Decentralizing the Internet: Maidsafe

Last week I began a little series about decentralizing the internet, and I kicked off the series talking about Golem, which focuses on decentralizing computing power.

Today I’m going to cover MaidSafe, which targets decentralizing storage by distributing your encrypted data.

Screen Shot 2017-06-13 at 8_Fotor.jpg

MaidSafeCoin (MAID) is currently listed 27th on coinmarketcap.com

  • Current price- $0.52 per coin

  • Current circulating supply- 452 million coins

  • 24 hour volume- $2 million

  • Market cap- $236 million

By clicking on the “markets” tab on coinmarketcap.com, you can see the exchanges that work with the coin, and the prices that the coin is being traded on those exchanges.

If you’re looking for an arbitrage opportunity, you can get a hint by checking out this section.

You can purchase MaidSafe on a number of different exchanges including Poloniex and Bittrex.

When choosing which exchange to use for making trades, it’s best to use the exchange with the highest volume, in this case right now for MaidSafe, that exchange would be Poloniex.

MaidSafe has been working on providing a decentralized solution for data storage for quite some time now. This project, along with the few others that are also working towards providing a decentralized internet, no doubt was sparked by the mass surveillance state brought to us by the NSA and robustly cultivated thanks to websites like Facebook, Google and Yahoo which pretty much give away what should be your private information to the highest bidder.

Here is MaidSafe’s approach towards finding a solution and hopefully preventing a nationalized internet.

The idea is that once you join the network you can volunteer your unused computer storage to be used by the network, the more storage you provide, the more safecoins you’ll be paid.
If you want to upload a file to the network, you will encrypt it first, then it is then divided into many “pieces”, randomized, and distributed throughout the entire network. Because you were the one to encrypt your file, you will be the only one with access to your file. The network will respond accordingly and redistribute the fragmented files as computers on the network are turned on and off.

What I think is the coolest aspect about MaidSafe- although it makes it sound like a pyramid scheme- is the fact that the more people who use the software, the more distributed the network becomes and the more space is made available for a faster network.

It’s the complete opposite of what we are used to when popular sites get a huge influx of traffic and it causes the centralized servers to crash and the site goes down.

With MaidSafe on the other hand, the more the better. Furthermore MaidSafe is designed in a way that it removes duplicates of all stored information, making it the very definition of efficient.

They have recently finished Alpha 1 testing and are now transitioning to alpha 2 testing which includes new APIs, a browser, tutorials and demo apps

Like I said earlier, MaidSafe and Golem aren’t the only projects working towards providing a decentralized internet, there are others like SIA, Shift, and coming soon: Filecoin, which I will be covering in the future.

Additional Reading/Sources:

MaidSafe Website
CoinMarketCap: MaidSafe
Status of MaidSafe Project
MaidSafe Forum
MaidSafe Reddit
How MaidSafe Measures Up to the Competition
MaidSafe Github
More on Safecoins
CryptoCoinsNews Article on MaidSafe

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So many new coins and ideas coming out, wonder who will lead the pack in the future 🤔😀💖

I agree that a lot of new coins are coming out but i believe that the maidsafe project is even older then bitcoin itself

This is the coin that I'm most uncertain of. But if they succeed with everything (storage, dns, e-mail) I see no clear limit to how big this potentially could be.

It was a good write-up, by the way. Easy introduction.

How is this different than Siacoin? Is it approaching a different market? How similar is the technology?

Sia focuses on storage. Maid on all things internet. Including storage.

Where does Storjx fit in with this group of coins?

I remember these projects from waaaay back.

Your username makes me smile, but Storj is similar to MaidSafe.

..and Siacoin , I've installed the Sia-client and configured it, they have a working version of it, only downside is it uses a hell of alot of bandwidth constantly, so much so it impacts browsing, but I'm sure they'll sort this out in the next update, I've purchased some MaidSafe thanks to your blog Heidi, and thanks for scripting out whats discussed in the video, makes it so much easier for those of at the office to keep up with it. anyway, check out Siacoin if you hadn't had a chance yet, would love to see you do a comparison between Sotrj, Sia and Maidsafe in one of your next entries. thanks

Edit: oops, I just realized that you mention Sia in your blog right at the end, my bad, would still like to check out the comparison though ;)

Here is a short comparison from Taek a Sia forum admin:

Sia supports on-blockchain smart contracts that require hosts to store files in order to get paid. Once the contract has been created, the host is guaranteed to get paid, even if the uploader never accesses the file. This contract also allows us to enforce penalties on hosts that go offline or lose data.
Storj is similar to Sia, but does not feature on-blockchain storage contracts. Instead, Storj offers a pay-as-you-go model where hosts are paid with some frequency by the users. If the users disappear or go offline, the host stops getting paid. Storj is still running test groups, and has not yet implemented a network where you can upload files.
MaidSAFE is a very ambitious project that goes beyond just decentralized storage. They also have a much softer focus on efficiency. Sia's network should be both cheaper for uploaders AND pay its hosts more, due to smarter redundancy management. MaidSAFE also does not yet have a working global network where you can upload and download files.
MaidSAFE uses a completely novel scheme for achieving consensus (not a blockchain). This scheme is not proof-of-work, and has not been reviewed anywhere near as extensively as the Bitcoin protocol.

Thank you for that comparison, it was extremely informative I appreciate it, I'm going to guess that the only reason MAID has a higher value than SC is becuase it's been around longer and has had time to grow a following? since I've actually used the SC application and it's working (not perfectly but ja) so SC should really be higher in value than MAID in my opinion?

Great work @heiditravels Anyone looking into buying Maidsafe can purchase it on BitShare's Open Ledger trading platform. And if you own MaidSafe you can also deposit them into this distributed exchange. ALSO if you have just made a shit ton of money in ETH or BTC and are worried about those bubbles popping... you can buy bitGOLD or bitSilver here also and wait out the correction. Thoughts?

Very interesting. One question: What happen if someone leave the network, what happen with the piece of information that he has. Is there redundancy?

There is a redundancy of the data, I don't recall the specifics off the top of my head though. I believe there are also penalties or a sort of reputation markers for vaults that fail to send information or respond.

wow very interesting! thanks

Great info, but how safe are they? cos, I don't wanna cry

Maidsafe is still in works do not have a working product.. storj aready is live and paid users.. i am bullish on storj

Maidsafe is to crypto what Xanadu is to the World Wide Web.

@heiditravels, you are doing a splendid job and I always enjoy your honest analysis and suggestions with regards to altcoins..I am seriously looking a Golem too. keep up the good job.

Thanks for making this video @heiditravels. I've personally been following Sia and Storj as the two main decentralized cloud storage platforms on the Blockchain but MaidSafe is definitely another player in the decentralized storage game that often falls under the radar.

I am excitedly looking forward to Filecoin as it has the most disruptive potential of all - not only as a decentralized storage platform but as the world's first offering of Decentralized Internet! The buzz surrounding Filecoin has even made the creators of Sia very nervous as they candidly admitted at Token Summit a few weeks ago!

@heiditravels Pyramid scheme? I don't get the comparison. Were you serious or mainly joking?

I was joking. Since pyramid schemes are reliant on constantly adding new buyers to pay off the investors before them and stay afloat- it's not the same for MaidSafe.

OK, thanks for clarifying! I always like watching your short videos although i already know about all of the projects and details ;)

Good clarification, Heidy. You also got commented on in YouTube due to that. Apparently some people didn't get the joke :)

A worthy post! Thank you

I was in maid for a while but go so bored of it. Its just taking too long and the price doesn't move much lol thanks for sharing :) Im following you

good posting, I think Maidsafe project is good for now

Awesome post about Maidsafe and other worthy coins out there. The market are beginning to separate the grains from the chaff. Yes, Maidsafe is one of coins worthy of second look out there.

well written

Can you talk more about maidsafe currency ?

Maidsafe is my first love after bitcoin, wait a sec, l think I am falling for you too Heidi

I think the name of this coin is a little weird. The Maid is Safe? Does this name have a particular background or story?

i think it's more about 'made safe' rather than some maid that is 'safe' - which in the uk, means are you ok. . .;) - 'safe brother, safe. . . ' ;)

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Good post! FYI https://zeronet.io is also aims decentralized internet but with no payment scheme. There are already many website on it. A torrent site too :)

you need a payment scheme when you don't want content to disappear. In Zeronet or IPFS, data disappears when no one is seeding it anymore.

Yup. Ipfs is planning a coin afaik

So many different currency options out there. Where will it all end up? I wonder. Thanks for the great post my friend.

nice work. i bought some golem just in case to hold on to it for the next few years, i will take a look at maidsafe. .

Great video!

I'm a big fan of Siacoin (and it's "Sigh-uh," but I've made the same mistake, too...) and there may be room in this space for a couple players - just like there's box.net, dropbox, and...Amazon Web Services.

Keep 'em coming!

great post

Wonderful information about maidsafe.

Thank you so much for this informative article

Question -- How do you make a paper wallet for these altcoins like MaidSafe? Or do you trust leaving your funds on exchanges like Bittrex?

Thanks!

Store MAIDs in a normal bitcoin offline wallet (bitaddress.org), you can use the omni protocol to see and move the maidsafecoins (omniwallet and omniexplorer).

Re Storj, they are apples and oranges. It is a bicycle vs a space rocket, there is no point in drawing any comparisons. The fact that you can store data on SAFE is almost incidental. What we are talking about is a truly resource-based economy, with a coin that is a burnable utility you'll need to use to store or serve immutable and censor resistant data efficiently and reliably. And their new take on consensus is a huge evolutionary step from blockchain solving all of its issues - no mining, no scaling issue, no fees, no confirmations so instant txs, and all txs are totally private and secure by default (true digital cash). They will be able to do smart contracts like Eth. Most importantly, you can't turn it off... and it's censor resistant. Do the maths kids. What will happen when a silk road etc appears on there and it can't be turned off and there's no blockchain to track money? They say no publicity is bad publicity. If SAFE works it will end up getting A LOT of press and hitting a lot of headlines for obvious reasons, anyone can put stuff up and no one can take it down.

This was a good intro article, but I'd like to see a deeper look at what is probably the most interesting project in crypto, despite the hype bubble around lesser projects that have working software in the wild.

I'd really like you to take a closer look down this rabbit hole and write a part 2 to this article.

And FYI, Maidsafe stands for Massive Array of Internet Discs (a play on RAID), and Secure Access For Everyone. When it is launched it will just be SAFEnet and SAFEcoin though.. much sexier and cooler ;)

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Great post Heidi! Really enjoying following your work.

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Great post. I love maidsafe. Think it's going to be a major feature in how the net develops over the next few years.

The Scotts that run MAID seem pretty savy. I like the technology. I think if they got funding from a big player, e.g., a bank or hedge fund, they could rock it.

Thanks Heidi, I have heard a few others mention MaidSafe, and as always, you are the best a breaking things down in a succinct, informative manner without a lot of hype.

Thanks Heidi, very informative.

MaidSafe is the future to the Internet!

Me like it alot!

thx for this intro in maidsafe heidi!

This is such a great, in depth post. So glad I'm following you. I've resteemed this post and encouraging all my followers to follow you. Peace and happiness from Vietnam!

Great post @heiditravels =) I've been a SAFE enthusiast for years now.

Only wish you would have included the #coagorist tag and I would have seen and resteemed it when you posted. Resteeming it now anyhow =)

Hey. These reviews are very interesting, they usually cointan enoguh information to make an educated appraise of a coin at a specific moment, and I find these very useful. I have seen mane of the cannabis-indsutry-related coins spiking lately, do you happend to know why? I'd be cool to see one of these on those.

Thanks for sharing!