FAQ
🌍 What are Blockchain, Ethereum, Arbitrum, Arbiscan ?
A blockchain is a distributed database that maintains a continuously growing list of ordered records, called blocks. These blocks are linked using cryptography. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a timestamp, and transaction data.
Ethereum is a blockchain which enables the execution of smart contracts. Smart contracts are computer programs stored on the blockchain that are guaranteed to execute according to the rules defined by its code, which cannot be changed once created.
Arbitrum is a blockchain built on top of Ethereum which enables Ethereum to scale for mass adoption. In technical terms, we call Arbitrum a Layer 2 blockchain, Ethereum being the Layer 1 blockchain.
Arbiscan is the official blockchain explorer for the Arbitrum blockchain. It enables anyone in the world to interact with a smart contract deployed on Arbitrum like our smart contracts.
Random.win is built on Arbitrum, which itself is built on Ethereum. So Random.win lives entirely on Ethereum.
We rely massively on Arbiscan throughout this documentation because it is the easiest way for you to interact with our RNG without any knowledge of blockchains.
Ethereum also has its own blockchain explorer called Etherscan, however, you will only need to interact with Arbiscan while using Random.win.
♦ What is a Smart Contract ?
A Smart Contract, or simply a Contract, is a computer program which runs on Ethereum, and inherits all the nice properties of Ethereum: the code is public, tamper-proof, verifiable, and censorship resistant.
This is precisely what makes Random.win orders of magnitude better than any other RNG.
Because the randomness generation happens on Ethereum, it is highly secure while being 100% transparent and verifiable by anyone.
This is, in our view, the ultimate property that any RNG should have, and why Random.win is the most trustworthy RNG on the planet.
✨ Why should I care about an RNG being transparent ?
A Random Number Generator (RNG) has one job: deliver random numbers to you and your users. However, if you are not able to convince your users that these numbers cannot be rigged, then how can they trust your app ?
The truth is, only fully transparent systems can gain the full trust of their users, and trust is so paramount for users that it is a unique selling point that can drive sales for your app by itself.
It also protects you from any rigging attack or lawsuit against your app because there is an actual proof of randomness stored onchain which prevents anyone from challenging your game outcomes.
Therefore, using a transparent RNG like Random.win delivers benefits for everyone. Your users benefit from a higher trust in your app, and you benefit from added security, legal protection, and higher sales.
🎲 Where does the randomness come from ?
Our random numbers are generated using Chainlink VRF, the world leader in onchain randomness generation.
Under the hood, Chainlink VRF uses the hash of all transactions happening on the blockchain at a current time as a source of entropy. This is ultra secure because it is impossible for anyone to predict this hash ahead of time.
⚡️ How fast is the randomness generation ?
Once a randomness request is made, it only takes 5 seconds for the request to be fullfilled and the random numbers to be publicly available worldwide on Ethereum.
This is so fast that it can almost be used for applications requiring instant randomness. In fact, you can even make requests ahead of time in order to receive the randomness exactly when you need it.
✅ Are the numbers truly random ?
Gaming Labs International or GLI, is a US company whose business is to test, review and report on gaming devices and systems against the standards established by relevant gaming jurisdictions worldwide. Each jurisdiction has the authority to set their own standards; however, many use GLI standards as a starting point in developing their regulations.
In other words, GLI has established the base standards for gaming devices and systems around the world. They are the experts in the industry.
Random.win has been audited by GLI in 2024 and has received the GLI-19 RNG certification which is the Gold Standard for random number generators. It certifies that our random numbers are truly random and can safely be used in production.
We can provide you the PDF certificate upon request.
💳 How much does it cost ?
We are charging $6 per request, payable in ETH. However, we also enable you to pay in fiat by converting your fiat currency to ETH for you.
🔒 What is IPFS ?
IPFS is a new, more secure way to access the Web. It stores each webpage as a hash (also called "Content Identifier" or CID) which guarantee users that the webpage they are viewing hasn't been tampered with. This is why when you access your random draw details on verify.win/<cid> you are guaranteed that this page is reliable and can be trusted.
Video
Watch this Youtube video for a simple explanation of what IPFS is :
Additional resources
🔗 What is Viem ?
There are plenty of librairies which enable you to interact with Ethereum and its ecosystem. The 2 most popular ones are Viem and Ethers. Although you are free to use the one you want, we personnaly recommend you to use Viem because it is in our view the most secure, simple to use, and modern one.
All the code examples in this documentation use Viem so you will need to install Viem for the code examples to work on your device.
📜 What is an ABI and where can I find it ?
The Contract Application Binary Interface (ABI) is a JSON which describes all the functions and variables in a particular smart contract. Once you have the ABI of a contract you are able to make calls to it.
The ABI is the standard way to interact with contracts in the Ethereum ecosystem, both from outside the blockchain and for contract-to-contract interaction.
To retrieve the ABI of one our contracts, go to the Contracts page, click on the desired contract. It opens Arbiscan in a new tab, scroll at the bottom of the page, you will see a "Contract ABI" section, click the "Copy ABI to clipboard" button, and paste it in a abi.js file like shown below. You will then be able to import this JS file in your app whenever you need to interact with our contract.
const abi = <paste-abi-here>; // <-- Paste ABI here
export default abi;
👨💻 I need help integrating with Random.win, how can I contact you ?
The best place to ask for help is on our Discord server.
You can also contact us by sending an email to contact@random.win.