Welcome to the wild and wacky world of coding! My name is Vedant and I'm here to share with you my developer journey in 2022. It's been a bumpy ride, filled with endless lines of code, late nights at the computer, and plenty of debugging headaches. But through it all, I've learned that with a little perseverance and a lot of caffeine, anything is possible in the world of tech. So grab a coffee ☕ and join me as I take you on a journey through the chaos of code and the triumphs of a developer in 2022.

The new year started with a lot of expectations and I was eager to explore various fields of computer science, including blockchain technology. My main goal for 2022 was to get into a good college and then use that as a platform to learn more about blockchains and gain new experiences in the field.

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I was excited to discover what the year had in store and was determined to make the most of the opportunities that came my way. Whether it was learning new programming languages or delving into the world of cryptocurrency and blockchains, I was ready to take on any challenge and continue growing my skills and knowledge.

During the first few months of 2022, I was primarily focused on preparing for my college entrance exams and didn't have much time for coding. However, I remained interested in web3 and made an effort to stay up-to-date with the latest news in the cryptocurrency and web3 space. Despite my busy schedule, I was still passionate about learning more about these topics.

I have a strong memory of my first course on web3 and blockchain technology, which was Alchemy's Road to web3 program. This course is a comprehensive introduction to the world of blockchain and is a popular starting point for many people interested in this field. It spans a total of 10 weeks and covers a wide range of topics related to blockchain, including cryptocurrency, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), decentralized finance (DeFi), and even decentralized social media. As a participant in the course, you received a proof of knowledge non-fungible token (POK) on the Polygon blockchain for completing each week of the program. This was a great way to track your progress and demonstrate your knowledge of the material. I began the Road to web3 course about 4 weeks after it first kicked off, and by the end of the 11th week, I had completed the program. Overall, it was a valuable learning experience that provided me with a solid foundation in blockchain and web3.

It was during this time that I began writing technical articles. As I worked my way through the Alchemy's Road to web3 program, I wrote blog posts about the projects for each week and shared them on my blog and social media. This was my very first foray into technical writing and it was an exciting and energizing experience.

If you're still reading this, it's probably clear that I am a huge coffee fan and my day never starts without a boost from a cup of coffee. It was like drinking a cup of coffee and getting a burst of energy and focus, just from the act of writing about what I was learning and sharing my thoughts with others. I was excited to share my knowledge and help others learn more about web3 and blockchain technology.

Completing Alchemy's Road to web3 was a major accomplishment for me and one of my happiest moments in 2022. I was able to earn all 10 PoKs and the Alchemy Early Student pass, which was a huge achievement for me. This was my first foray into the world of web3 and it was an incredibly exciting experience.

As I continued to grow and learn with Alchemy, I learned about several other companies such as Moralis, buildspace, and LearnWeb3 DAO.

I stumbled upon Moralis while searching for a web3 software development kit (SDK) for interacting with blockchain technology. As I looked into their company, I learned about their Moralis Hall of Fame, which is a learning track which is majorly focused on building web3 games using their Moralis Unity web3 SDK. While learning from Moralis, I completed a number of projects, including a web3 Airbnb clone, a Spotify clone, a web3 metaverse, building a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) from scratch, and building a simple game in Unity using the Moralis Unity SDK. These projects allowed me to gain hands-on experience with web3 and the Moralis Unity SDK, and helped me build my skills and knowledge in this exciting field. Overall, it was a valuable learning experience that allowed me to explore the potential of web3 and build a foundation for future projects.

Here's the Airbnb clone made using Moralis web3uikit

Here are all the PoKs earned by completing Moralis Projects

After completing a variety of projects with both Alchemy and Moralis, I felt confident in my abilities and decided to take on my first mainchain decentralized application (dApp) project. This involved buying some Matic, a cryptocurrency, and starting to develop a non-fungible token (NFT) drop. It was a thrilling, yet bumpy experience as I navigated the process of creating my first mainchain dApp. The collection I created was called "Stinky Little Monsters" and consisted of 10 ERC-1155 NFTs. You may have seen my profile picture, which is actually the first NFT in the collection. It features a cute monster called Cursefigure. I was really proud of this project and tried to incorporate everything I had learned about NFTs in the process of creating it. Overall, it was an exciting and rewarding experience that allowed me to put my skills to the test and create something unique and meaningful.

I made a bit of a blunder in the smart contract for my NFT drop by forgetting to add a condition to check that users could only mint NFTs from the set of numbers 1 to 10. Oops! While this was a pretty major mistake, it was my first project in web3 and I was still learning the ropes. On the bright side, now that the smart contract is on the blockchain for all to see, I can't deny my mistake and have to live with it forever. But hey, at least now I know what to avoid in the future, right? I guess you could say I learned the hard way, but at least now I'm a little wiser for it.

If you're interested, you can check out the project here. Just keep in mind that the app isn't functional, but you can still take a look at the smart contract and the app code.

Smart Contract:
https://polygonscan.com/address/0xd92b8d06505D334fD92bbE4b97CE299759D92404

Website:
https://stinky-little-monsters.vercel.app/

It was finally time for my college entrance exams and I was feeling the pressure. Although the exams were just okay, I was determined to make the most of my post-exam period by taking on a challenge called 30 Days of Solidity. For 30 consecutive days, I posted Solidity tutorials on my GitHub page and Blog, covering every single topic related to smart contract development. This was a major accomplishment for me in 2022, and I'm proud to have successfully completed the challenge. If you're interested, you can check out the 30 Days of Solidity repository on my GitHub profile.

It was during this time that I stumbled upon Buildspace, a new platform that offered small weekend projects focused on Ethereum and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). I was excited to dive in and get my hands dirty, and the projects I worked on did not disappoint. Some of the projects I built included a Solana NFT Collection, a turn-based NFT game, and a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) app.

But the best part about Buildspace was definitely the instructor, Farza. He was such a cool and knowledgeable person, and I truly believe he was one of the best instructors in the space. He made the projects so much fun and I learned so much from him. Overall, my experience with Buildspace was extremely positive and I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to work on these exciting projects.

I was thrilled when I received my first ever offer to write articles for a web3 company as a freelancer. It was an amazing opportunity and I couldn't wait to get started. The first article I wrote was focused on the non-technical side of web3, and while it was a bit of a challenge, I was grateful for the opportunity to write for a company and share my knowledge with others.

Finally, the moment I had been waiting for had arrived: it was time for me to start college. This was a new and exciting, yet also scary, experience. Going away to study was a big step, but I knew it had the potential to be one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I was filled with excitement and anticipation as I packed my bags and prepared to embark on this new journey.

Around the same time I heard about the beta program for Alchemy University in October. For those who may not be familiar, Alchemy University is an incredible resource for learning how to build on the web3 platform. It's essentially a college for web3 developers, offering three tracks: JavaScript Fundamentals, Ethereum Bootcamp, and Road to Web3.

I had an amazing time participating in the beta program and learning from some of the best in the field. I spent a lot of time hanging out on Discord townhalls and attending live quizzes on Discord, which was a great experience. I'm especially grateful to Albert and Vitto, who were absolute gems at Alchemy University and really helped me advance my knowledge and skills. Overall, I'm incredibly thankful for the opportunity to be a part of Alchemy University and for all the amazing people I met there.

The year ended on a high note with some exciting news: I had applied for the Ethos Hackathon hosted by IIT Guwahati and I had been shortlisted for the final round, which was scheduled to take place on 7-9 January of the following year. I was absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to participate in my first ever offline hackathon, and the fact that it was being held at IIT Guwahati only added to the excitement. I couldn't wait to see what this event had in store and to see what I could create and accomplish.

Looking back, I can't help but feel grateful for the opportunities and experiences that 2022 brought my way. As a developer and learner, I feel like I really grew and learned a lot this year. From taking on challenges like 30 Days of Solidity to joining the beta program at Alchemy University and participating in my first offline hackathon, 2022 pushed me to explore new areas and step out of my comfort zone. I'm grateful for all the amazing people I met and the experiences I had, and I can't wait to see what 2023 has in store. I hope it will be filled with even more opportunities to learn and grow, and to have new and exciting experiences.

Thank you to everyone who has made it to the end of this article. I am truly grateful for all of your support and for taking the time to read about my journey. To each and every person who has supported me along the way, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I hope you have a wonderful day and that your own journey is filled with all the learning, growth, and excitement that you desire.