07 / 11Beginner
Web3 pros and cons
The earlier code examples walked you through moving a Web2 application to Web3 on Chromia and pointed out what deserves your attention along the way. They also showed that adopting Rell and the rest of Chromia's tooling is a smaller leap than you might expect.
Chromia's design lines up with concepts most Web2 developers already use. Still, migrating involves more than reworking data models, business logic, and client interfaces. Whether you write the code or have a stake in the project, you also need to plan for scalability, security, your revenue model, and the cost of operating the system.
Before going into those topics, step back and look at what Web3 offers and where it gets difficult.
Benefits of Web3
- Decentralized infrastructure: Data and control are spread over many nodes, so no single party holds authority.
- Token monetization: You can build native tokens or cryptocurrencies into your app to support new ways of earning revenue.
- Immutable data: Data written to a blockchain can't be altered afterward, which protects its integrity.
- Governance: Users take a larger role in running the app and can vote on changes and upgrades.
Challenges of Web3
- New concepts: You need to learn unfamiliar ideas such as consensus algorithms, dapps, operational costs, and fees.
- Scalability concerns: Many existing blockchain infrastructures have limited throughput and don't scale easily as load changes. This module explains why Chromia differs here.
- End user complexity: Asking users to create and manage digital wallets can discourage adoption of a new application.
You can group these benefits and challenges into three areas:
- Scalability
- Security
- Revenues and operational costs
The following sections cover each area in more detail, including the steps you can take as a developer to reduce the challenges and make the most of the benefits.