Controversial? Maybe, but cryptocurrency and blockchain is still in the early stages. Bitcoin was the first to really make blockchain work and it's an amazing piece of work, but it has limitations and needs a lot of work to make it scale up.
This post is a sort of follow-on to yesterday's. I just read this fine article about Bitcoin and the potential of blockchain. It resonated with me as it talks about the open standards that allowed the internet take off and how it is increasingly proprietary. It talks about a lack of open standards for exchanging data about our identity, but there were attempts with things like FOAF. Open standards encourage innovation without being tied to the whims of some corporation. I know it's possible to build apps around some of the big platforms, but they can change things or impose restrictions.
Blockchain opens up new possibilities as the data is open and nobody has central control (mostly). In most cases changes can be made based on consensus of miners/witnesses, if necessary. The article doesn't mention Steem or Steemit, but this is a prime example. We are seeing all sorts of apps being built on the Steem blockchain, such as dtube and Zappl.
It does talk about IPFS (Interplanetary Filing System) that uses Ethereum. They emphasise that cryptocurrencies are not really replacing current fiat, but they can be tokens that allow us to buy and sell. My title was inspired by my own thoughts on reading the article. There are many cases where the first example of a technology does not prevail. Other coins do a better job with speed, cost and scalability than Bitcoin. It is losing dominance and I think this will continue. The high price was mostly fuelled with bubble-style speculation and we are seeing a big correction this week. I care more about real utility. When I first came to Steemit I could see it had great potential to empower creative people and to break down some barriers. It remains to be seen if governments will continue to fight back.
The piece also talks about us controlling our own data. I don't have examples, but I assume some blockchains allow us to release certain information to chosen individuals or organisations. As far as I understand Steem is pretty much all public for now.
I think we are still in the early days of blockchain utilisation. We are starting to see real applications apart from semi-private financial transactions. Steemit is a prime example that I hope will gain in prominence and show it's not all about drugs and extortion.
Steem on!
I'll buy guitar picks for Steem Dollars
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