Glossary
Key terms and concepts related to Ontology Node Staking
Block
A block is a ledger unit where transaction records are registered with the corresponding transaction hashes with all the data being open and transparent for all the nodes to be accessed and synchronized with. Blocks can be referred to using their height in the chain. A collection of time synchronized and linked blocks essentially forms the blockchain.
Blockchain
A ledger-based network of nodes that function based on consensus and trust. All the functionality and applications work based on the implementation of the aforementioned characteristics which have been brought about using complex algorithms and cryptography.
Node
A node is an instance or the most basic element of a node-based P2P network. The same definition applies to blockchain based networks which are P2P in nature, generally speaking. In the context of the Ontology framework, a node is a functioning deployment of the official Go-based implementation of the Ontology core.
Transaction
In the traditional sense, we understand transactions to be transmission or transfer of financial assets and goods. But in terms of blockchain, any transfer of data or message passing between two nodes of a network or the blockchain is considered a transaction. Each transaction has a transaction hash which can be used to find out details regarding the particular transaction.
Tokens
ONT and ONG are Ontology chain's native tokens.
ONT
ONT is a cryptocurrency token that has gained popularity in the digital currency market. It can be used for general exchange purpose within applications that support it. Feel free to explore the in . can be exchanged for other digital currencies, e.g. Bitcoin or Ethereum, or fiat, e.g. USD, over exchange platforms that accept ONT.
Characteristics of ONT:
Can be used as a governance token on the Ontology chain for staking.
Indivisible. i.e., the smallest unit of the token is limited to unity.
ONG
ONG is a cryptocurrency much like ONT.
Characteristics of ONG:
ONG serves as the gas to perform operations on the Ontology blockchain. Each on-chain action, or a transaction consumes a small amount of gas fee.
Divisible in nature. Smallest unit of ONG can be as small as 0.000000001 (precise to 9 decimal places)
Smart Contracts
Smart contracts are the fundamental units of logic as far their usage within the blockchain ecosystem is concerned. Smart contracts implement functionality by releasing assets on single, or multiple chains based on the business logic and architecture, when certain fixed and acknowledged contractual clauses are fulfilled, or fail to fulfill. Hence, smart contracts can be used to program complex logic and functionality without any constraints in terms of industry.
dApp - Decentralized Application
A decentralized application implements features and the back end mechanism of a distributed system or network to achieve its business logic. Ontology provides the required framework and SDKs that facilitate dApp development. Follow the link below for a brief introduction to dApps.
Explorer
The Explorer is Ontology's trust verifier. Block, transaction and contract related information can be looked up conveniently using the corresponding identifiers such as the transaction hash, block height, contract hash, etc.
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