I hope you recognize the part of the equation that you don't want to assess people a "fee" "cost" "RC usage" whatever on the things that you WANT THEM TO DO. Because if you do that, you will get the opposite. If you charge them, they will not do it...
The reason I bring this up is comments in particular... this place will become a ghost town if people lose anything by making comments. Now you might think it doesn't matter to the guys in the 70s like you (and you'd be right), but it sure would matter to every Minnnow and lower that is trying to get posts out and earn some votes. Commenting will be a luxury they will do without and then the site will go backwards for sure!
I think you are right, but only as far as you go. The costs in RC to transact are real and actual, but are worth it. In other words, not only do transactions have a cost, but they add value as well.
A problem I am but dimly perceiving presently is that the RC reckons the costs upfront, but the value is left to the open market to price. There is an assumption that markets are rational, and people that make that assumption are stark, raving mad. Markets are filthy, dirty things where violation is far more common than rational pricing.
Not that I'm competent to suggest anything better than markets, btw. I'm just noting that there is going to be a dichotomy between pricing RCs and the value of the benefits produced by those using the RCs. I'm actually a pretty big fan of markets (but I'm a poor judge of character) as long as there are mechanisms in place to preclude all the dirty violations that reprehensible thieves and scammers undertake.
@andrarchy will feel it right in the wallet if this place becomes a ghost town, make no mistake. No one will feel more pain than whales rolling in Steem if that sad future comes to pass. Perhaps this threat will finally galvanize whales to act to promote the interests of the hoi polloi, rather than reveling in their individual ROIs and their superiority over the little people. Sure, I'm being both unreasonable and unfair to many of them with that little dig, but I reckon them I'm slighting will get my point anyway.
The bare fact is comments are the actual lifesblood of Steem. If good comments aren't adequately rewarded to cause them to be produced, the market for Steem will be diminished. Maybe RC delegations can do something about this. I'm too stupid to parse whether that can happen, but I don't think good comments have been adequately valued as a rule in the past, and this despite some comments being highly valued.
Many of us, myself included, have noted that comments have been the main source of rewards during our rise to minnowhood, and I suspect that this is partly why retention has been challenging, as good comments aren't average, and average people are average, by definition. I think average comments may need more recognition going forward in the new paradigm of RCs, or we'll be relegated to an elitist backwater, bereft of the busy commerce and posts of normal folks.
Don't think we'll like that, if it happens.
Thanks!
I like that you say that "comments are the lifeblood of Steem"... I wish the people in power would accept this argument. I'm not sure they do, but if they did, the problem will get solved.
Everything else will get fixed as soon as they see how fast people stop commenting when they realize it costs them money.
I like you last point the most because for the first time since I've been here I think that this place is the
"elitist backwater, bereft of the busy commerce and posts of normal folks."
I have striven to make it different and to do my best to put in place a middle class, but now I think you have hit the nail on the head with that exact description!
Thank you, it will be a description I will mark down and this is the moment in time that I realized it.
But that will leave the door open for me to shit post the place up if I am the only commenter. Could you imagine the hilarity of me being the only person that responds to peoples posts. Seriously, just think about it. I would have the opportunity to be the only one in the crowd willing to sit out there and yell "you suck and your content smells of cabbage"
This really could bring in the golden age of steemit.
Hahaha, that will never happen, 'cos if it does come that far, you won't be the only one there: I'd be sitting right behind you, cheering with my best cheerleading talents :0)
Fuck it, with no one in the audience I may put on a mini skirt and cheer myself on lol. Glad I have you in my corner. You are a fantastic person and I am very happy I have had the pleasure of meeting you.
you may be the only person to reply when this is said and done... This place will become a ghost town if this tax or usage of RCs means people have to choose between engagement and making money. They will choose to make money like all the others here too.
I say we do as the politicians do and give it an unfavorable name. Henceforth it will be hardfork prima nocta. Basically, that means it is fucking your wife.
lol.... that mind is a precious thing to waste... So I hope you keep it sharp and alert always DDC :)
There has always been a cost for transacting, voting, posting, commenting etc. on the Steem blockchain, but it used to be called bandwidth, and was allocated in a different manner. It used to be impossible for low SP accounts to use the blockchain a lot back when activity was higher, so this is not a new problem that came along with the RCs system.
And if you don't spend your RCs, then they will eventually just be wasted, just like it you waste your voting power. I don't see how this is a problem to be honest. It's not like you will lose money by writing comments or upvoting stuff, because it will not affect your STEEM or Steem Power.
@valth... First of all I remember the days of last January 2018 when all the little peeps couldn't do anything... And while we may be used to it, we are a very small pool of the "then users". Most of those people left. I'm not being dramatic, its just a fact. So making the point that "this is always been so" is not a great argument.
I will say that when it was buried in the bandwidth as a cost, it was helpful in that people didn't know exactly what was wrong and thus gave Steemit a chance to save a few til it settled down. (I was one of those that made it through, but it was a close call as I was going to leave several times). Now on the other hand it is out in the open. Make a comment, lose RCs... Vote a witness, lose RCs... Anything and everything will cost and now it will be out in the open. I'm sure the people that don't particularly care that we have mass adoption, will applaud this "fairness" because "those people" just clogged up the system with spam and junk posts. I have seen the arguments, so no need to rehash because I understand them.
My point is one that should be so intuitive that no one seems to get it. If you bring on lots of new people and then tell them they have to pay *in RC" to comment or vote for a witness; guess what? They won't do those things. And why would they? It costs them to vote or speak their mind, so they will use their precious RCs to do what will make them money.
I don't know if you (or anyone that has an open mind at the top) have considered this, but there is a very powerful NEGATIVE MESSAGE this sends. Come to Steemit a social platform where you can speak or vote for the leaders as long as you have enough money invested. If not, then pay your dues dude. Honestly, I think you will find that most people will say "to Hell with that". I know I would and I would also make sure that everyone understood that their comments and their witness voting and other similar things will cost them the ability to do other things. Is that really a message that you would want people to see when they think of Steemit? Do you really want the users to think that they have to have money invested into the system to be able to make comments and interact (or risk losing the rewards of posting and upvoting others)?
And to your last point, you say that "its not like you will lose money by writing comments or upvoting", because they will in fact lose just that. If it takes away your RCs so you can't upvote or post, which everyone else with enough SP (thus RCs) can do, then you are taking away their money. At least that's the way I understand it, and from what I've seen from the literally hundreds that haven't been able to do anything, it appears that the loss of RCs is loss of the ability to use the system. You have choices to make as a user... Comment and engage or make money... I don't need anyone to tell me what this place will become if this sticks.
You're on a roll, @davemccoy.
You should see me know in my cheerleading outfit: go, Dave, go!!
hahaha... thanks @simplymike! (Honestly I don't think they even know)
ps... yes that will be awesome, I could use a little cheer in my otherwise full-of-bitching-filled day! :)
I see your point, @davemccoy. I also believe that RCs should be a bit "secret", and not something that new users have to deal with when first joining. And I do believe that it will be once things settle down.
It will be interesting to see how the RC cost will be once it has stabilized; obviously transactions are too expensive right now, preventing people with little SP from doing much at all, but from my understanding this high RC cost for transactions is only happening during the initial launch of the new RC system.
Awesome @valth. Its good to see you agree and I think it will be terrific if the RC cost continues to drop. At this point many can now use the system and that is a much better place than we were in, so I'm thrilled we are making progress! Thanks for the very reply and dialog!
Yeah, it's a lot better already, but we still have to get the cost a lot lower before new users can really use the blockchain. I hope we get to this point in under a week, but I don't think anyone really knows how long it will take.
I agree... Its awesome to see you are a voice for this line of logic. It definitely helps ease the tension to know some of the more experienced Steemians get it too! Thanks
sssssshhhh. Don't tell everyone.