盲人摸象,统一的Steem网络,多种多样的steem网站和客户端,以及讨论Steemit最终将如何实现内容分级?
今天看到一些讨论,担心一些敏感话题和色情内容会出现在steemit上,导致与现实矛盾的冲突,比如包括儿童和女性可能会看到不适的色情或者暴力内容。有人猜测一些敏感性内容一定会被墙或者管制。
有些人会担心这将导致Steemit像FaceBook, Twitter等网站一样被墙,从而导致Steemit无法发展壮大,这种担心不无道理。但是这种担心更多的还是基于对传统网站应用的认知,而没有意识到Steemit与传统互联网应用的不同之处,这非常像盲人摸象,是基于局部的了解做出的判断。
Steemit不同于传统互联网网站的地方在于,它的基础设施和底层网络是一套P2P的数据共识网络,而steemit.com只是这个网络其中的一个前端而已,目前就出现了很多其他的前端客户端,比如@xeroc开发的命令行客户端Piston就是其中的一个。因此为了满足不同的需求,必定会出现多种多样的steem客户端(网站和app)。
这有点类似于互联网超链接和搜索引擎的关系,整个互联网都是基于同样的HTML文本,但是搜索引擎确有很多个,国外的有Google,Bing,国内有百度,搜狗,俄罗斯有Yandex,韩国有Navar,不一而足,甚至每个语言都有各自擅长的客户端,这才是未来的发展趋势。Steemit的强大与它的区块链网络有关,而具体到普通用户接触的客户端,是无法抵抗因为文化和国情不同带来的用户体验及合规性等需求,必然会分化成不同的版本。
讨论到具体的内容分级制度,国外有具体的分级制度,比如电影和书籍方面的,则比较好办,分级就好了,不同的App做相应调整就行。国内在这方面比较简单粗暴,没有分级,能看就所有人能看,不能看就所有人不能看,总有一套规则和班子来决定,这种情况造成了无论什么互联网应用,国外火一个,但是到内地必定水土不服,接着国内一定会照抄一个不同的版本,百度之于谷歌,微博之于Twitter,概莫如是。但是到了Steemit这里,情况会不一样,因为网络效应,国内的应用不应另起炉灶搞另外一个网络,而是应该搞一个符合国内合规的客户端接入Steem网络,将不合规的内容都屏蔽掉。这不但是较佳的办法,而且一个统一的Steem网络对生态参与者来说都有益处。
据此,我做出一些不靠谱的预测:
1.steemit.com将来一定会慢慢出现大家所担心的一些应该分级或者敏感的内容,甚至已经出现
2.在出现敏感内容后,steemit.com网站将来有一天一定会被墙,但是Steem网络因为是P2P的区块链网络,并且依托于互联网,被墙的成本太高因而不太可能被封锁,这个跟搞一个内地局域网的代价一样。
3.因为市场的空白,内地一定会出现很多不同的Steem网站,其中一定会包括符合政策要求的客户端,将不符合要求的内容都过滤掉,客户端管理(或者管制)一定是从比较容易控制的分发渠道入手,比如域名和App。
目前基于快速迭代的要求,官方重点发展steemit.com是合理的,但是以上的趋势不会改变,官方前段时间也将steemit.com开源了,表明也是认同和支持往这个趋势发展,是非常正确的做法,对于整个生态适应外界环境非常有帮助。这个趋势也意味着steemit区块链网络的功能应该与客户端有着明显的分隔与解耦,但要求区块链实现前端的需求的时候,开发者应该非常谨慎。
Oh yeah and don't forget the demography of Steem. While the content creators are diversifying, there is still a solid base from the cryptocurrency and libertarian community. This kind of free thinking, decentralise, liberal ideology is exactly the reason why the Great Firewall was established!
Yes, true. So do Internet, and BitTorrent etc. Maybe we should choose a practical strategy to adjust with the GFW forces, to make steemit to be the first content deliver survival in China. We need connections to world, crypto curreny successfully made it, hope steemit will be the next.
Excellent post. I think you've got it that it is inevitable that Steemit will be cloned and / or forked, as has become GFW-tradition. Everything must have a China-equivalent, because China musn't have the Interwebs ;). (sarcasm)
What are the most effective means of GFW circumvention these days? I imagine that it'd be possible to put together a kit designed to make steemit easy to access from behind GFW. How is Lantern working these days? On my last trip to Shenzhen, it was very so-so.
Shadowsocks works fine for me…
@hackfisher
Can you give me a definition of what fine is for you? For work reasons I often end up needing to sync kernel source in China and that particular operation tends to be the stumbling block. Here in VN, I can sync the kernel in about 10 minutes. In China, well, it tends to just fail unless I use a Chinese mirror (which isn't possible in all cases unfortunately)
The working way of shadowsocks is to establish a tunnel between your client and destination server using a proxy VPS server, usually I choose to setup a VPS abroad as the proxy rather than using business services which could be interfered or blocked. "Fine" means it can meet most of the requirements for me to using internet, including visiting YouTube or syncing codes or downloading data, the network threshold is actually limited by the speed between you and your proxy VPS in most case.
For more information, vist https://github.com/shadowsocks
I've used and adminned SS for years :).
Last few times, have had intermittent connection difficulties with it :/.
Either I'm not as good at circumventing or GFW is getting taller, or both...
@hackfisher 这个帖子内行!应该加精!
你就是 #DACPlay 的开发者黑人鱼吧?!
BitShares 2.0 在金融领域也有同样的 “一个区块链底层,多样化客户端” 的多元发展潜力!
目前官方的 GUI 钱包功能大而全,对于新用户来说门槛太高。不同的文化环境(国家和地区)应该有不同的 UI 界面,不同的客户群也应该有不同的 UI 界面。BitShares 2.0 亟待振作!
@hackfisher I've some very rich friends in china since I've been doing business with china for years, but they are afraid to take any risk and being involved in something that could be illegal soon or later.
So what's the solution to make Steem scale in china and other pro-censorship countries ?
the blockchain is decentralized so cannot be censored, but chinese gov can stop people who use this. And force them not to. The Law is the Law.
That's quite simple to understand. What you post on blockchain will stay, OK that's right, but first you need to be able to post (if they dont block all IP / nodes/ access), then if you do, it can be illegal for you soon or later if they decide that it should be.
People can go in prison for doing this, so Nobody can stop the blockchain that's right, but people can be stopped very easily.
So I'm really trying to work on this but it will be very difficult i think for Steem to Scale in China.
In Japan that should be a bit easier.
any suggestion would be great, anyone can contact me in the steemit.chat @ekitcho