What is @theusersparty?

@theusersparty is a witness voting block and support initiative for witnesses and Steem users and developers that contribute to improving the user experience on the Steem blockchain.

What are @theusersparty's goals?

In a Delegated Proof of Stake system like we have here on Steem, each Steem stakeholder has the ability to vote for witnesses. Witnesses are the people that secure the network and keep it functioning. The witnesses are ranked in order based on the amount of votes they have. Also, the votes are stake-weighted, so 10 users with 100 Steem Power each, will have the same voting power as 1 user with 1000 Steem Power. The top 20 witnesses are paid a regular salary programmaticly by the Steem blockchain. Their salary is based on 10% of the inflation from Steem.

Witnesses also have the responsibility of approving Steem Harforks(upgrades). If they agree that a proposed hard fork is what's best for Steem then the hard fork is approved and Steem will change.

Because of this, as a decentralized community it's extremely important that the communities votes matter and are focused.

The design of this system is supposed to create a competitive environment for the top 20 witness spots. Ideally, as users, we'd want witnesses that not only secure the network(as this is a bare minimum) but also add value to the network by developing applications, promoting community engagement, or improving the user experience.

@theusersparty is focused on the user experience.

We feel that currently, the greatest barrier to entry for new users to Steem is the user experience.

We feel that the user experience on Steem is holding back the value of Steem.

What exactly do you mean by user experience?

the overall experience of a person using a product such as a website or computer application, especially in terms of how easy or pleasing it is to use.

Steem is too hard, there are also features that could be added to make it more fun, more sticky(better at retaining users), more useful, etc.

@theusersparty's goal is to promote these developments and initiatives.

How will @theusersparty support these initiatives.

First and foremost by voting for witnesses that have demonstrated and continue to demonstrate a commitment to improving the user experience on Steem.

Secondarily we will support developers or users that create value by improving the user experience.

How?

@theusersparty will author posts to highlight witnesses accomplishments, promote initiatives that are focused around improving the user experience as well as promoting @theusersparty. All rewards will be powered up and used to promote these actions.

If you would like to support @theusersparty beyond voting for us as your witness proxy, please follow the vote of @theusersparty and contribute to our curation trail.

@theusersparty will more than likely go for days, maybe weeks without voting and therefore would rather not take support via delegations. Curation trails offer a low risk, low commitment way for you to support @theusersparty if you chose to do so.

Who's behind @theusersparty?

@theusersparty is the brainchild of @midlet. I've been thinking long and hard about what I could do to improve Steem. I've got a few ideas, but this is the first initiative I'm launching. I'm nobody special. Just another Steemian trying to improve things around here.

Who is @theusersparty currently voting for?

@yabapmatt

• Creator of Steem Keychain and co-creator of Steem Engine. We think Steem Keychain dramatically improves the User Experience on Steem and it's made in what we feel is one of the best ways to develop something for Steem, in a way that can be used by everyone.

@aggroed

• Creator of Steem Monsters and Steem Engine. @aggroed is more focused on the business end of the spectrum, but we think he's by far the most successful in that area, and should be supported.

@blocktrades

• Without blocktrades, Steem would have a huge gaping hole in the experience here. It's the easiest way to buy and sell steem, beyond that @blocktrades also actively curates the community, developed the SPS, supports contests etc. which improves the user experience here a ton.

@curie

• I wouldn't be here without @curie. When I first started on Steem, after my first few posts I'd began to think it was pointless to post here(keep in mind at this point, I had no idea how anything worked, I didn't know what a curation trail was) then I got my first @curie upvote, and it revitalized my curiosity and kept me going so that I wanted to learn more. I feel that what they do here fills a void that they can't fill alone, but it makes a huge positive difference.

@steampeak

• Steampeak is hands down the best frontend for Steem in terms of user experience. We'd love to be able to support them in whatever way possible.

@blockbrothers

• @blockbrothers are behind the app Steemify which is extremely useful and again fills a void here on Steem. Basically it sends push notifications to your phone, for customizable events that you set to be notified for. At this point it's an absolute must have for using Steem in our opinion.

@stoodkev

• @stoodkev is behind the Steemplus chrome extension that makes Steemit usable. They are obviously working to improve the user experience and that's why we support them.

@c-squared

• c-squared is a curation group that curates more frequently than say @curie. So while we think curie is great, they are trying to cover everyone and we get that they need to spread the love. That typically means less frequency for individuals and we think c-squared does a great job filling in the gaps.

@helpie
pretty much the same reason as c-squared. Another curation group that helps with the lack of discovery here on Steem.

@oracle-d
Oracle-d created Steem Ninja along with other stuff, but for us the big achievement is Steem Ninja. Steem Ninja allows for quick account creation and for payment with paypal. It's the best solution we have currently for account creation for brand new users that are not potentially already into crypto.

@partiko
Partiko is the best mobile experience currently for Steem. Their app takes this whole confusing mess and makes it relatively simple. It's obvious that they have user experience in mind.

@busy.witness
Busy is another frontend for Steem, and depending on your taste, it might be the one for you. It's definitely still a better UX than Steemit and we'd love to see them continue to develop.

@good-karma
good-karma is behind esteem which has a mobile and desktop version. Again, a great frontend for Steem depending on your preferences. I use it often.

@roelandp
@roelandp organizes Steemfest as well as created the steemwallet app.

@ocd-witness
Like the other curation groups ocd is a huge help to the community by curating and overall improving the user experience.

@crowdwitness
Crowdmind is community project dedicated to empowering the wisdom of the crowd. @theusersparty was created to be a tool for the community. The community spoke up for @crowdwitness so we're happy to vote for them.

As more people learn about @theusersparty, the list of witnesses that we vote for will grow. For now we're keeping it open to let the community decide what they feel is most valuable.

If you would like to vote for @theusersparty as your voting proxy you can here

Currently @theusersparty proxy has 29,738 SP voting for it as proxy.

Or you can follow this videos instructions.

Thanks everyone for your support!

Let's use the system to improve the system!