Ethereum 2.0 has been a long time coming – and it’s not quite here yet. Ethereum functions on continuous development, and they’ve been doing this upgrade thing a lot longer than the rest of us. Starting with Frontier in 2015, Ethereum has had a string of hard forks and upgrades intended on bettering the network. That leads us to where we are now, on the brink of Ethereum 2.0 Serenity – but without a date for the hard fork to end all Ethereum hard forks (for the moment, at least). Realistically, 2020 will most likely be the year that we see Ethereum 2.0, but that doesn’t mean that Ethereum won’t continue to upgrade and develop the blockchain. Working on continuous development means that Ethereum will get better and better, we’ll just have to wait for it. Ethereum is open source, and all members of the community are encouraged to actively participate in bettering the network. It’s clear that Ehereum’s development model will pay off in 2020, and the network will thrive.

An overview of previous Ethereum updates

As we’re working our way up to Ethereum 2.0, let’s take a quick look at the updates that have brought us closer to Serenity.

Frontier (2015): The launch of the Ethereum blockchain.

Ethereum Classic (2016): Split the blockchain into Ethereum and Ethereum Classic. Ethereum Classic now functions separately from the core Ethereum blockchain.

Byzantium (2017): The first update of the Metropolis phase. Intent to optimize gas consumption, support verification for RAS signatures, and more.

Constantinople (2019): The second update of the Metropolis phase. Gas requirements for certain transactions were reduced, efficiency and speed of Ethereum virtual machine was improved.

Istanbul (2019): Another step towards Serenity. Altered various opcodes to prevent spamming blocks and more.

Muir Glacier (2020): Pushed back the Ethereum Difficulty Bomb timeline.

Ethereum’s development model

Ethereum wants to change the world. And in order to do so, it has to be accessible to anyone, anywhere. Thus, the Ethereum development model has to be global, decentralized, and inclusive. As a developer community, they have to operate as openly as possible. By encouraging participation from community members all over the world, through developer calls, GitHub, formal updates, and informal updates (as well as various other channels).

According to Ben Edgington, an advisor to ConsensYs on Eth2, “We [Ethereum] nurture organic growth and are wary of any one party exerting too much control. To an extent, our approach resembles that of Linux, which has come to dominate much of the world’s computing. (Linux doesn’t have much of a roadmap either.)”

An open source model like the one that Ethereum operates under, helps to nurture a community that feels inspired by a single issue. The road to Ethereum 2.0 will be paved by the blockchain’s community. This model of development inspires people to actively engage in the Ethereum network, and helps build a better blockchain for all. As Antoine de Saint-Exupéry said, “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.” So, yes – Ethereum’s development model will pay off in 2020, whether we see Ethereum 2.0 or not.

A new #eth2 quick update is here! Get it while it’s hot. https://t.co/jE4b4zrLWW — Ethereum (@ethereum) December 19, 2019

We’ll see Ethereum 2.0 soon

We can remain fairly optimistic about seeing Ethereum 2.0 soon. Ethereum’s development model will pay off in 2020, and the network will upgrade. With it, Ethereum 2.0 will bring major change to the community. Solving issues of scalability means that the blockchain will be faster and more efficient, and better able to host developers who want to build their dApps on the network. The continuous development of the blockchain means that each and every update that has happened since Frontier, has brought us closer to Ethereum 2.0 – and the network is not going to come to a standstill once Serenity is implemented. 2020 is going to be an exciting year for Ethereum, and the entire community will benefit.

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