Bigint and Buffer conversion comment cleanups in READMEs (#3962)

* clean up block readme

* more cleanup

* Blockchain edits

* remove all buffer and bigint conversion comments

* add correct spelling back

Author: acolytec3

packages/block/README.md

@@ -9,31 +9,40 @@
 | Implements schema and functions related to Ethereum's block. |
 | ------------------------------------------------------------ |
 
-Note: this `README` reflects the state of the library from `v3.0.0` onwards. See `README` from the [standalone repository](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-block) for an introduction on the last preceding release.
 
 ## Installation
 
-To obtain the latest version, simply require the project using `npm`:
+To obtain the latest version, simply install the project using `npm`:
 
 ```shell
 npm install @ethereumjs/block
 ```
 
-**Note:** If you want to work with `EIP-4844` related functionality, you will have additional manual installation steps for the **KZG setup**, see related section below.
+**Note:** If you want to work with `EIP-4844` related functionality, you will have additional initialization steps for the **KZG setup**, see related section below.
 
 ## Usage
 
 ### Introduction
 
-There are five standalone functions to instantiate a `Block`:
+There are several standalone functions to instantiate a `Block`:
 
 - `createBlock(blockData: BlockData = {}, opts?: BlockOptions)`
-- `createBlockFromRLPSerializedBlock(serialized: Uint8Array, opts?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createEmptyBlock(headerData: HeaderData, opts?: BlockOptions)`
 - `createBlockFromBytesArray(values: BlockBytes, opts?: BlockOptions)`
-- `createBlockFromRPC(blockParams: JsonRpcBlock, uncles?: any[], opts?: BlockOptions)`
-- `createBlockFromJsonRPCProvider(provider: string | EthersProvider, blockTag: string | bigint, opts: BlockOptions)`
+- `createBlockFromRLP(serialized: Uint8Array, opts?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createBlockFromRPC(blockParams: JSONRPCBlock, uncles?: any[], opts?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createBlockFromJSONRPCProvider(provider: string | EthersProvider, blockTag: string | bigint, opts: BlockOptions)`
+- `createBlockFromExecutionPayload(payload: ExecutionPayload, opts?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createBlockFromBeaconPayloadJSON(payload: BeaconPayloadJSON, opts?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createSealedCliqueBlock(blockData: BlockData = {}, cliqueSigner: Uint8Array, opts?: BlockOptions)`
 
-For `BlockHeader` instantiation standalone functions exists for instantiation, see API docs linked below.
+For `BlockHeader` instantiation, there are similar standalone functions:
+
+- `createBlockHeader(headerData: HeaderData = {}, opts?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createBlockHeaderFromBytesArray(values: BlockHeaderBytes, opts?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createBlockHeaderFromRLP(serializedHeaderData: Uint8Array, opts?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createBlockHeaderFromRPC(blockParams: JSONRPCBlock, options?: BlockOptions)`
+- `createSealedCliqueBlockHeader(headerData: HeaderData = {}, cliqueSigner: Uint8Array, opts?: BlockOptions)`
 
 Instantiation Example:
 
@@ -449,7 +458,7 @@ console.log(`Old Clique Proof-of-Authority block created`)
 For sealing a block on instantiation you can use the `cliqueSigner` constructor option:
 
 ```ts
-const cliqueSigner = Buffer.from('PRIVATE_KEY_HEX_STRING', 'hex')
+const cliqueSigner = hexToBytes('PRIVATE_KEY_HEX_STRING')
 const block = createSealedCliqueBlock(blockData, cliqueSigner)
 ```
 
@@ -519,17 +528,6 @@ const { EthereumJSClass } = require('@ethereumjs/[PACKAGE_NAME]')
 
 Using ESM will give you additional advantages over CJS beyond browser usage like static code analysis / Tree Shaking which CJS can not provide.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-Starting with v4 the usage of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/) for big numbers has been removed from the library and replaced with the usage of the native JS [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) data type (introduced in `ES2020`).
-
-Please note that number-related API signatures have changed along with this version update and the minimal build target has been updated to `ES2020`.
 
 ## Testing
 

packages/blockchain/README.md

@@ -9,17 +9,15 @@
 | A module to store and interact with blocks. |
 | ------------------------------------------- |
 
-Note: this `README` reflects the state of the library from `v5.0.0` onwards. See `README` from the [standalone repository](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-blockchain) for an introduction on the last preceding release.
-
 ## Installation
 
-To obtain the latest version, simply require the project using `npm`:
+To obtain the latest version, simply install the project using `npm`:
 
 ```shell
 npm install @ethereumjs/blockchain
 ```
 
-**Note:** If you want to work with `EIP-4844` related functionality, you will have additional manual installation steps for the **KZG setup**, see related section below.
+**Note:** If you want to work with `EIP-4844` related functionality, you will have additional initialization steps for the **KZG setup**, see related section below.
 
 ## Usage
 
@@ -116,23 +114,10 @@ Note, if you construct a blockchain with a custom consensus implementation, tran
 
 ## Custom Genesis State
 
-### Genesis in v7 (removed genesis dependency)
-
-Genesis state was huge and had previously been bundled with the `Blockchain` package with the burden going over to the VM, since `Blockchain` is a dependency.
-
-Starting with the v7 release genesis state has been removed from `blockchain` and moved into its own auxiliary package [@ethereumjs/genesis](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/genesis), from which it can be included if needed (for most - especially VM - use cases it is not necessary), see PR [#2844](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/pull/2844).
-
-This goes along with some changes in Blockchain and VM API:
-
-- Blockchain: There is a new constructor option `genesisStateRoot` beside `genesisBlock` and `genesisState` for an alternative condensed way to provide the genesis state root directly
-- Blockchain: `genesisState(): GenesisState` method has been replaced by the async `getGenesisStateRoot(chainId: Chain): Promise<Uint8Array>` method
-- VM: `activateGenesisState?: boolean` constructor option has been replaced with a `genesisState?: GenesisState` option
-
-### Genesis in v6
+### Genesis State
 
-For the v6 release responsibility for setting up a custom genesis state moved from the [Common](../common/) library to the `Blockchain` package, see PR [#1924](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/pull/1924) for some work context.
+Genesis state for the 4 supported networks (mainnet, sepolia, hoodi, holesky) is stored in an auxiliary package [@ethereumjs/genesis](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/genesis), from which it can be included if needed (for most - especially VM - use cases it is not necessary), see PR [#2844](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/pull/2844).
 
-A genesis state can be set along `Blockchain` creation by passing in a custom `genesisBlock` and `genesisState`. For `mainnet` and the official test networks like `sepolia` or `goerli` genesis is already provided with the block data coming from `@ethereumjs/common`. The genesis state is being integrated in the `Blockchain` library (see `genesisStates` folder).
 
 ### Custom genesis from a Geth genesis config
 
@@ -220,18 +205,6 @@ const { EthereumJSClass } = require('@ethereumjs/[PACKAGE_NAME]')
 
 Using ESM will give you additional advantages over CJS beyond browser usage like static code analysis / Tree Shaking which CJS can not provide.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-Starting with v6 the usage of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/) for big numbers has been removed from the library and replaced with the usage of the native JS [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) data type (introduced in `ES2020`).
-
-Please note that number-related API signatures have changed along with this version update and the minimal build target has been updated to `ES2020`.
-
 ## Events
 
 The `Blockchain` class has a public property `events` which contains an `EventEmitter`. Following events are emitted on which you can react within your code:

packages/common/README.md

@@ -174,18 +174,6 @@ const { EthereumJSClass } = require('@ethereumjs/[PACKAGE_NAME]')
 
 Using ESM will give you additional advantages over CJS beyond browser usage like static code analysis / Tree Shaking which CJS can not provide.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-Starting with v4 the usage of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/) for big numbers has been removed from the library and replaced with the usage of the native JS [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) data type (introduced in `ES2020`).
-
-Please note that number-related API signatures have changed along with this version update and the minimal build target has been updated to `ES2020`.
-
 ## Events
 
 The `Common` class has a public property `events` which contains an `EventEmitter`. Following events are emitted on which you can react within your code:

packages/devp2p/README.md

@@ -328,18 +328,6 @@ const { EthereumJSClass } = require('@ethereumjs/[PACKAGE_NAME]')
 
 Using ESM will give you additional advantages over CJS beyond browser usage like static code analysis / Tree Shaking which CJS can not provide.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-Starting with v4 the usage of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/) for big numbers has been removed from the library and replaced with the usage of the native JS [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) data type (introduced in `ES2020`).
-
-Please note that number-related API signatures have changed along with this version update and the minimal build target has been updated to `ES2020`.
-
 ### Events
 
 Events emitted:

packages/ethash/README.md

@@ -104,18 +104,6 @@ const { EthereumJSClass } = require('@ethereumjs/[PACKAGE_NAME]')
 
 Using ESM will give you additional advantages over CJS beyond browser usage like static code analysis / Tree Shaking which CJS can not provide.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-Starting with v2 the usage of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/) for big numbers has been removed from the library and replaced with the usage of the native JS [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) data type (introduced in `ES2020`).
-
-Please note that number-related API signatures have changed along with this version update and the minimal build target has been updated to `ES2020`.
-
 ## EthereumJS
 
 See our organizational [documentation](https://ethereumjs.readthedocs.io) for an introduction to `EthereumJS` as well as information on current standards and best practices. If you want to join for work or carry out improvements on the libraries, please review our [contribution guidelines](https://ethereumjs.readthedocs.io/en/latest/contributing.html) first.

packages/evm/README.md

@@ -191,18 +191,6 @@ const { EthereumJSClass } = require('@ethereumjs/[PACKAGE_NAME]')
 
 Using ESM will give you additional advantages over CJS beyond browser usage like static code analysis / Tree Shaking which CJS can not provide.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-Starting with v1 the usage of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/) for big numbers has been removed from the library and replaced with the usage of the native JS [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) data type (introduced in `ES2020`).
-
-Please note that number-related API signatures have changed along with this version update and the minimal build target has been updated to `ES2020`.
-
 ## Architecture
 
 ### VM/EVM Relation

packages/mpt/README.md

@@ -299,18 +299,6 @@ const { EthereumJSClass } = require('@ethereumjs/[PACKAGE_NAME]')
 
 Using ESM will give you additional advantages over CJS beyond browser usage like static code analysis / Tree Shaking which CJS can not provide.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-With the 5.0.0 release, [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) takes the place of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/).
-
-BigInt is a primitive that is used to represent and manipulate primitive `bigint` values that the number primitive is incapable of representing as a result of their magnitude. `ES2020` saw the introduction of this particular feature. Note that this version update resulted in the altering of number-related API signatures and that the minimal build target is now set to `ES2020`.
-
 ## Benchmarking
 
 You will find two simple **benchmarks** in the `benchmarks` folder:

packages/rlp/README.md

@@ -46,18 +46,6 @@ It is now easily possible to run a browser build of one of the EthereumJS librar
 
 `RLP.decode(encoded, [stream=false])` - Decodes an RLP encoded `Uint8Array`, `Array` or `String` and returns a `Uint8Array` or `NestedUint8Array`. If `stream` is enabled, it will just decode the first rlp sequence in the Uint8Array. By default, it would throw an error if there are more bytes in Uint8Array than used by the rlp sequence.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-Starting with v4 the usage of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/) for big numbers has been removed from the library and replaced with the usage of the native JS [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) data type (introduced in `ES2020`).
-
-Please note that number-related API signatures have changed along with this version update and the minimal build target has been updated to `ES2020`.
-
 ## CLI
 
 `rlp encode <JSON string>`\

packages/statemanager/README.md

@@ -284,18 +284,6 @@ const { EthereumJSClass } = require('@ethereumjs/[PACKAGE_NAME]')
 
 Using ESM will give you additional advantages over CJS beyond browser usage like static code analysis / Tree Shaking which CJS can not provide.
 
-### Buffer -> Uint8Array
-
-With the breaking releases from Summer 2023 we have removed all Node.js specific `Buffer` usages from our libraries and replace these with [Uint8Array](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Uint8Array) representations, which are available both in Node.js and the browser (`Buffer` is a subclass of `Uint8Array`).
-
-We have converted existing Buffer conversion methods to Uint8Array conversion methods in the [@ethereumjs/util](https://github.com/ethereumjs/ethereumjs-monorepo/tree/master/packages/util) `bytes` module, see the respective README section for guidance.
-
-### BigInt Support
-
-Starting with v1 the usage of [BN.js](https://github.com/indutny/bn.js/) for big numbers has been removed from the library and replaced with the usage of the native JS [BigInt](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/BigInt) data type (introduced in `ES2020`).
-
-Please note that number-related API signatures have changed along with this version update and the minimal build target has been updated to `ES2020`.
-
 ## Development
 
 Developer documentation - currently mainly with information on testing and debugging - can be found [here](./DEVELOPER.md).