If you’re interested in the blockchain and cryptocurrencies but are intimidated by the technical details, you’re not alone! It’s important to understand that the technology behind it is highly technical and can take some time to wrap your head around. Fortunately, you don’t need to know the specifics of how blockchains work in order to get started using them in your everyday life or to create your own token. This step-by-step guide on how to create an NFT will walk you through everything from understanding how Ethereum works to building your own ERC721 token on top of it.

First, an intro to Ethereum and why you should care

Ethereum is a platform that makes it possible for any developer to write and distribute next-generation decentralized applications. Ethereum can be used to codify, decentralize, secure and trade just about anything: voting, domain names, financial exchanges, crowdfunding, company governance, contracts, and agreements of most kinds. This list is only growing as developers discover new use cases for Ethereum's capabilities. If you're looking for an alternative investment or speculation vehicle that provides built-in value then I strongly recommend you read our guide on understanding ICOs.

Second, how blockchain works

In order to create an NFT, you need a smart contract platform that’s built on blockchain technology. The idea behind blockchain is simple. Instead of having a central hub where transactions are processed and recorded, there are several nodes (each one can be thought of as a mini-computer or server) connected to each other over a peer-to-peer network. This means that no single entity has control over any other and everything is verified by consensus among all parties involved in the transaction. Every node contains a copy of all transactions ever made, which makes it virtually impossible for anyone to tamper with them. So far so good? Good! Now let’s talk about how you actually create your own token on Ethereum. You can think of Ethereum as a virtual machine that lets you write smart contracts—which are essentially just instructions for certain actions to take place when certain conditions are met. A common example would be: If person X sends Y amount of money to account Z, then send $5 worth of ETH from account Q to person X. Pretty simple right?

Learn the NFT Secrets that 99% of people don’t Know yet..

Third, why choose ERC-721 over other tokens

The ERC-721 non-fungible token standard is gaining a lot of popularity since 2019. The reason for it is due to its unique features, as well as potential problems associated with ERC-20. When developers look at adding blockchain support to an application, they first look at whether they can use ERC20 tokens. While there are certainly advantages and disadvantages associated with using that standard, many people believe that ERC721 brings added functionality and benefits to their project. In fact, some projects have already switched over from ERC20 entirely. 

Fourth, create your own non-fungible token (NFT) using OpenZeppelin Solidity Contract Template

So you can see all of these building blocks and how to make use of them, we have created a Solidity contract called Zeppelin_solidity_starter_kit. The project shows you how to use OpenZeppelin libraries for implementing your ERC721 compliant NFT, plus example tests (also in Solidity) for testing your contracts. You will also find documentation on how to deploy and test your own token using the Truffle framework. You will be able to quickly test it locally or run it on Rinkeby test network by simply typing truffle migrate --network Rnkeby . Note that if you want to run it on Mainnet, please note that there are some limitations: Only 10 free transactions per block are allowed on Ethereum Mainnet. If you try sending more than 10 transactions from one address in one block, they will not be processed as they are considered spam. To get around this limitation, create a new account for each transaction.

Fifth, test the contract on Rinkeby

Deploy a contract from Remix (or MyEtherWallet or MetaMask) and send it some Ether to see that it’s working properly. Rinkeby is a public Ethereum test network; deploying your contracts there will make them public as well, but don’t worry! If you make any mistakes, they won’t affect anything real, and you can always fix them on Testnet before moving on to Mainnet. Sixth, deploy an ERC721 token: After setting up your contract in the remix, click deploy new version and then select local > private net. Copy all of your code into MyEtherWallet and click send transaction. You should now have an ERC721 token on Rinkeby! 

Sixth, publish your contract on the Mainnet

You’ll need to compile your code into bytecode (or in other words, convert it from human-readable Solidity syntax into something computers can read). Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about compiling bytecode by hand—you can use Remix, an online compiler. Simply paste your contract code into Remix and hit Compile. After a few seconds, you should see a link that says Install & Play. Copy that link and paste it into Mist or Parity.

Learn the NFT Secrets that 99% of people don’t Know yet..

Seventh, use Metamask wallet with web3 library to call your smart contract methods in JS or PHP Section: 

Eighth, there are many ways to integrate your own ERC 721 token into your App

i. When using Pundi X Wallet, we allow you to integrate any ERC20 token with ease. ii. You can also implement your own wallet for Metamask and web3 based on your project requirement. iii. Or you can use our SDK in your dApp that is currently under development Section: Ninth, The most common way of integrating NFTs into games is by giving them as rewards for completing tasks or reaching certain milestones. For example, if a player gets 100 points in a game then they receive 1 NFT as a reward. This makes it easy to keep track of how many tokens each player has without having to store their balance separately somewhere else.

Ninth, review this best practices guide from Will Warren & Chris Burniske

Will Warren is a cofounder of 0x and chief strategy officer at ConsenSys. He’s an experienced entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and blockchain enthusiast. Prior to ConsenSys, he worked as a derivatives trader at DRW where he developed strategies for trading Bitcoin. Chris Burniske is a cofounder of Placeholder, an early-stage venture fund. He is also a co-author of Cryptoassets: The Innovative Investor's Guide to Bitcoin and Beyond. He was formerly an analyst with ARK Investment Management LLC, a $7 billion investment manager focused on disruptive innovation in technology. Previously, he was a senior investment analyst at Hennessee Group and Sanford C.