Dev Update. November 2023

Hello Zano community!

As we venture further into the final stretch of the year, the Zano development team remains dedicated to advancing our blockchain ecosystem. This November, we've continued to make significant strides in various areas, focusing on improving syncing speed, bug fixes, and preparing for the upcoming Zarcanum hardfork. Here's a detailed overview of our achievements:

Core Development Highlights:

Syncing Optimization: To enhance the user experience, we've added a checkpoint and created a predownload file at height 2,390,000. This improvement significantly speeds up the process of syncing from scratch, making it more efficient for our users.
Auditable Wallet Bug Fix: We identified and fixed a bug in auditable wallets. Previously, these wallets were requesting mixins for miner transactions during the construction of a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) block. This issue has been successfully resolved, ensuring smoother wallet operations.
MacOS Compatibility: We've addressed a bug affecting macOS users. The CLI binaries, zanod and simplewallet, located within the macOS Zano.app package, were facing compatibility issues due to linkage changes in recent macOS versions. This problem has been resolved, ensuring seamless operation for macOS users.
Cryptographic Primitives Optimization: Our ongoing efforts include the review and optimization of new cryptographic primitives introduced in preparation for the Zarcanum hardfork. These optimizations will contribute to the security and efficiency of our blockchain.
Decoy Selection Algorithm: We're actively analyzing and developing a decoy selection algorithm, further enhancing the privacy and security of Zano transactions.

Additional Development Updates:

Linux Bug Fixes: Several minor bugs on Linux have been addressed, improving the overall stability of the platform.
Cake Wallet Integration: We've implemented multiple fixes related to integrating the Zano codebase into the Cake wallet, ensuring a smoother and more user-friendly experience.
DevOps: Our development operations have been upgraded as we've migrated to a new notary tool for macOS. This migration enhances the development workflow for macOS users.

Product Tasks:

Explorer Update: Our web development team has updated the Zano Explorer, adding full support for post-Zarcanum features, including asset tracking and governance. This update provides users with a comprehensive view of our evolving ecosystem.
Mobile Wallet Development: Work has commenced on updating the mobile wallet application, ensuring that users can access Zano's features seamlessly from their mobile devices.
Light Wallet Application: Development has started on a light wallet application, expanding our wallet options and providing a more user-friendly interface.

QA Update:

Our Quality Assurance (QA) team has been diligently working to ensure the reliability and quality of our software. Here are their key achievements:

Mainnet and Testnet App Testing: Comprehensive testing of our applications has been completed on Windows, macOS, and Linux, guaranteeing that they perform flawlessly on various platforms.
Documentation Updates: Discrepancies in our documentation were identified and corrected, making our resources even more reliable for users.
API Testing for Native Coins: We've successfully created and tested new coins in the testnet environment, further expanding our ecosystem.
Ionic Swap System Testing: The functionality of our Ionic Swap System has been thoroughly checked via the simplewallet interface, ensuring its reliability and usability.

As we continue our journey towards the Zarcanum hardfork, our main task remains the preparation of Zarcanum builds for release. We're excited about the progress we've made in November, and we remain committed to enhancing Zano's functionality, security, and user experience. Stay tuned for more updates as we work towards a more decentralized and privacy-focused future.

Thank you for your continued support and involvement in the Zano community!