This PR introduces a new `byte` type equivalent in all aspects to
`uint8` except that it has additional intent and display semantics
attached.
On top of this, the PR adds a canonical JSON mapping to the SSZ
specification, documenting current usage of JSON in tests, API:s and
simplifying future interop work between clients and adjacent
specifications such as the Beacon API. The encoding is appropriate to
use with YAML as well.
As an important property, this mapping contains a 1:1 mapping of SSZ
type to JSON encoding - this allows round-tripping any object between
JSON and SSZ based on the SSZ schema and usage of the core SSZ types
alone.
The encoding presented in this PR is used in tests and API:s with one
exception: the `ParticipationFlags` type from the Altair spec - it is
recommended we switch encoding in tests and eventually the beacon API to
address this irregularity, so as to avoid a proliferation "special"
primitive types in the SSZ spec that only appear in particular schemas
(and thus making validating general-purpose `SSZ/JSON` parsers more
complex) as well as differences in encoding between fields of the same
SSZ type.
The PR also clarifies that the introduction of new aliases does not lead
to changes in their canonical JSON specification - this allows building
general SSZ/JSON libraries that do not further depend on open-ended
knowledge about aliases.
This PR should be seen as an alternative to
https://github.com/ethereum/consensus-specs/pull/2983.
Echo
Matt Kocubinski
danny
Jacek Sieka
Hsiao-Wei Wang
Alex Stokes
protolambda
Hsiao-Wei Wang
Micah Zoltu
Andrew Redden
Joanne Fuller
Lion - dapplion
Joanne Fuller