Frequently Asked Questions about Arweave
Q: What is Arweave?
A: The Arweave project, previously known as Archain, is creating a permanent, decentralised, and uncensorable information archive, parallel to the internet. Built on the first truly scalable cryptocurrency, the Arweave’s novel ‘blockweave’ technology allows for efficient, self-organising data storage that ensures data in the network will be available for many years, many decades, even centuries to come, untouched by accidental or intentional data alteration.
If you are interested in knowing more about our technological innovations, you may wish to visit our website or read our whitepaper.
Q: What is AR.cash/AR?
A: AR.cash (often shortened to ‘AR’) are the tokens used to pay for information to be permanently archived on the Arweave. These token payments are distributed as rewards to the ‘miners’ who choose to store and maintain the information on the Arweave.
Q: How can I start archiving web pages on the Arweave?
A: Users who purchased AR.cash tokens in our pre-sale event are able to immediately queue webpages for archiving on the main network after its launch. Pre-sale backers can queue pages by installing the Arweave web extension for Google Chrome, entering their public key obtained during the pre-sale. From then on, users can simply press one button to queue a web page for archiving once the main Arweave network launches. For details of network release dates, please see our dedicated timeline blog post.
Alternatively, pre-sale backers can try out the archiving function by installing the Arweave alpha test network web extension. It’s important to note that web pages submitted to the test network via the alpha test network web extension will not be archived on the main network automatically.
At the moment, the Arweave web extensions are accessible only with the Google Chrome web browser, though in the future additional browser support will be added.
Q: When and how will I be able to view information archived on the Arweave network?
A: Arweave will be releasing an online ‘blockweave explorer’ later this year, which will allow users to review information archived on the Arweave. Additionally, when information is archived on the Arweave, it is given a unique transaction identifier, allowing anyone to retrieve that information from the network at any later point.
Q: I purchased tokens during the Arweave pre-sale. When can I access my tokens?
A: After the main Arweave network has been launched, individuals will be able to access their tokens for use, transfer, and trade on the Arweave network.
Q: Can I load my AR.cash tokens/keys into a third party wallet (e.g. MyEtherWallet)?
A: Due to the unique scaling benefits of the Arweave network and the novel technology on which it is based, the Arweave is developed on an entirely new platform. AR.cash tokens are therefore not currently compatible with other wallet programs such as MyEtherWallet or Jaxx. Arweave tokens will be usable through the Arweave web extension, the details of which you can read about in our whitepaper.
Q: This sounds exciting! How do I start mining for myself?
If you participated in the Arweave pre-sale at the ‘Developer’ tier or higher , you can begin mining on the Arweave test network immediately. You may want to mine on the test network now to ensure that you have your mining environment fully established and ready to go when the main network launches.
After the first non-backer alpha test network has launched (see our timeline blog post for details), those not involved in the Arweave pre-sale will also be able to participate in mining.
Q: What is the difference between the test networks and the ‘main’ Arweave network?
The Arweave test network releases are purely for purposes of ensuring network correctness. Any activities that take place on the test networks will be subject to loss on network reset. Once the main network has been released and the testing phase has been finished, no more hard-resets on the network will be performed, meaning that all activities (archiving, transfers, mining, etc.) will persist indefinitely.
Q: I want to build apps based on the Arweave, how can I get started?
A: A huge benefit of Arweave for developers is that you can write your applications as usual, in any programming language you desire, while utilising the Arweave as a permanent backend data storage system through a simple HTTP API.
If you are interested in building apps on the Arweave, you should consider submitting your application to the Arweave app competition.
We will be updating these FAQs frequently, as we receive more questions from the community. If you have further questions about the Arweave project, we can always be reached at team@arweave.org.
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