Phase 2 is here and now!

We are proud to announce that Phase 2 of our testnet has been completed, and that the code has been published to Github. Formally known as v0.9.1, our blockchain now includes our Turing complete virtual machine and the core built-in contracts. This has already been live on our testnet for a little while, and we keep pushing new updates frequently. In this update we will take you guys on a tour of the virtual machine, the consensus mechanism, the state of the testnet and ongoing development efforts. The stats of our internal testnet can be viewed via our website.

The APEX Virtual Machine on our DPOS blockchain

The virtual machine, being Turing complete, can basically handle any sort of computational problem relevant for a blockchain, and supports a wide variety of functions through the support for creation and implementation of appropriate smart contracts. Some necessary smart contracts related to the consensus mechanism have already been built in. These contracts allow functions such as voting for alternative producers, revoking votes, registering as an alternative producer or disqualifying a producer.

As previously mentioned, we referenced the EVM several times during the construction of our virtual machine. There are however important differences when it comes to how a virtual machine must be constructed based on the consensus mechanism used by the blockchain. The reason is that POW and DPOS consensus deal with complex contracts differently. In the case of ETH and other POW systems, there is no need to consider the complexity of the contract as long as the contract does not exceed the block size limit. This changes when you switch to DPOS though.

As for the block explorer and its wallet module, we have completed most aspects of it. Among these we have currently completed transaction signatures, private/public keys and the address generation algorithm. We are still putting the final touch on things, but expect to be able to release this in approximately two weeks.