Before the crypto boom in 2021, Meta Platforms, or previously known as Facebook, already started a cryptocurrency and blockchain project in 2018 (the official date). It was named “Libra” the next year. Unfortunately, due to Facebook’s notorious reputation and controversy over the decade, Libra failed to get the green light from US regulators, causing the project to die a slow death. Long story short, Libra was rebranded to “Diem” and in the end the assets were sold to Silvergate Capital (NYSE: SI) in January 2022.

At the same time, the original developers of Diem set up their own blockchain projects, namely Aptos and Sui. Both projects gained a lot of traction lately, especially Aptos which managed to raise a total of US$350 million in funding this year. To give you grounds for comparison, the pioneer of Proof-of-Stake (PoS) blockchain Solana, only raised US$25 million before its launch.

As a Layer 1 PoS blockchain, Aptos adopted a new smart contract programming language called “Move”, which was formerly used by Diem. One of the key features of Move is the “parallel execution” that can execute over 160k non-trivial transactions per second, making it the most scalable Layer 1 blockchain to date, of course, if only if everything is working as intended.

Will Aptos going to work as advertised, or it’s just another overpromise, honestly I do not know at the current stage. But what I do know is that now is a good time to get ready for it. Who knows we might be getting some sweet airdrops when the chain launches? Here are some of the apps and protocols you can play around with, let’s begin the Aptos journey!

Wallet

1. Martian Aptos Wallet - https://martianwallet.xyz/

Twitter - @martian_wallet

Visit https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/martian-aptos-wallet/efbglgofoippbgcjepnhiblaibcnclgk to download the wallet extension via Chrome.

2. Create a new wallet.

3. Create a new password.

4. Write down the recovery phrase. Screenshots or photos are not recommended.

5. “Alt + Shift + X” to open the Martian Wallet, not important though.

6. The wallet is all set!

7. To use the Martian wallet in Chrome, you have to pin it first.

8. Once pinned, click the wallet icon to open it. Enter the password created in Step 3.

9. You are now in the Devnet, no setup is required. Click “Airdrop” repeatedly to receive test Aptos tokens to play around with. Bear in mind this is not the real Aptos, it’s only living on the Devnet.

10. Pontem Wallet - https://pontem.network/

Twitter - @PontemNetwork

Visit https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/pontem-wallet/phkbamefinggmakgklpkljjmgibohnba to download the wallet extension via Chrome.

11. Create a new wallet.

12. Create a new password.

13. Write down the recovery phrase. Screenshots or photos are not recommended.

14. Pin it (Step 7) and open the wallet. Click “Faucet” to receive test Aptos tokens.

Name Service Provider

1. Aptos Name Service - https://www.aptosnames.com/

Twitter - @aptosnames

Visit https://www.aptosnames.com/ and connect your wallet. Martian Wallet is used for this app.

2. Enter the domain name you wish to mint and click the search button. Again, the names are only available in Devnet for now and will reset weekly.

3. If the domain name is available, you can mint it by clicking “Buy”. Can’t mint if not available.

4. Approve the transaction.

5. You can view all the domain names you have minted on this page.

Read Part 2 for Aptos’s NFT Marketplace and DeFi protocol! Part 2:

Written by: [Coinlive] Nell