Urbit Course for Beginners


Learning Urbit is simpler than it seems, but you need a good material. For this reason, we have prepared a free course with all the information so that you can use and also understand the platform in detail.

When studying a new subject, it is important that the content is organized in the most didactic way possible, so that there are no gaps in knowledge. Therefore, this course has theoretical and practical lessons, pointing to specific articles that you should read in the order indicated here to understand in the most didactic way possible.

Click on the links indicated in the lessons to study each content.


Lesson 1: An Introduction to Urbit

In this lesson, you will learn what Urbit is without needing any prior knowledge in programming or any other field. We contextualize the problems of the current internet and where Urbit stands out.


Lesson 2: Installing Urbit

After the basic concept of the platform is clear, a good idea is to move on to practice, trying out the platform (for free!). The installation process can be challenging for many users, but our article tries to not only show the complete step-by-step process but also solve common errors users face.

If you prefer, you can also access Urbit through a hosting service, which is much easier (paid method).

Furthermore, if you have already purchased a planet on the internet or received an invitation as a gift, you can start your Urbit personal computer through Bridge.


Lesson 3: Exploring Urbit

The real utility of Urbit lies in its applications. Therefore, there is nothing better than seeing what is possible to do with Urbit today using the most popular apps.


Lesson 4: Arvo, the Heart of Urbit

So far, you already have a superficial understanding of what Urbit is and how to use it. But the concept of Urbit goes far beyond that. In this lesson, you will learn what an operating system is and how Urbit is different from other solutions. It is an important lesson to show that the ecosystem can grow a lot in the future.


Lesson 5: The Role of Stars

For the Urbit architecture to work, each entity needs to perform its function. A key piece of the system are the stars, which is why this lesson will explain their importance and what they do.


Lesson 6: Urbit IDs

An Urbit ID is like an account on the Urbit network. In this lesson you will get a deeper understanding of where Urbit names like ~datsyr-radser come from, what @p is, and more.


Lesson 7: Urbit Sigils

Urbit sigils are unique symbols that represent user identities in the Urbit network. They exist to give each person a distinct and recognizable visual representation of their name, making it easier to find and interact with others. The creative designs of these sigils help foster a sense of community and individuality within the Urbit ecosystem. Understand in this lesson how they are formed and how they are assigned to Urbit identities.


Lesson 8: Azimuth

Now that we have an overview of the Urbit architecture and its identity system, it is time to learn how this system is controlled and managed in practice with the Azimuth protocol on Ethereum.


Lesson 9: Ames, the Urbit network protocol

After a superficial approach about networking, it’s time to delve into more details about how data communication between computers works on Urbit. This will be a dense article with lots of new information. Even if you don’t understand all the details, you will certainly be able to learn the key features that distinguish the Urbit network from traditional internet protocols.


Lesson 10: Developing Urbit

Urbit would be nothing without developers and applications, but how do people create code within Urbit? In this lesson, you will learn about the Hoon programming language, responsible for the code that developers create to improve the main protocol and apps.


Lesson 11: The Lowest Layer

Every system interacts with the physical hardware in some way. The machine language responsible for the lowest layer of Urbit is Nock. In this lesson, you will understand the fundamental pillar that makes Urbit behave in a predictable and minimalist way.


Bonus: