Probably Nothing 144: Dry Run Your Talks With D_D

This week, we have a new initiative for speakers and a new episode of DevNTell, so check it out!

Also, shout out to @Kirsten for launching Revyou, the link-in-bio for freelancers, which started at  @_buildspace @_nightsweekends. The Community says congratulations!!!

D_D is working on an idea to enable technical workshop presenters to improve their craft delivery by presenting to a smaller audience for feedback. Presenters can use the “dry run” feedback to improve and deliver a killer presentation.  

If this idea excites the Community and you want to see it happen, please post your thoughts on D_D Discord.

This week's episode of DevNTell will feature Abril Zucchi, Developer Relations Engineer at Abstract. Abstract is a Layer 2 chain built on the ZK Stack, designed to securely power consumer-facing blockchain applications.

​Viewers of this DevNTell will see Abril give us an overview of Abstract and Abstract Wallet.

Register to get notifications when the show starts. 

D_D is excited to launch our new course authored by @DAppaDanDev, which teaches you how to Build apps on Bitcoin with @rootstock_io.  Bring your existing Solidity skills to build apps on Bitcoin with Rootstock, as this course will teach you;

1⃣ Intro to Rootstock

2⃣ Accessing Data via The Graph

3⃣ Smart Contracts on Rootstock

4⃣ Building a Rootstock-powered app

Each lesson of the course has a corresponding @zealy_io quest to earn EXP. After the Zealy sprint has ended, participants will be rewarded with CODE tokens based on the EXP earned.

You stand a chance of getting 1k USD funding from @rootstock_io for your project, allocated to 5 projects (1k USD each) voted on by CODE token holders in our first community-led, bottom-up grants round when you complete the course and propose a project idea for the community to vote on.

Take the course and apply for a grant. To whet your appetite about Rootstock, here is a teaser on Rootstock from @geniusyinka.

Thank you for all the fantastic submissions to the Rootstock x D_D grants program!

We're looking forward to seeing these ideas come to life over the next month; however, before we get to building we need to get some voting done to see who'll be taking home their cut of the 5k USD available in grant funding (5 separate grants of 1k).

We're calling all D_D members to visit the grants page starting October 30th to cast their votes for their favourite projects using their CODE tokens!

Polls will close on November 3rd where the top 5 vote earning projects will move forward in building out their vision with grant funding to follow.

Stay tuned for more details about this in the coming weeks. Members who've gone through the ENS smalls grants experience will find a similar one here.

Happy voting season! 🎉

Last week on DevNTell, Michael Dankanich, Head of DevRel at Cookbook.dev presented the product Cookbook. Cookbook is an ideal home for Web3 devs. It has a searchable library of thousands of smart contracts, ChefGPT to answer any web3 question, with fast and easy onboarding to any protocol.

Watch the episode to understand how to use Cookbook as Michael goes through the complete Cookbook.dev product suite to show devs how they can improve their work efficiency.

Watch the episode here.

• @4gnle on D_D Discord is looking for a UI/UX designer. A prospective candidate needs to have DeFi experience (non-negotiable) and have a portfolio we can check. Send a DM if interested.

• @rickk on D_D Discord is seeking a mid-level developer with experience in Next.js, NodeJS and tRPC, to join their team in OpenLab. DM your portfolio link with your previous projects you worked on to @rickk if interested.

• A quick guide video on “How to Write a Smart Contract That Accepts USDC” by 

  @jofawole

• D_D received 10k Scroll Tokens as a Scroll Community Collaborator in the recent Scroll airdrop.

Hacker Returns $19 Million Stolen from U.S. Government

A hacker returned $19 million of the $20 million stolen from a U.S. government-controlled wallet, though $700,000 remains unaccounted for and likely laundered through instant exchanges. The wallet, seized in connection with the 2016 Bitfinex hack, held assets now valued in billions, with authorities transferring recovered funds to a secure address.

80% of Web3 Startups Launch on Ethereum and Solana

A recent report by Alliance reveals that 80% of Web3 startups since 2021 have chosen Ethereum and Solana, with Ethereum hosting 62% of projects and Solana attracting 18% as it gains popularity. Bitcoin has also seen growth, capturing 5% of startup activity due to innovations like Ordinals and increased programmability, while the NFT market segment has declined and DeFi remains steady.

Crypto Rally Foiled by Report of DOJ Probe of Tether

Bitcoin’s near-$70,000 rally faltered after news broke of a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into Tether for possible sanctions and anti-money laundering violations, causing prices to fall to $66,500. Tether’s CTO, Paolo Ardoino, downplayed the report, claiming it merely repeats outdated claims.

Golden State Warriors sign crypto deal with Coinbase amid FTX lawsuit

The Golden State Warriors have partnered with Coinbase as their new cryptocurrency sponsor, despite both parties facing legal issues—Coinbase with the SEC over alleged unregistered securities and the Warriors due to their prior promotion of FTX. As part of the deal, Warriors fans who open Coinbase accounts will receive season-long benefits and access to blockchain-related merchandise.

Nigeria Drops Charges Against Tigran Gambaryan, Jailed Binance Exec and Former IRS Agent

After eight months in a Nigerian jail on charges of money laundering and tax evasion, former IRS crypto investigator and Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan has had his charges dropped on medical grounds. Gambaryan, whose health has deteriorated significantly while in custody, played a prominent role in U.S. federal investigations, tracing and recovering stolen cryptocurrencies tied to criminal activity.

Delegate your AR.IO testnet IO tokens (tIO) to our Arweave gateway, as we will share 10% of the rewards with you.

You can delegate your tIO tokens here.

If you don’t have tIO tokens yet, visit the ar.io website to learn how to obtain them.