Chainlink

What is Chainlink? 

A decentralized network based on oracle is the Chainlink. The primary purpose is to be an intermediary between an external data source and smart contracts. Likewise, Chainlink permits investors to get safe access to the off-chain data feeds. With the Chainlink, you can invest in reliable output and input free from any tampering to work with blockchains when applied on complex smart contracts. 

With the Chainlink (LINK), you can connect real-world data with the digital asset. The token of this cryptocurrency is LINK. You can use this LINK token to pay for transactions of smart contracts when conducting over the Chainlink network. Compare to fiat currencies, and the Chainlink tokens have their own set of values. When a problem occurs in a decentralized blockchain, Chainlink tries to solve this problem by decentralizing those systems that use oracles and APIs and checks whether the data provided is pertinent to the contract. 

The Chainlink acts as a bridge between its network and blockchain. Further, it gathers the data from a trustworthy oracle or node and then can produce several subcontracts. In Chainlink, the blockchain acts as a middleman to important information to conventional payment systems without harming the security or compromising decentralization.  

History of Chainlink 

The year 2014 September saw the emergence of Chainlink by Sergey Nazarov into the market of cryptocurrency. Initially, a parent company named SmartContract.com was established to bridge the gap between blockchain and external data sources. Eventually, the entire company came up with Chainlink. Unfortunately, the oracle problem of Chainlink is something that is issuing from the smart contracts. To resolve this problem, they established a fund-raising event in 2017, where they successfully collected $32 million. 

What makes Chainlink different from others? 

As has already been mentioned, the main focus is on smart contracts. These smart contracts are provided by Chainlink to help you get access to APIs that you want to connect to. Therefore, if you plan to make a payment using Chainlink, you can ease any banking system or other payment methods. Smart contracts serve three major functions: 

• When you choose some strange oracles, smart contracts will provide you the requested data by creating a program agreement first. 
• The smart contract gathers all the data that the off-chain oracles have disseminated and then creates an aggregate output. 
• The parameters that the users need to follow while using smart contracts should include a service level agreement. If any oracle violates the terms mentioned in the agreement and provides incorrect data, it is demoted and punished severely. 

Besides the vital features of smart contracts on the Chainlink blockchain, there are some advantages of using Chainlink token that needs special mention. They are as follows: 

1. When using Chainlink, you can find similarities between Ethereum and Bitcoin. Further, Chainlink allows its users to include other payment systems into it. 
2. Once you know the capabilities of Chainlink, investing in LINK tokens can give you a lot of benefits financially. 
3. Chainlink cooperates with biggies like Google Cloud, Swift, and Oracle to instill confidence in the new-age cryptocurrency enthusiasts. 
4. Since 2014, the parent company of SmartContract.com has been intricately engaged in its working still now. 
5. Amidst many, one of the purposes of Chainlink is to decentralize smart contracts. This enhances the accuracy and security of the blockchain network and the digital asset that you invest in.   

How to use Chainlink? 

Although buying tokens in Chainlink may appear to be a hell lot of a task initially, once you master the art of purchasing LINK, working with the blockchain is as easy as a breeze. When you plan to buy a LINK, you can either do it through a broker or use an exchange platform. However, make sure that the chosen exchange platform allows you to deposit funds through credit or debit cards. 

Most of you may think to store the LINK token right on the cryptocurrency exchange platform. However, that is not a very secure place for your LINK. For better security, purchasing a digital wallet for storing cryptocurrency is the best that you can do for your digital asset. There is a problem with the cryptocurrency wallet. Since they are secured with a password, if you forget the password, everything is gone! So, it is better to note down the password so that you can get access to your wallet’s contents even if you forget the password. 

To choose a suitable wallet for your cryptocurrency, you need to consider why you need the wallet or for what purpose. Then, take a look at the amount that you need to store in the wallet. To make your digital asset more secure, both hardware and software wallets are suitable. At present, you can use Ledger as a reliable hardware wallet if you are ready to spend a little more as hardware wallets are expensive. For more extensive links, spending a bit more and storing data in hardware wallets is worth it. 

Just like you download apps on your mobile devices, software wallets work similarly. They can be both non-custodial and custodial. When the wallet is custodial, a service provider takes the responsibility of looking after your private key. On the other hand, the non-custodial wallets provide utmost security to store the private key on your device. Although working with software wallets imparts convenience, yet they are not better than hardware wallets.

Conclusion 

Having solved its prevalent ‘oracle problem,’ the popularity has increased. Now, it is the perfect time to buy LINK tokens. If you are afraid to work with the Chainlink blockchain network on your own, you can help a broker.