I regularly use Hive
Now I'll admit that the India United community isn't one that I typically frequent. If you check my posts you are going to see that I post regularly on Actifit and the Hive Learners. However, when a post prompt came out from India United here and it mentioned that it was open for all I decided I have time this Sunday to do some writing.
Compare Hive to regular social media
It is kind of funny trying to come up with a comparison of Hive to regular social media. The reason is that while Hive is sort of like social media it is really a very different beast. I've been trying to think of an analogy and the I came up with would be a vehicle. Most cars are pretty boring. People know what a Toyota Corolla or Honda civic are like. Every mainstream brand looks much the same inside and while some are larger, some are smaller, the general feel is the same. Now if you were to take Hive what kind of vehicle would it be? I'm torn between the Twike and the Unimog two vehicles I doubt you have ever heard of.
The image is taken from the Twike Website
This image can be found on Wikipedia
Why do I use those as comparisons? Well, the biggest thing about both of those vehicles is that even if you have driven regular cars for a long time you would step into those and be stumped for a little bit. They feel different, have different controls, and have very different strengths.
Hive isn't user friendly
I've tried to get people onto Hive numerous times. I tell them about the benefits of writing on Hive but in the end the negatives end up winning. Just like those vehicles above are bot far superior to a regular commuter car, their negatives make them far from common.
Example the twike.
At first glance it is awesome! Fast, nimble, quiet and incredibly fuel efficient. In fact its an electric vehicle where you can add more or less batteries and change its maximum range.
But it doesn't have a steering wheel
... Yup. You have "tank" steering. A lever for right and a lever for left. Plus it had pedals like a bicycle so you can recharge while driving but that also mean it doesn't have a regular gas pedal. If you were a passenger and was told "keep pedalling so we can extend the cars range before needing a recharge I bet you would think the driver is insane.
But also imagine? A car that lets you get exercise and drive even if you have no gas and no electricity. Where even in the most severe power outage of fuel shortage you can pedal in advance and still drive your family to an outing.
Awesome but weird
How about the Unimog. A friend of mine bought one back in the 1990s. Imported from Germany and quite likely the only one found in Western Canada. The thing was insanely strong and could carry or move virtually anything. It was built solid and built to outlast any other vehicle on the road. It could pretty much handle any terrain as long as it was solid. Tough, Durable, and Strong.
But it wasn't built for local roads. On the local Sea to Sky highway most people have fun driving along it at 100km/h but the Unimog? My friend said it was the scariest trip he ever took at 80km/h. It swayed into every corner. It took forever to get up to speed and when you were there you really wanted to slow down but every other car on the road was lining up behind you.
In addition when he brought it into Canada immigration and the army had questions and made him sign paperwork saying that he wasn't going to install weapons / artillery onto the vehicle. A legal issue no Toyota owner has ever had to face.
Hive is advanced and does things other social media sites don't do. Hive is capable of things that other social media can't even dream of. Hive also suffers limitations that make it unusable by the general public.
Disadvantages
1. Getting started isn't free
Your username isn't free. It must be generated by the chain and requires either 3 HIVE payment (which you won't have because you aren't on Hive yet) or a sponsor who has an account creation token.
2. You have 4 passwords
People are used to a username and password, possibly with 2FA. Hive? 4 passwords each with different uses. The passwords aren't things you can just punch in an logon (unless your memory is much better than mine). Typically you need a browser extension just to get logged in.
3. Forgotten passwords are a big deal
On most social media a forgotten password is just one "Forgot Password" click away. On Hive? Forget your password and either (a) you are forever locked out or (b) you have to hope that you can contact the account that made your account and they can use a masterkey to change your passwords and give you new ones.
4. Resource Credits means you can't keep on posting
Most people like and dislike whatever they see. They post as often as they want and say whatever they want. On Hive? Your brand new account with NO Hive Power means you can make a single post or maybe a few comments before you are done for the day. Want to do more? You will get errors about can't post letting you think that the site is broken.
5. There is no delete button and editing is frowned upon.
If you post something you later regret? Sorry, no delete button. Post a drunken essay on, well, whoever wrote a good drunken essay? however it will be locked on Hive forever..a moment of shame memorialized.
6. Your friends aren't there
And of course adding your friends to get your friend group going? Hahahah.... good luck. My wife wants to get on Hive to see what I'm doing but still hasn't quite figured it out and I've been here over 4 years
7. Finding people and posts is challenging.
I know the system. I know what I've written. I am a veteran but even I have trouble finding things I've written in the past. Usually I'm stuck scrolling down my posts for 5 minutes while I get to about the right time when I would have written something. Doing a Hive search for my old articles? Doesn't work well. Everything might be locked on chain but that doesn't mean that it is easy to find on chain.
So why would I bother with Hive?
Honestly for most people I tell them up fromt.
Hive is more powerful than any other social media ... but you probably won't bother.
I tell them flat out that Hive isn't for the average social media user. You won't get a big group of followers, there is no easy customer service, there is no algorithm designed to encourage their dopamine fix and make rabbit trails to go down. It isn't preinstalled on their cellphone and their content isn't going viral.
Which is exactly why I'm on Hive.
I don't want everyone seeing my writing.
I'm not writing to become popular. I'm writing to journal my life. To make posts my grandchildren can read someday and see who their grandfather was. If one or two people actually read my posts I'll consider that enough for me.
But I know my posts are forever
Unlike regular social media my posts won't get deleted. If my viewpoints are counter culture in 20 years I'm not having my account blocked, banned or deleted. It is a legacy for my children and grandchildren that will be there for the long term. Or at least until the witnesses give up on the project.
I get some money for my efforts
Which isn't a major reason I write. However, if anyone asks I can realistically say that I am a blogger and I do make money from my efforts.
I have never been flamed or trolled
This is huge. My ideas may not be what other people want to hear. I speak the truth as I see it and that's not always popular. However, with hundreds of posts on Hive I have never once been flamed or trolled. People have disagreed with me to be sure, however, every disagreement was measured and reasonable. Where else can a Christian, a Muslim and an Atheist get together for a polite discussion on social media?
I have been able to send money across the world with ease
For the few people I have made friends with I have been able to send small amounts of money in seconds and a guarantee they got it. That is incredibly powerful!
.....and I'm just scratching the surface. I've encoded music into posts using UUE, created a cryptocurrency and a community, played games, and made a storage locker for important files....all using a social media platform.
and I've barely scratched the surface of what's possible
Hive is like a fighter jet
Hive absolutely has the power to fly. Unfortunately the number of people able to use it fully is limited. I kind of liken it to using Linux way back 20 years ago.
When I first started using Linux decades ago it was clunky, buggy, incompatable but undeniably powerful. When Google took it and modified it to become Android? It changed the world. But even the basic form that was supported by community? It as become a lot more smooth and a truly viable operating system which is now the backbone of many home AI platforms.
I hope that Hive takes off someday to be more than it is. I hope that in 20 years I can say with pride that I remembered Hive when it was clunky and niche.
And in a world where people flame others regularly. Where people say things then delete it and say it never happened. In a world where corporations and government want to take things they don't like and scrub or delete them. In a world where countries want to limit money going into and out of their borders....Well, I believe that Hive absolutely has a place and I hope many more people find it.
Despite what a pain it can be 😀