Learn Lightning Open Source Development
The lightning network provides fast and inexpensive payments, addressing some of the scalability issues that bitcoin faces at the base layer. Lightning is much younger than bitcoin and technical challenges remain. But for those that are ready to jump into the fast-paced development of the protocol, lightning presents a unique learning opportunity to contribute to a maturing protocol.
Level 1
Dive into the intricate world of lightning protocol development. Meet fellow learners, delve into the lightning development philosophy and start interacting with the network.
This program is curated to cover key aspects of lightning protocol development, offering discussion questions and hands-on sessions to be completed solo or with a cohort of fellow learners.
Gain a deeper understanding of lightning's design trade-offs and philosophy, offering insights into over a decade of bitcoin development and public debate.
Build a lightning graph visualizer, construct a simple game of ownership using paid invoices and dip your toes into advanced lightning network topics all using Typescript.
Level 2
Explore some of the stickier details of lightning with code review and further reading. After this, it is time to begin contributing to the lightning network implementation of your choice.
Navigate the world of LDK with an every-other-Friday session aimed at mentoring newcomers to become full fledged contributors.
The most comprehensive book on the technical side of the lightning network. Lightning is not simple, so prepare to dive into some complexity.
What's Next
The four major lightning implementations - LDK, LND, Core Lightning and Eclair are backed by core teams. Lightning protocol development moves faster than the bitcoin protocol. Given that lightning is still young, there are more rough edges to smooth and problems to sort. The best way to get involved is to jump on their slack or discord and start picking up issues.