Scaling blockchain systems is a big and interesting challenge. And while in smartcontract platforms, compatibility with smartcontracts must be maintained, in simpler mechanics it is sufficient to comply with the rules of collateralization. And so in the case of Viz - third-party services only need to form their own award distribution fund, periodically checking the overall potential for competition for the award fund in Viz itself. Let’s start with the layers of the network.
Layer 0 is responsible for the communication protocol of the blockchain system nodes. Typically this is a p2p network, which exchanges messages (via TCP/IP) according to the described protocol.
Layer 1 is responsible for the interaction of accounts within the Viz as per the consensus protocol. This includes all transactions that involve important objects (e.g., accounts, invites, committee requests, delegations) and the state of the system itself. Each node validates transactions using cryptography (verifying the signatures against the public key of the transaction initiator and matching authority access type).
Layer 2 is the interaction of accounts outside the blockchain network. Usually the secondary network is supported by some project or service, building its own model of interaction, incentives for participants. The main requirement for such extensions of the network is to have collateral according to the rules they describe in public statements. The audit of such services depends on many nuances, such as whether the code is open, what part of the data is in the public domain, how users interact. And, of course, the reputation of the service is very important.
One example of a full-fledged second layer service is the @viz_social_bot telegram bot, which allows the Viz award mechanism to be used outside of the blockchain itself. This is made possible by forming its own reward fund (the bot has a social capital of 1 million viz and awards itself every 10 minutes, recording a competition score in the system state total_reward_shares) thus forming an over-supply for rewards that take place inside users who do not have accounts in viz. Telegram users can use the Viz awards mechanism within groups or channels, even without having an account with it. The service checks the user’s social capital within its database and mathematically calculates the amount of their awards using the same formulas that are embedded within the Viz blockchain, thereby ensuring that the rewards in both systems are fully matched. Such state synchronization allows for scaling of the core Viz mechanics to any external system with support for an unlimited number of users.
As an example, a similar mechanism can be used in video games, where the service divides the amount of awards between players in multiplayer matches. In addition, the service can use its own social capital to incentivize users and distribute extra rewards based on ratings or achievements.
VIZ Worldwide provide public Social Gateways compatible with browser extension Vizonator.
Any transactions provided by users will be public and can not be deleted from VIZ blockchain.
If you don’t want to expose the connection between your account and the content you’re promoting, make sure the software and social gateway work with encrypted notes.