On April 20, as the block height reached 840,000, Bitcoin successfully completed its fourth halving. At the same time, the highly anticipated Runes protocol was officially launched.
As an early supporter of Bitcoin ecosystem construction, OKX Web3 Wallet launched the Runes self-developed market as soon as possible to help users explore the Rune ecosystem in one stop.
1. Launch the Runes self-developed market to help users play the rune ecosystem in one stop
Runes is a new Bitcoin protocol proposed in 2023 by Casey Rodarmor, the creator of the Bitcoin Ordinals protocol. It aims to utilize the blockchains native UTXO transaction model to promote the issuance and use of alternative cryptocurrencies. Compared with protocols such as Ordinals, Runes is more efficient and easier to use.
Specifically, Runes has the following technical features:
• Runes introduces a UTXO-based fungible token protocol to the Bitcoin network, providing an alternative to traditional models such as BRC-20 and ORC-20.
• Based on the UTXO model, it simplifies the token creation and management process, providing a smoother solution than address-based or off-chain protocols.
• Ability to seamlessly integrate with Bitcoin’s architecture, helping to reduce blockchain bloat and improve scalability.
• Sets a new benchmark for the Bitcoin token protocol, minimizing the creation of “junk” UTXOs and, in some ways, providing a more user-friendly system.
To sum it up in one sentence: a simple, UTXO-based, homogeneous token protocol with better user experience.
Currently, the OKX Web3 wallet web plug-in has launched the Runes self-developed market, and supports the viewing, transfer, transaction and minting functions of Runes ecological rune assets. Users can experience the product according to their own needs. In addition, the deploy function of the Runes market will be launched soon, which will support the deployment of corresponding tokens for Runes ecological projects.
How to use the OKX Web3 wallet to play with the Rune ecosystem? (Take the web plug-in as an example)
• Connect wallet (update to the latest version of plugin wallet)
• Enter the Runes Market
• Click Minting to view the tokens being minted
• Click on the token you want to mint
• Mint/Buy (mint process is the same as BRC-20)
• confirm
• On sale
Familiar users should find it easy to find that the rune casting process is very similar to that of BRC-20 tokens. Of course, what is more noteworthy is that the Runes market of OKX Web3 wallet currently supports 17 popular projects such as Runestone and Runepups, helping users to play with the rune ecosystem in one stop.
2. What is the difference between Runes and Ordinals?
When discussing the difference between the two, we cannot avoid the background of the birth of Runes.
In May last year, the core developers of the Bitcoin community publicly stated that the Ordinals protocol caused too much garbage and frequent transactions, causing the Bitcoin network to be blocked, and the community should take action to stop it. In September, Casey began to publicly state that the minting of the BRC-20 protocol should be stopped, and then announced the redevelopment of the Ordinals alternative protocol Runes. Casey believes that after the improvement, Runes can reduce the runes that create a large number of garbage UTXOs, and is a better, lighter and simpler asset issuance solution than the previous experimental Ordinals protocol.
At present, the development space of Runes Protocol is mainly reflected in the following three aspects:
First of all, the compatibility and scalability of the Runes protocol are excellent, and it can be seamlessly connected with Bitcoins UTXO model and second-layer protocols based on it, such as the Lightning Network. Compared with other homogeneous token protocols such as BRC-20, Runes significantly improves operational efficiency and user experience through simplified transaction processes and token balance management directly bound to UTXO.
Secondly, at the token issuance level, Runes provides greater flexibility in token issuance, allowing token names with a length of 1 to 28 characters, and adopts a variety of innovative issuance mechanisms, including but not limited to fixed total issuance and public minting issuance, and even considers more expressive issuance methods. Among them, the fixed total method is more centralized, and the issuer directly mints the corresponding Runes assets and then redistributes them; while the public minting method is based on specific parameter settings, such as block height or timestamp, and the number of assets minted by users within a specified time determines the final total amount of the corresponding Runes assets.
Finally, in terms of UTXO management, Runes avoids the complexity and security risks that may be brought about by the witness part of the transaction through the use of OP_RETURN scripts, reduces unnecessary UTXO generation, and thus improves the overall health and efficiency of the network. The design concept of the Runes protocol is to reduce the footprint on the chain, encourage the optimization of UTXO use, and make it seamlessly integrated with Bitcoins infrastructure. Promote the development and innovation of the Bitcoin ecosystem in a more concise and intuitive way.
So what are the differences in product interaction paths between the Runes market launched on the OKX Web3 wallet and the Inscriptions market where Ordinals are located?
First of all, at the product interaction path level, the Runes etching function corresponds to the BRC-20 engraving, but the difference is that Ordinals engraving is to engrave data on sats, while Runes etching is to write data in the transaction Opreturn, binding the token balance to the UTXO output. Of course, the more important difference is that Runes transfer and purchase operations only require one transaction, and there is no need for dummy placeholders when purchasing, that is, no initialization operation like Ordinals is required.
Because the Ordinals protocol records information by engraving data on satoshis and indexing them off-chain, while the Runes protocol is directly based on UTXO and records information on-chain, this means that transaction outputs can contain not only Bitcoins, but also Runes of different quantities and types. For example, a transaction output can contain 1 Bitcoin, 100 A Runes, and 1,000 B Runes at the same time.
Of course, what’s more interesting is that the Runes protocol requires a name length of at least 13 letters, such as “UNCOMMON•GOODS”, for the first four months after launch. After that, the minimum name length is reduced by one letter approximately every four months until the next halving event, when a single-character Rune can be created (a total of 26). Finally, in terms of the issuance model, compared to the Oridnals model where everyone can publicly launch assets with one click, Runes ecosystem project parties can choose to directly send a fixed number of tokens to a specified address when deploying, or they can choose to conduct an Open Mint (fair launch).
3. What is the status of OKX Web3’s Bitcoin ecosystem construction?
So far, the OKX Web3 wallet has launched the Ordinals, Atomicals and Runes markets, helping users to experience the latest developments in the Bitcoin ecosystem at the first time, while providing users with a one-stop entry for exploring the Bitcoin ecosystem. Users can easily acquire and trade assets through the Web3 wallet; discover and participate in popular projects in the Bitcoin ecosystem; and directly access the DeFi section to achieve on-chain staking of Bitcoin assets and enjoy on-chain benefits with low gas fees.
Since March last year, the rapid development of the Bitcoin ecosystem has led to the emergence of billions of dollars in assets and the establishment of more than 20 infrastructure platforms. In this context, OKX Web3 and UniSat, as key participants, have largely led the development and construction of the Bitcoin ecosystem.
In fact, as an active builder of the Bitcoin ecosystem, the OKX Web3 team has always been inspired by the origin of Bitcoin and its geek spirit, which is also the core reason why they were able to enter the market and support the ecosystem construction at the first time. Now, with the continued prosperity of the Bitcoin ecosystem, OKX has become the core leader in this wave of enthusiasm with its smooth and secure products. Almost every time the community mentions hot topics related to the Bitcoin ecosystem, the first thing that comes to mind is the OKX Web3 wallet.
Disclaimer:
The content of this article is for reference only and does not constitute or be considered as an invitation, offer, solicitation or recommendation for any product transaction or investment advice; investment should be cautious, the price of digital assets has certain market risks and price volatility, especially contracts and options and other transactions are more susceptible to market risks and price fluctuations. Investing in digital assets is risky and may even cause you to lose all your investment amount; therefore, digital asset trading may not be suitable for all investors. You need to understand the operating mode of the product and make independent judgments and investment decisions. Please be responsible for understanding and complying with local laws and regulations.
