I stop searching blockchains. I stop at Steem. I trust in its future.
The World of Blockchains
Steem isn't the first blockchain I've met.
Bitcoin
Actually, when I heard of Bitcoin the first time, I was engaged with something else all in my time, so I didn't pay attention. When it was around the bubble, it had so much hype it reached me again.
I started to study it and the concept was so disturbing, I liked it very much. After I heard the first time that the technology, called "block chain" could be used by other means, I blew my mind! It was the start of a new age, and like that kind, it was unnoticed, misunderstood, hated and prosecuted.
Nakamoto knew that he touched a very dangerous area; if you want long life, don't innovate in two sectors: finance and energy. Therefore he remained anonymous. He did that very well. I think he and especially his idea could not survive if he shows up to the public at the start. We should thank him that now we could announce big time things to the public without being the #1 enemy.
First Altcoins
I didn't pay much attention to them. I've known Bitcoin is an open-source project, so I was prepared to copy-pastes and rebrands. I wasn't interested in a simple fork of BTC. Much childish. So money. Wow.
Proof of Stake
The ASICs were already a problem. I've heard about Peercoin and Litecoin that time, but I didn't join. They tried to solve the mining issue, and it's a big thing, but not enough big for surviving long-term. I'm a person who is interested in the whole f...g world, so I'm lack of time all the times. I couldn't dedicate myself to an idea that doesn't stand the time.
And then came NXT. Wow, that was something new. User issued tokens was a great idea, something, that could stop the meaningless BTC blockchain replicas.
There was a lot of distrust at there (somewhat for the same reason like here: distribution of wealth), but it was more promising than any other project that I've met. I've tried their test chain and it was easy to use. I've almost starting to pay more attention to it.
However, then came Vitalik with his idea about the Ethereum.
Ethereum
It's used proof of work which was a step back in my eyes, but it showed a load of use cases. It promised "decentralized Web", a thing I'm fallen in love. But it was slow.
How can I say it's slow? It is, because it promised without delivering fast. It was a very big mistake. However, I've waited for what they could achieve. And they showed the DAO scandal...
Lesson learned, we couldn't say that the code is the law.
My trust was falling, but I could wait for how things were forming. There were promises, marketing, a lot of project announcement that couldn't show up with a minimum viable product. Đapps concept was interesting, but many ideas born because of they could be made, not because they are viable. Also, when I read about the fees (which was difficult to find), developers said that it could be a real issue in projects with frequent transactions. Where is my decentralized web?
Observed Chains
- I continued to keep my eyes on Ethereum.
- I watched how BTC struggle with every decision.
- I heard of Tau chain, but I even don't know if is it a scam or something that will deliver.
- I started to use and study Steem. I tell more about it in the next section.
- I looked into NEM. Fees. The user experience is not bad, though.
- Stellar. Just money, requires banks.
- Waves. It isn't ready, and I cannot see any radical change vs. NXT for example.
- Lisk. The concept of personal blockchains is not bad, but it couldn't deliver in the near future. Tau could do the same and more, if...
- MaidSafe. It's interesting, I keep watching it. I don't see it as a destination but a tool for reaching one of my love, the decentralized Web.
- BitShares. It's for traders, not users.
Arrived at Steem
Interestingly, I've joined in the dump in August, and I didn't have time for study or using it actively until October, when my initial starting stake (provided by Steemit) collapsed by a very high percent. That was my first experience.
You could say "the decentralized Web" about it more than about Ethereum already, without positioning itself like that. That's the first point, why I didn't leave it.
I had studied the chain and it's absolutely my favorite. However, I didn't want to dedicate myself to it, because one have to engage something more time to find out its errors, which are hidden under the fog of hype.
Yes, Steem has errors, but those errors don't cancel out the fundamentals of the idea.
Why I Stop Searching of Alternatives
It's a decision that I wanted to make before the New Year.
Steem offer me or would be capable of that I want. It has so much opportunities that makes other blockchains obsolete.
- 3 seconds block time
That's just insane! Have you ever tried to transact BTC with 3 confirmations required? That's about 30 mins. It cannot compete with VISA or MC payments that are instant. Steem can! - No transaction fees
Did I mention it's insane? Variable fees are the worst when someone want to plan their costs, static tx fee is better, but it makes some use cases impossible (like Steemit). - Future distribution
While there are concerns about the distribution (I think capital has its price), the future distribution is genius. It's not just because the social media thing, but it makes it flexible (seefor example).
- Governance
Voting with your stakes. Electing witnesses. It offers security with flexibility. We won't stuck with a question of block size years... - Community
It's the first project where one could talk not only about cryptotech, but "how are you", "your culture is interesting", "you have great painting skills"...
Have Done
I didn't do everything that I can "full steem ahead". I just wanted to get know how things goes first, to be able to make the decision I've made. However, I did some stuff so far:
- Took actions to kick-start the Hungarian tag here
- Reported, commented user issues (login required to see) at Github
- Helped users at steemit.chat, mainly in
#help, but in every channel that I subscribed for and saw questions - Proposed a multiblog concept and a workaround until something like that will be implemented
- Defending short posts many times (like in my SteSMS project)
- Wrote about the state of Steemit and my point of view of the project (based on these questions)
- Translated eSteem app to Hungarian
- Made some comments instead of writing my own piece about everything (I'll need to separate longer, more complex thoughts in the future, though; they don't fit comments), and reported some errors in comments to project owners or authors
- Subscribed for beta-testing
To Do
- Continue what I was doing so far
- Reading the Steem White Paper (I'd better like an updated one, but I could start with what I have)
- Dedicating more time for this project (it means more of everything I do).
- Support projects that use the Steem blockchain
- Improve myself to be able to do more
- Getting ready for conflicts
It's Me
Obviously, I also hope private gains in the process. I was an idealist who was selfless and helpful, but I had to learn that this type of man dies hard. Therefore I want to live with this project more in a symbiotic connection than a one-sided one. I hope it will be a working relationship.
I don't want to write an autobiography here. If you are one of my followers, you could know me from my writings with time. However, I'm not hiding my identity as someone may believe. I wouldn't do that in an amateur way like this. I just use this name as a pen name, and the avatar as profile picture to be more universally acceptable than my civil identity.
As you may know already, I'm a Hungarian, and in that language we use vowels like é,á,ú,ű,ü,ó,ő,ö, and double consonants like ny,ty, sz,cs, so my pen name is just simpler to look and pronounce. Also, the name is just a name, the person behind the name, who matters.
The main reason behind using an avatar is to avoid judging by how someone looks like. I don't mind if one judges by my avatar, for I made it myself, a part of my real inner self is in it that way, I think.
For the Ones Who Must See a Face behind the Words
Since I didn't make a classic introductory post, you couldn't see photos about me. I upload this one for the users who have a demand for a user profile picture to determine that someone is not fake. :)
(Yes, it's been taken with a potato.)
Image Credits
Own photo
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