Parity’s Substrate is inarguably the most modular framework for blockchain engineering. Substrate’s official documentation and other resources already do a great job of helping you dive deep into the framework. Polkadot’s Blockchain Academy also aims to teach you blockchain engineering (with Rust and Substrate) from the ground up.
But there’s one resource I feel is often overlooked by individuals starting out with Substrate. That resource is Polkadot and Substrate StackExchange. Read on as I explore how this platform can supercharge your skills and boost your career.
How the Substrate StackExchange works
Substrate StackExchange, like all other StackExchange platforms, is a question-and-answer platform where users can ask questions about specific topics on Polkadot and Substrate and receive answers from experts in the field.
It’s generally easy to recognize professionals and the most active users on the platform since it has a gamification and ranking system that proves your level of contribution to the platform. As you rise through the ranks, you’ll automatically gain access to more capabilities (e.g., meeting the qualifications to become a Moderator).
Substrate StackExchange was launched in the first quarter of 2022 and currently has over 2,300 questions and answers. It’s rapidly growing into a knowledge base for new and experienced engineers.
Why should you spend more time on Substrate StackExchange?
Since the StackExchange serves as a hub for top professionals in the Polkadot ecosystem (and the Substrate ecosystem in general), this opens up many opportunities for developers looking to build their skills and careers in this exciting ecosystem.
The reasons below are not exhaustive but are among the top reasons why the Substrate StackExchange is a hidden gem on which every up-and-coming Substrate engineer should spend more time.
You get to learn from other people’s questions and mistakes.
A 3-hour period hardly goes by without someone asking questions about a bug they encountered in their code or a concept that isn’t clear to them. These questions are gold! You might not have answers to some (or many) of them, but many supportive pros give high-quality answers to these questions.
These answers can be a great learning point for you as an engineer. Try reproducing some of these errors and solving them with the solutions provided. This helps you learn a lot about possible mistakes you may encounter when writing your own code and how to tackle them.
Also, the Stackexchange has a handy search box where you can easily search for questions or specific areas you’d like to explore.
You can grow your career with Substrate StackExchange.
I’m expecting raised eyebrows, but hear me out. One of the most powerful traits of a sound software engineer is the willingness to learn from and help others. Helping answer questions on Substrate Stackexchange will prove to potential employers that you’re passionate about the technology. It’s possible to think that you don’t have the skills (yet) to answer some of the questions, but you will have to start from somewhere. Your skills (and ability to provide high-quality answers to questions) will only improve over time.
The more you explore the questions, challenge yourself to solve them, and provide high-quality answers, the more your skillset grows. And professionals on the platform will notice this too. A solid Substrate StackExchange profile attached to your resume could be the key feature that makes you stand out from other candidates.
This doesn’t mean you wouldn’t need to write code and contribute to open-source projects to get that job. But it provides objective proof that you’re passionate about the domain, have a good understanding of how it works, and are willing to assist others in solving their problems.
You get to improve your technical communication skills.
There’s almost no way you can become an efficient software engineer without good technical communication skills. Spending time on Substrate StackExchange, reading other people’s questions (and answers), and writing your own will help improve these skills over time.
You can watch tutorials, learn from documentation, and write code 24 hours a day, but if you can’t communicate your code well, it will be hard for others to comprehend and collaborate with you. Once you become proficient with the lingo, you can start having smooth interactions with other engineers, making it easy to solve your (and their) problems.
It can be a gateway to Polkadot Fellowship.
The Polkadot Fellowship is an on-chain ranked collective aimed at recognizing and supporting those who help maintain the network. You can explore the details of the Fellowship in the manifesto.
Dr. Gavin Wood states in the description of becoming a Dan 1 Fellow (the first rank in the Fellowship):
They will demonstrate commitment to pooling and sharing protocol knowledge through establishing a pattern of availability or communication in one or more online media; forums, chatrooms, issue trackers, or Q&A sites.
While being active on Substrate Stackexchange isn’t a sure ticket for getting into the Fellowship Program, it’s evident that being an active user on the StackExchange will be a big boost in your favor when you decide to get into the program.
If you have ambitions of getting into the Fellowship program in the future, then becoming active in the StackExchange is a step that I’m sure you won’t regret.
How to get started with Substrate StackExchange
- Visit the platform and register an account. You can view existing questions without registering one, but that’s just half the gem. The other half is having an account, asking questions, and answering other users’ queries.
- Post your first question.
- Explore existing questions and try to answer them (it’s perfectly normal if you can’t initially). The more proficient you become, the easier it becomes to answer questions.
- Create a routine where you explore previously answered questions (this can be a significant skill booster if you’re consistent with it).
Advice when using Substrate StackExchange
- Don’t use multiple accounts to boost your main account. Not only is this unethical, but your accounts risk being banned. Besides, you’re better off concentrating your energy on providing high-quality contributions in one account.
- The platform comprises some of the leading engineers in the space. It would be best if you provided questions and answers that are standard and accurate. Examine your solutions before posting them. If you need more clarification on your responses, indicate this.
- Don’t chase reputations and badges. Be a regular, high-quality contributor, and you’ll naturally rise.
- Edit other people’s questions for clarity if needed (once you have enough reputation to do so). This helps improve the clarity of answers to these questions and also helps improve your understanding of what the questions are all about.
- And be sure to join in on discussions and network with others.
Conclusion
Contributing to Substrate’s StackExchange isn’t all that is needed to make you a professional Substrate engineer (you’d still have to write tons of code). But making regular contributions there will build your understanding of Substrate and the Polkadot protocol in ways that documentation and tutorials won’t.
Regular participation in the StackExchange will also build your presence in the developer ecosystem (which could open the doors to exciting career opportunities in the future).