Namecoin was the first Bitcoin Fork, similar to registering a .com or .io domain name, you register a .bit domain on the network. This domain is censorship-resistant and impervious to activity tracking.

Later in the project lifecycle, they enabled functionality that allowed the registration of information via Onename.io, a Web Identity Service to expedite the TX signing on Namecoin. The verification on Onename.io was only done via Twitter, Facebook, or GitHub verification. Once the profile was generated on Onename.io, a profile image was written to the Namecoin chain as "avatar". This could include such items as Eggs, Blockheads, or Identicons; depending on which service the user verified with.

Yes, currently there are 2 options available to buy Eggs / Blockheads / etc.:

ElectrumNMC. - Not required to sync entire chain / much faster

  • https://www.namecoin.org/download/betas/#electrum-nmc or search for electrum-nmc in Google
  • Download Electrum-NMC v3.3.10 for Windows (Installer) and open .exe.
  • When the installation is done close and startup.
  • In setup choose automatic > name your wallet > standard > create new seed > write seed down > Choose Legacy > set password > enable update notification.
  • Check for the green icon in the bottom right of the wallet UI, if it's green you are all setup.
  • To generate an address click receive > enter a name > save.
  • You are now ready to receive the egg.

Namecoin Core Client (with Qt Name Tab)

  • Install the .exe
  • Open wallet and go to help > debug > console
  • add the node below. addnode 47.90.204.241:8334 onetry.
  • Wait 10 second close the wallet and re-open. Check: Help > current nr. of blocks. This should be going up. Syncing to the Namecoin blockchain can take 15-30 hours.
  • When you are syncing it's possible to receive the egg.
  • The egg will show in the manage names tab once the wallet is fully synced but is already visible in your address on nmc.explorer and Namebrow.
  • You will only be able to sent the egg somewhere else once the wallet is fully synced.
  • Make sure you encrypt the wallet and write down password.
  • Make at least two backup copies and store them offline, the wallet.dat file holds the keys to the addresses.
  • ElectrumNMC: Write down the seed or export it, and place it somewhere safe.
  • Namecoin Core - Export the wallet.dat file. That file contains the private keys to all the addresses in that wallet.
Each Name you register has a life span of 35,999 blocks or about 8 months. The owner will manually need to re-register before it expires or else anybody can register at this time, similar to a DNS. This is why there were many PFPs from the verification services attached to NAMES just sitting expired on the Namecoin chain. This manual process is temporary due to Emblem Vault, the ERC-721 based wrapper service which allows the exchange non-compatible blockchains. Emblem will enable an auto-renewal button to simplify the process. Future scope contains the ability for complete auto renewal based on block number. One (1) $NMC will be enough for years of hands-off auto-renewal.

Ensuring your PFP displays provenance and is immutable can be accomplished in a few steps.

You will want to accomplish these steps in the instance that the images that are hosted on a centralized storage solution could be altered or deleted.

  • Ensure the original Name record is pointing to an image URL: take a snapshot the Namebrow page by searching the Name of your egg on the explorer: https://www.namebrow.se/.
  • Ensure the image has not been changed: use a service like https://helloacm.com/curl which and enter your images URL, last modified date should generally line up with the registration dates that are displayed on the Namebrow snapshot you took prior.
  • Validate that this information is immutable should there be any unforeseen circumstances by taking these snapshots and upload them to a decentralized storage solution like IPFS or Arweave. This may sound cumbersome due to these processes being manual at this time, but again Emblem has an option at launch to provide a service where a nominal fee will auto mirror to IPFS.
Opensea will be able to support the Emblem Vaults containing the minted & wrapped Eggs, enabling the entire crypto ecosystem access to bid or buy with varying currencies. The Emblem & Opensea integration closes the loop on these NFT artifacts, making them not only accessible but exchangeable. Dates of launch for the Emblem Vaults & Opensea are estimated around early October, 2021.