Checking Out Blockstack, Part 5

Blockstack is building the new decentralized internet. You own your data and apps run locally without remote servers.

I’ve been going over the project in the last week or so. Check this article for links to all of them. This final installment goes over the Blockstack mining methods.

As mentioned in part 4 the Stack token will be introduced when the Stack protocol is implemented. That will happen with a hard fork. There’s no set date but based on the white paper it should happen before 2018 is out.

For Blockstack it’s important that tokens get distributed to all the relevant parties in the ecosystem. And this is done through three mining methods: proof-of-burn mining, app-rewards mining, and web-of-trust mining.

Proof-of-work mining happens when the nodes hash into the underlying blockchain, which is bitcoin. So they have to pay some bitcoin fees but get rewarded with Stacks.

The proof-of-burn mining in the Stack protocol establishes the longest blockchain fork where longest is defined as the blockchain fork with the most amount of cryptocurrency burnt.

Per Blockstack, establishing the longest blockchain fork without processing the blockchain from the genesis block is important for supporting light clients, such as mobile devices. Plus, only one honest node is needed and altering the state view of the blockchain is prohibitively expensive.

App-rewards mining incentivizes developers to participate in the ecosystem by developing high-quality applications. App-rewards mining distributes rewards to developers in the form of tokens. This bootstrapping period will last for four years.

A federation of independent entities, called App Reviewers, will participate in curating eligible applications. App Reviewers will publicly submit statements for why they should be selected.

The App Reviewer system is designed so that more power is given to the token holders over time. Reviewers will be given 50% weight in the second year voting process and token holders will be given 50% voting weight, and the process repeats for years 3 and 4.

Web-of-trust mining incentivizes real users to participate in the ecosystem, register a unique identity, and use applications.

The idea is to prove the person is a real person and not a bot so as to prevent Sybil attacks.

The first incentive is being able to register to be part of the genesis block allocation. You need to go through KYC but you can receive a discount for participating.

Once the network is live incentive mechanisms will be introduced to expand the web of trust. These are under active development.

That covers the three mining methods for Blockstack.

Overall, I really like the Blockstack project. The idea you can take back control of your data is a powerful one.

Plus, by using Blockstack you’ll only ever need one password. That’s something that will benefit everyone, and it doesn’t matter if you’re into crypto or not.

Just keep in mind the Stacks protocol needs to be implemented before Stacks are used in the ecosystem.

But you can start using it today. Just sign up at the website and start setting up your profile.

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