Published via Ecency

Hey Hive fam, let’s have a brutally honest chat.

You love Hive, right? You love earning rewards, commenting, posting, curating… all the good stuff that makes this place so different from every Web2 hellscape out there (you know which ones I’m talking about, books and clockish things and such). But here’s the thing… none of that happens unless people like me are in the background, doing the work that keeps this blockchain alive.

And before you zone out thinking this is some boring “sysadmin geek talk,” stick with me. Because if you’re not paying attention to witness voting, you’re literally risking the future of Hive.

No pressure.

👨‍💻 Who Am I? Nerd. Builder. Hive Witness.

So yeah… I’m @botlord. That’s my technical account. Some of you probably know me from my personal account, this one, @borniet, or from the tools and bots I’ve built over the years. But let’s be real: the work I do under @botlord? That’s the heavy lifting.

I’ve been around since the Steem days. My first witness was back then, but life happened (as it tends to do when you’ve got kids, a job, and about 6,000 browser tabs open). Fast forward, and last year I jumped back in full throttle on Hive:

💥 Running a Hive witness 💥 Running a Hive-Engine witness 💥 Running a VSC node 💥 Running some bots

My Hive witness runs on an AMD Ryzen PRO 3600 with 32GB RAM, 2TB disk space, latest stable Ubuntu, and all the standard Linux admin magic. Translation: I don’t just slap this stuff on a dusty laptop in my garage and hope for the best.

This is professional-grade infrastructure.

😎 Why I Do This (Spoiler: It’s Not for the Glory)

Being a Hive witness isn’t about a fancy badge or flexing on Discord (well…). It’s about one thing: guarding Hive’s decentralization and stability.

That means:

🔒 Keeping nodes online and secure 🌎 Distributing servers geographically ⚙️ Making the hard calls when they need to be made

And yeah, I nerd out on this stuff. Like, a lot. I’ve been building bots like @indeedly and @hope, tools like hiveearnings.botlord.eu (currently offline for upgrades), and working with communities like BBH, Alive, and Team Mithril.

Because running nodes is only part of the job. Building and contributing to the ecosystem? That’s just as important.

🧨 Let’s Talk About Witness Voting (You’re Probably Doing It Wrong)

Here’s a truth bomb for you:

🚨 Tons of Hive votes are still stuck on inactive witnesses. 🚨 Some haven’t updated in 3+ years but still have millions of HP in votes. 🚨 Meanwhile, active witnesses like me are working around the clock to keep Hive online.

Witness voting isn’t “set it and forget it.” It’s your responsibility as a Hive user to support active, trusted witnesses. Without them? No posts. No comments. No curation. Just a dead blockchain.

Do yourself (and Hive) a favor:

✅ Go to https://peakd.com/me/witnesses ✅ Unvote the zombies ✅ Vote for active witnesses like @botlord who are doing the work every damn day

🚀 My Vision for Hive’s Future

Hive doesn’t need explosive growth that burns us out. It needs:

📈 Sustainable growth 🤝 More community feeling 🤝 Stronger user retention 🛠️ Better onboarding tools (I’m working on some now—stay tuned) ⚖️ And witnesses & users who avoid polarizing “us vs. them” mindsets. Disagreements are healthy. Division isn’t.

This isn’t about me vs. other witnesses. It’s about keeping Hive strong. Period.

🔥 Why Vote @botlord?

I’m not here to tell you I’m “better” than anyone else. Most active witnesses are good people doing good work. But here’s why your vote matters for me:

✔️ I’m consistent and reliable ✔️ I’ve got skin in the game (time, money, resources) ✔️ I’m transparent (check @botlord & @borniet for all my activity) ✔️ I’m still building, still contributing, still learning, and still here

Many witnesses start strong and flame out when they realize the time and cost involved. Votes on those “dead” nodes could fuel active witnesses like me who are keeping Hive alive.

🕹️ TL;DR: Check Your Votes

If you’ve been on Hive for years and never rechecked your witness votes, now’s the time.

✅ Go here: https://peakd.com/me/witnesses ✅ Unvote dead nodes ✅ Vote @botlord

Because Hive isn’t run by some corporate overlord. It’s run by people like me, putting in the work so you can keep earning and engaging every day.

You’re welcome. 😉

👊 Final Word

This isn’t a guilt trip. It’s a wake-up call. You love Hive? Prove it. Support the people keeping it alive.

Now go vote. Or don’t. But if the blockchain stops producing blocks because nobody maintained the nodes… well… don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Just saying.

—-

Botlord is now also a Hive Witness! 🤖 Vote for @botlord

✅ Click here & vote: 👉 here.

Like my photos and my tools, and want to buy me a coffee ??? -> via TipJar

### 📸 Captured & Edited **Shot with:** Apple iPhone 14 Max Pro **Edited using:** Lightroom Mobile & [Skylum Luminar AI](https://jo.my/lmnar) **AI Images: ** Created using Sora & Grok, using my own prompts

All photos are my own work. Dive deeper and explore more on my website or check out my links.

🔍 Gear & Tools

Curious about the gear I use?
Find out everything about my photography tools here.

🤳 Let's Connect!

Follow me on Instagram: instagram.com/bjornbeheydt
Join me there for behind-the-scenes, exclusive shots, and more!

🤖 Vote for Botlord – Because More Nodes = More Power! Hive needs strong, reliable witnesses. So, I launched Botlord—because if anyone should command the bots, it’s me. 🤖💪

✅ Click here & vote: 👉 Vote for Botlord

More nodes = More decentralization = A stronger Hive. It’s one click for you, but a giant leap for Hive stability. Botlord approves this message. 🚀

💥 !INDEED/@indeedly Tipping Bot

Discover the !INDEED tipping bot and add a bit of fun to rewarding your favorite creators!
Start tipping and earn tokens just by engaging with the community.

Learn more about it

@indeedly/introducing-the-public-beta-of

🌈 !HOPE/@hopelizer Tipping Bot

Spread some positivity with the !HOPE tipping bot!
Start rewarding content that inspires and uplifts with !HOPE tokens.

Learn more about it here.

🤪 !WEIRD/@weirdly Tipping Bot

Embrace the weirdness with the !WEIRD tipping bot!
Tip and share the quirky side of the Hive community with !WEIRD tokens.

Learn more about it

@weirdly/get-your-weird-out-introducing

🔥 Support BBH Witness

BBH is here to support the Hive community, and every vote helps us keep growing and making a difference!
Consider voting for the BBH witness to support decentralization and the awesome Hive community.
Learn more and cast your vote here.