What are NFTs? Here is the Simplest Explanation.

We have all heard this term at least once, either through the news, read it in an article, or even through a friend, NFT, Non-Fungible Tokens. But have you ever really known what NFT means and how it works?

Human beings have always placed value on things over the years, from food in the Stone age to House prices in modern. Our perception of the value of things has changed over the years to a point we look to begin to look for other things to place value on, and NFTs are a prime example.

Non Fungible Token is generally described as digital assets that represent a wide range of unique tangible and intangible items, from collectibles to artworks or even in-game characters. But does this definition help? Let's break down NFT into two parts; Non-Fungible and Tokens.

Non-fungible means that something is irreplaceable, or is unique. One of the key driving features of NFTs is their distinctive value and characteristics making an item only one of a kind. Like a bracelet, that you've owned for years and developed a strong sentimental value. There can be thousands of identical copies, but you’d still prefer wearing it to getting a new one. This makes it one of a kind to you because of the emotional value it holds. Easy right, the same thing can be said about NFTs, they are one of a kind

The next term is Tokens, and to understand this term you need to know how blockchain works. In simpler terms, it's having a record of transactions publicly displayed. i.e. Bank always keeps records of what you buy and who you buy it from and constantly updates the amount of money left. Now unlike Banks who seek privacy, blockchains display these transactions on the internet, and the best thing about it is; that they can’t be altered in any way.

Instead of currencies or Bitcoin, NTFS displays the transaction of ownership of an item, so if someone is selling artwork and you decide to purchase it, it's displayed that the artwork is yours and you painted it, and no one can duplicate it or refuse that fact. The information on the ownership is referred to as a Token as simple as that.

So Non-Fungible Tokens are simply the ability to sell the ownership of an item at a price that you see fit.

This concept makes it possible for artists, gamers, and anyone generally to sell artwork or in-game characters and their ownership. Any picture, video, or jpeg image can be sold as an NFT, and to know how to start selling an NFT, “click here”.

NFTs have various unique features :

• Non-interoperable- this means that your NFT cannot be used in a different setup, and humans place value on rare commodities, the rarer the item, the more value it has.

• Indestructible – this means that once ownership is claimed it can never be destroyed or lost, it’ll remain as long as the internet exists.

• Immutable – once bought, the previous owner can never go back and reclaim it, whether it was a company or an individual.

NFTs have taken the world by a huge wave, this is mainly since they are built using two Etherium (Cryptocurrency) token standards that make it easier for anyone to deploy and NFT.

If you want to know what Cryptocurrency is, “click here”. My advice, take up your artwork and make a video or picture and turn it into an NFT to get on the bandwagon.