge, I’ll show you the top blockchain developer tools for 2022 and what you use them for.

Before then, however, I think we should move a step at a time and take a look at what blockchain means and why it’s important.

What Is the Blockchain Technology?

If you’re choosing blockchain development as a career, the least you can know is what blockchain means and what it’s used for. You don’t want to be that one mechanic who has no idea what a car means. So, what exactly is blockchain technology?

You can think of blockchain as the storage of transactional records in a network of connected computers in a peer-to-peer structure. The records represent the block, while the peer-to-peer nodes of interconnected computers represent the chain, forming the basis for the word: blockchain.

Each of the blocks in a blockchain contains multiple transactions, and new transactions can be appended to the ledger whenever a member initiates it. Remember, every single computer on the blockchain shares the same ledger, making it easy to identify and prevent tampering.

The security of the blockchain increases with the number of blocks and individual computers in the system. While a blockchain is technically hackable, it would require the hacker to gain control of more than half the entire computer nodes on the chain, which is technically impossible for larger projects.

In short, you shouldn’t have to worry about the security of your money in the form of Bitcoins or Ethereum. Since both of them are pretty popular cryptocurrencies with large and intricate blockchains, there’s almost zero chance of anyone ever finding a vulnerability.

Where Can I Get the Best Blockchain Developer Course?

With the little that I’ve said about blockchain technology, it’s already evident that it will likely be an interesting field of expertise. There are so many possibilities for a blockchain developers, but the first thing you have to do is to learn to be one.

When it comes to learning to become a blockchain developer it depends on what you mean by blockchain development. Getting confused? Don’t be, as I’ll explain all I’m talking about in extensive detail.

When people talk about blockchain development, it usually refers to one of two things: blockchain core development or blockchain app development. While they may sound pretty similar, there’s a heaven of a difference between blockchain core and app development.

Core development is where all the dirty work happens when it comes to developing a blockchain. Developers at this level employ low-level programming languages and insane knowledge of the inner workings of blockchain technology to become core blockchain developers.

On the other hand, blockchain app development involves building usable apps on the already existing blockchain technology. Blockchain app developers typically learn a specific blockchain client to perfection to enable them to build apps suited for the system.

While becoming an expert in either of those fields should get you a lucrative job in the blockchain industry, learning blockchain app development is probably a better idea. Not only does it open you up to more opportunities, but it’s also easier to learn and takes a lot less time.

Thus, most of the blockchain development courses you’ll find will likely focus on teaching blockchain app development instead of the blockchain core itself.

If you’re looking for a decent source to learn blockchain development, you can start by obtaining a degree in any of the universities offering blockchain courses. While there aren’t many of them, there’s a chance that you’ll find one near you.

You can also get some decent blockchain development courses from sources like Coursera, Udemy, Udacity, and edX. Consider checking expert reviews on courses before taking them, and a heads up: blockchain courses are pretty expensive.

How Long Does It Take to Become a Blockchain Developer?

Given the complexity that’s usually attributed to blockchain development, it’s only natural that people think it takes a pretty long time to become a blockchain developer. However, that’s usually not true; you don’t want to spend decades trying to figure out how to block a chain, do you?

Realistically, the time required to become a blockchain developer varies depending on your commitment and prior level of experience. If you’re starting from scratch with zero knowledge of programming or any related concepts, it could take a pretty long while to become a blockchain developer.

By a pretty long while, I mean three years minimum since there’s a long list of things to learn. Firstly, you may have to learn a programming language like JavaScript or C++ before taking the blockchain course, which takes a lot of time in itself.

With some proficiency in basic programming concepts, you can learn to become a blockchain developer and start working on projects within three months. Given the possibilities of gaining expertise in the technology, I don’t think three months is too huge a sacrifice.

Top Blockchain Developer Tools

Whether you’re just an enthusiast or someone really serious about learning about blockchain technology, you could check out some of the tools that actual developers use for their work. The vast majority of blockchain developer tools are free since almost everything is open source anyway.

With that said, here are some interesting blockchain developer tools used in blockchain development .

1. MetaMask

Even with the remotest interest in blockchain technology, you should have already heard the word: MetaMask. It’s a Chrome extension that functions as a decentralized wallet capable of sending and receiving digital wallets.

In recent years, MetaMask has gained more popularity among blockchain developers for its seamless integration with Ethereum as well as its numerous features. If you dream of a career in blockchain development, mastering MetaMask might be an interesting way to get started.

2. Ganache

When you finally become a blockchain app developer, you’ll notice that there are a lot of things that are irreversible once they go live. That makes it very inconvenient to make any mistakes since you’re almost always building a financial system that will impact thousands, if not millions.

The only feasible way to catch issues early and correct them is by using some kind of simulation to replicate blockchain environments locally. The tool that serves that purpose in the blockchain development process is Ganache, and you don’t incur gas fees while testing your dApp on the Ethereum chain.

Judging by the description, it’s already pretty clear that Ganache is one of the more advanced blockchain developer tools. Before it ever becomes useful, you must have had a full working Ethereum blockchain ready for testing.

3. Remix IDE

Remix IDE is part of the Remix Project, a platform that simplifies the entire process of blockchain development. In addition to the IDE, the Remix Project also includes tools like the Remix Plugin Engine and Remix Libraries, making it one of the best collections of blockchain developer tools available.

The Remix IDE is a web app that works inside of any popular web browser that renders JavaScript correctly. You can connect your MetaMask wallet to this IDE to allow for an easy connection to your Ethereum wallet, making it an indispensable tool if you lean towards the Ethereum blockchain.

4. Truffle

If you’re making use of the Remix IDE, there’s a very decent chance that you’ll also find the Truffle Suite useful. While these tools are distinct and aren’t managed by the same entity or organization, they work hand in hand to help simplify the process of developing apps based on the Ethereum blockchain.

As you’ve learned, Remix IDE is simply an integrated development environment where you can write the code in a friendly editor. However, Truffle gives you a large library that will enable you to create complicated dApps for the Ethereum blockchain with relative ease.

Truffle makes it simple to incorporate smart contracts within regular apps and it offers libraries for front-end development. If the Ethereum blockchain is your field, you may want to start getting used to the Truffle Framework early.

5. Solidity

While this article has covered a good deal of blockchain developer tools, you need to have some requisite knowledge to make sense of any of them. The requisite knowledge you need is some programming knowledge, and as far as the Ethereum blockchain is concerned, the de facto language is Solidity.

Solidity is based on JavaScript, C++, and Python, all of which are nice to have when you’re a blockchain developer. While you can write blockchain applications on Ethereum using programming languages like Python, Go, or JavaScript, Solidity remains the only language that was designed solely for that purpose.

FAQs

Is Blockchain Developer a High Demand Skill?

The demand for blockchain developers has skyrocketed in recent years, making it one of the most in-demand tech skills at the moment. However, the learning curve is massive and it takes a lot of dedication to become a hirable blockchain developer.

How Do I Start a Career In Blockchain Development?

You can start a career in blockchain development by learning about the basics using YouTube and Udemy. Then, develop basic programming skills and delve into the world of cryptography and distributed computing. Using the accumulated knowledge, try contributing to open-source blockchain projects.

Is Blockchain Development a High-Paying Job?

Blockchain developers make almost as much as AI engineers according to data from Hired. With an average salary between $150,000 and $175,000, that’s almost as much as AI engineers make! Summarily, blockchain development is a high-paying job.

Conclusion

The blockchain development industry is booming, and pursuing a career in blockchain seems a lot like the most logical thing to do in 2022. A good way to get started with that is familiarizing yourself with the basics and learning about the blockchain developer tools that professionals use.

From a digital wallet for Ethereum to an entire IDE that’s geared towards making blockchain development easy, this article has all the basic tools necessary for emerging blockchain developers.

What more would you add to the list? Tell us down in the comments.

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