Tuesday, January 8, 2019

3 Reasons to Use a Crypto Social Network




 Blockchain-based social media platforms will overtake all other forms of social media in the future.


This concept applies to all sorts of things. You can replace the words “social media platforms” with whatever blockchain tech-based concept you like, and the statement will probably be true. The reasons are simple.

The blockchain is decentralized. There is no central overseer or oligarch. The advantages of this kind of system are so numerous that no one will ever be able to articulate all of them. Many of them still have yet to be discovered.

The data is distributed equally with no prejudices. The unalterable construction of content within the blockchain cannot be changed, controlled, modified, erased, or otherwise tampered with in any way, shape, or form.

This, in part, is why blockchain-based social media platforms allow for an as-yet-unheard-of degree of editorial freedom and come with a substantial degree of built-in censorship resistance.

 Some of the reasons why blockchain-based social media platforms are better than traditional networks are:
  •  Crypto social networks reward users for sharing content
  • They are more fun to use
  • They provide greater privacy and security and disallow the misuse of data.




Let’s look at why crypto social networks will abolish the existing social media regime.

Reason #1 – Blockchain-Based Social Media Platforms Reward Users for Sharing Content




This one is self-explanatory. Who wants to waste time building a database of personal information on a social media site?

Apparently, billions do, given that’s what’s happening right now.

Maybe that wasn’t the right question to ask. But think about it this way.

 Once people figure out that they can choose to either create content on an old social network so that someone else can get paid for it, or create the same content on a crypto social network and have a chance to get paid for it themselves, what do you think they will do?

Stay on the same old dinosaur social networks?

Or migrate to a new crypto social network?

Steemit.com and Minds.com both pay users for their activity on the platform. Posters can earn crypto tokens according to their interaction with the broader community as well as the activity their own content generates.

While Minds and Steemit use different reward methods and structures, the basic concept is the same. It’s a safe bet that future platforms will adopt similar features.


 It’s even more certain that as people learn about and grow accustomed to these new types of platforms, they will disengage from traditional social media and begin spending all of their online time engaging with sites that reward them.




Reason #2 – Crypto Social Networks are More Fun and Less Trolled

 It’s just more fun interacting with a crypto social network than the dinosaur blogging and social media platforms. Part of this has to do with the fact that the communities are more engaging and less trolling.

For the time being, there are far fewer trolls on Minds and Steemit than elsewhere on social media.

 Of course, you’re bound to run into one here and there. And while there aren’t as many troll bots, there are legions of content bots who post constantly in an attempt to generate income.

Many people criticize these platforms because of this, but hey, that’s how a free market works.



crypto social network
I remember one of my first comments on Minds was a response to someone who quoted an Onion piece about Edward Snowden talking about bitcoin in 2014. The post suggested the comments were serious and not satirical. I pointed this out and got trolled.

 The difference was that it was only one troll, and he or she made a feeble attempt at changing the subject before it was dropped. The account has since been banned.

 If that happened on Twitter, for example, that troll might have had a veritable army of fellow trolls following it.

Reason #3 – Crypto Social Networks Allow for Greater Privacy and Anonymity

 Recently, there has been an uproar about big data being misused on some major social media networks (not naming names). This shouldn’t be surprising, considering that’s how they make their money – data collection.

There is no such need, incentive, or ability in a crypto social network.
For starters, Minds and Steemit don’t require you to fill out all your personal information. All you need is an email address. The same holds true for any other crypto social network.

That’s the most obvious way they allow for greater privacy. You can stay 100% anonymous if you so choose.

Due to the nature of the blockchain, no editorial team or censorship police force can exist. Instead, it’s up to users to flag inappropriate content.

This creates the perfect environment for users and groups that have been censored elsewhere. Free speech thrives on networks like Steemit and Minds.

On these networks, each user is in full control of their content, data, and monetization. There is no need for centralized control.

Decentralization also lends itself to better privacy practices.

Privacy Concerns Not Present on These Decentralized Social Media Platforms


Much has been made of recent invasions of privacy and data mining by the largest social media networks today.



While it’s no secret that these companies have been in the business of bulk data collection for the entirety of their existence, public outrage seems to have been growing in response to a broader awareness of this fact. This is yet another factor that will drive people to rewards-based social media and blogging platforms.

Minds and Steemit do not have data-collection or advertising revenue streams. They are decentralized. There is no central authority that could possibly benefit from the harvesting of data or the distribution of ads.

All power lies in the hands of the people who use the platform. They are both its citizens and its governance structure. Outside of automated moderation for inappropriate content, no form of censorship can be implemented, either.

People Prefer Private Platforms and Value Free Speech


In this age of bulk data collection and mass surveillance, free speech and privacy have become more important than ever. The two are inextricably linked. Without an expectation of privacy, there cannot be truly free speech, as being monitored opens you up to scrutiny, exposure, and censorship.



Cultures the world over appreciate and value the right to free speech. While the same cannot exactly be said of privacy concerns, everyone wants monetary success. The combination of principles and payment will create a new dimension of online activity.

The Future of Crypto Social Media Lies Within the Blockchain

At some point, everyone will realize all of this and migrate to the newer and better crypto social networks.

There has already been a great shift away from traditional social media and toward decentralized social media. As HackerNoon reported in April of 2018,
While most digital ledgers and blockchain-based platforms still have problems scaling as more users jump on board, it seems the number of blockchain-based social media startups is increasing both in number and in usership.
– HackerNoon


The only real obstacles right now are user-friendliness and general awareness. Most people don’t even know that anything like a crypto social network exists yet.

And some of those who do might shy away from them due to their interface and how formatting works. This is truer for Steemit than for Minds. Then again, Steemit is not all that different from Reddit, and Reddit is quite popular.

All things considered, crypto social networks pwn all other social media. That’s right, PWN! (If you don’t know, pwned is video-game slang for utterly defeated – the term has its origins in a misspelling of the word “owned”).



crypto social network
What do you think? Are you interested in using a crypto social network? Do you believe such networks support freedom of speech?

Leave your thoughts in a comment below.

Wednesday, January 2, 2019

Announcement: Avesta Renaissance – Moving From CryptoNote to an Enterprise Grade Blockchain Based Financial Solution Derived from Ethereum

Announcement: Avesta Renaissance – Moving From CryptoNote to an Enterprise Grade Blockchain Based Financial Solution Derived from Ethereum


Avesta will soon move from the CryptoNote protocol to an enterprise-grade solution based on the Ethereum protocol.

Why Are We Migrating?


Avesta is committed to bringing our users the highest-quality cutting-edge technologies. To this end, we invested in a new research and development project several months ago. The purpose of this project was to investigate the potential use of a new enterprise-grade financial solution powered by the Ethereum blockchain.


The results have been a success. The Avesta blockchain will soon become even more stable, flexible and optimized. In the weeks to come, more details will be provided.

Why the Change From CryptoNote to Ethereum?


CryptoNote is an application-level protocol used by many privacy-focused cryptocurrencies. Bytecoin (BCN) and Monero (XMR), for example, use CryptoNote. This protocol works just fine so long as a relatively small number of transactions are involved. And until recently, AVE fell into this category.


For Avesta to reach its full potential, however, something more was required.


Because Avesta intends to bring the promise of cryptocurrency transactions to average users and the unbanked, the AVE blockchain needs a solution that will be able to function on an industrial scale. Point-of-sale transactions require large amounts of bandwidth – something that would not be possible with CryptoNote.

How Will User Wallets Be Affected?


In the long run, users won’t note any real change in how their wallets work on the front end. Everything will appear as seamless and easy as usual.


The migration process will take an estimated five days.


During this time, the Avesta blockchain will be offline. This means that mining AVE tokens will not be possible. Avesta wallets will also be non-functional during this time. After the migration is complete, you can use your wallet again.

New Year, New Protocol


In short, the change from CryptoNote to Ethereum promises to be positive for everyone involved.

Avesta will maintain its privacy features while also being able to scale to the extent necessary to bring crypto to the masses. From a user perspective, nothing will change, but everything will be better.