The Graph is an open-sourced software. It can be used for the collection, processing, and storing of data from various blockchain applications to facilitate information retrieval. Developers can build and publish various APIs called subgraphs that perform queries over the Graph QL. In essence, The Graph aims to be an indexing protocol to make blockchain data easier to access. As such, the platform can be used to conveniently search for any set of data based on Ethereum through the use of simple queries. This addresses the common problem that many other blockchain indexing platforms have.
GRT is The Graph’s native ERC-20-based token. It can be used as a medium of exchange and a reward for community participants on the network.
What are GRT key features and how does it work?
The project claims that it makes querying fast, reliable, and secure. It also allows anyone to build and publish application programming interfaces (APIs) called subgraphs. These act as intermediaries and allow two applications to communicate with each other.
The Graph aggregates data through the use of its Graph Nodes. These work by continuously scanning network blocks and smart contracts for information. When an application adds data to the blockchain through smart contracts, the Graph Node then adds this new data to its appropriate Subgraphs.
Once the Graph Node has extracted the information from the blockchain, there are three types of users who are vital contributors to organizing the data in its protocol. These are:
Curator: Using GRTs, curators identify the most valuable information and determine what should be included in subgraphs and thus to be indexed.
Indexers: These are the nodes that maintain the indexing function of the platform. They must stake GRT in order to have this role.
Delegator: These are other stakers who delegate their GRT to exist indexers and earn a portion of the rewards, without having to install a node.
All users playing a role earn a percentage of the network fees, dependent on the specific work they complete. The other fundamental players on the platform include:
Consumers: These are the users who pay an indexer for their searches. They can also be web services or any other software connected to The Graph.
Fishermen: These users verify that the network’s response to queries is correct.
Arbitrator: They determine whether an indexer is malicious or not.
What can The Graph be used for?
The indexed data can then be easily accessed by applications seeking specific sets of information in order to help the running of their software through the use of queries. For example, the Decentraland platform accesses The Graph's information to source land, accessories, as well as collectibles across applications. It then brings these items into Decentraland’s own marketplace, allowing its users to purchase them from a central location.
Historical events:
The Graph (GRT) has migrated their old (0x23a941036ae778ac51ab04cea08ed6e2fe103614) Arbitrum contract to a new one.
The Graph's current share of the entire cryptocurrency market is 0.01%, with a market capitalization of $ 180.64 Million.
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