Optimism don Introduce one Framework wey go Allow Scaling wey no dey Follow Gravity

Translation by ScAr | Artikul by lawpanda | Edited by trewkat and Hiro Kennelly | Cover Art by Chameleon

Di Optimism Collective, wey be one top Ethereum Layer 2 scaling solution, don yarn recently say dem don release di first draft of di Law of Chains. For theory, dis Law of Chains go control di blockchains wey dem dey build on top di OP Stack; all dis go eventually form di Superchain ecosystem— one united collective of blockchains wey dey focus on open and decentralized block space. Dis Law of Chains na framework wey dey open and neutral, di koko na to define di smallest standard for Superchain participants.

Wetin be OP Stack?

Di OP Stack na set of software modules wey dey power Optimism Mainnet and e dey help for open-source development inside di ecosystem. As e be so, di OP Stack dey host projects like BuildOnBase, opBNB, ourZORA, and Magi, and dem dey deploy new chains more and more. Optimism don introduce di Superchain concept afta dem do upgrade wey dem call Bedrock upgrade. Di Superchain na to help make scaling of network wey dey based on OP Stack chains continue, and e go allow some level of connection between di chains.

Di OP Stack na di first step to actualize di modular blockchain theory. We don waka pass charts wey dey describe how dis fi work, now we don enta actual codebase where you fi join dis components togeda.

                                        — Introducing di OP Stack

As e be MIT-licensed public good, pipu wey dey build fi fork di OP Stack as dem like. For practice, dis freedom to make changes fi lead to different ways dem dey implement standards, and dis one fi give users and builders challenge to dey assess di security, quality, and neutrality of each chain separately. Di Law of Chains dey to reduce or clear some of dat doubt. E dey important to observe—despite initial objections from developers wey dey front-run about how conformity requirements fi stop independent projects—say di Law of Chains go only apply to OP chains wey dey enta voluntarily to become part of di Superchain.

Wetin be di Purpose of Law of Chains?

As e be so, each OP Stack chain dey operate on e own, without any easy way to share standards and improvements. With governance mechanisms wey dey designed to follow Optimism Collective's experimental and flexible approach to governance, di Law of Chains go become di guiding principle for Optimism Governance and e go make di Superchain evolve into one unified collective of chains wey go dey follow one shared commitment to open and decentralized blockspace.

Make talk no too full ground, di Law of Chains dey to facilitate di minimum standards about participants wey dem dey cover, platform expectations, security standards, and user and servicer protections for di Superchain. E go also allow economies of scale for di Superchain concerning development and maintenance of di underlying infrastructure like block explorers, indexing, sequencing, like dat like dat….

To release di OP Stack go be di first step for di big increase of highly compatible L2s and L3s. We dey call dem op-chains with plenti love. By sharing and contributing to one strong, standardized, and modular codebase, all dis systems fi work togeda to build di future of Ethereum. With one shared message-passing format, dis chains go fi easily communicate with each other without say dem go dey need custom adapters for each and every chain.

                                        — Introducing di OP Stack

Di Superchain get one close similarity to di current Cosmos Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) protocol. IBC na protocol wey define one set of low-level basic tins for authentication, transport, and ordering, plus one set of application-level standards for assets and data meaning. But, unlike di Superchain, IBC no dey think about or depend on di identification of one small standard for di characteristics wey dem talk for di network of blockchains wey e dey operate.

Di Impact of Law of Chains

Afta dem officially introduce di Law of Chains, e fi make big impact for di OP Stack ecosystem as e fi draw more developers and users come Optimism. Some of di important benefits of di Law of Chains include:

• Easier development wey dey cross chains: Di Law of Chains go make am easier for developers to build applications wey go fi run on any OP chain. E go help users too, move dia assets from one OP chain to anoda.

• Beta security: Di Law of Chains go set minimum security standards for all OP chains wey decide enta Superchain, e go help protect users and developers from bad actors.

• More transparency: Di Law of Chains go increase transparency for di OP Stack ecosystem, e go help build trust and confidence among users and developers.

Di Law of Chains as Social Contract

Surely, some pipu dey criticize di Law of Chains and OP Stack because dem dey rely on only one sequencer, plus other criticisms fi show face for di Optimism governance forum. But still on still, di Law of Chains no gree shake as dem still dey try make development and mainstream adoption of blockchain ecosystems easier.

As attorney, I no too happy because Optimism's Law of Chains get plenti important ideals but e no get much legal backing. Like wetin dem talk for di Collective's announcement, "fundamentally, di Law of Chains na social contract (no be legal one) . . . ." Dis same thing, dem talk am again for di disclaimer wey dey di Optimism Governance page:

Dem talk say "[Di Law of Chains] dey fundamentally social for nature, di purpose na to guide Optimism Governance and participants inside di Optimism Collective. No be legal contract, and e no dey give any legally enforceable warranties, representations, compensations, rights, or obligations. Participants dey commit to di Law of Chains on dia own. No party get power to bind di other based on dia shared commitment to dis guidelines."

For example, even tho di Law of Chains get di idea of Participant Protections, dem frame those protections for one way wey reflekt di importance of dis protections as mata of principle, but no legal rights or obligations dey created. If person violate participant protections, di only way to help yourself na to appeal to Optimism Governance, wey na essentially one appeal to di onchain democratic process.

Optimism Governance no be legal entity or one single body wey dey make decision. E be collection of plenti separate, independent, and uncoordinated individual voters. Dem no fi guarantee di outcomes wey e go get.

Pipu wey dey participate for di Superchain no fi get power to enta contract wey go fi bind other participants based on dia shared commitment to di proposed—and probably eventually adopted—guidelines. Even tho di Law of Chains dey specifically talk say e no create any partnership, joint venture, employment, franchise, or agency relationships, e still get possibly di second-order effect wey dey provide some aspects of collective bargaining when e come to contracting and development of infrastructure with external parties.

Even tho di current version of di Law of Chains fi dey seen as "toothless" when na time to enforce e own standards, e no mean say enforceable legal mechanisms wey go use OP Stack technology and represent hin ideals no go evolve eventually. But for now, e be like di "Law" part of di Law of Chains fi be something wey dem no too understand, even tho e na aspiration wey get good intention.