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> the crypto tech cycle was one of the stupidest things Same was said for the user-generated content that lived in the community forums on the fringes of the w

> the crypto tech cycle was one of the stupidest things Same was said for the user-generated content that lived in the community forums on the fringes of the web back in 2000s. Big sites and 6-figure columnists even suggested that these were 'littering' the Internet. 15 years later, content is user-generated, and now there is even something that is called the 'creator economy'. And even those 6-figure, out-of-touch elite columnists who derided it are jumping on the bandwagon. ... Crypto is a technology. It does things. We observe that it is able to do things and it works. Its just missing a widescale use-case. The moment someone finds that use-case, it will explode like how the actual web exploded back then. Solely the DAO concept is revolutionary by itself, enabling large-scale, democratic economic organization for the masses, which was not possible or difficult and totally non-transparent before. That a few people here and there used it for dumb reasons or failed in accomplishing various objectives like buying the constitution etc does not change what potential DAOs provide. Of course, there is also the problem of crypto space and all the features and applications within them being WAY too out of the average user's league in terms of user friendliness. Just like how it required knowing what a 'forum' was, knowing how to 'register', and then even knowing the right people who could refer you to the forum so that the administration would approve your membership back in early 2000s.

JohnFen 4y ago
> The moment someone finds that use-case, it will explode True, but it's entirely possible that such a use case will never materialize. People haven't even been able think of plausible theoretical ones except in niche applications. That's not to say none are possible, but they're hiding pretty well. My personal hypothesis is that the interesting tech in crypto will eventually find a real, solid use -- but it won't be one resembling what anyone thinks, and won't be sexy.
- unity1001 4y ago
  > True, but it's entirely possible that such a use case will never materialize Hard disagree. DAOs already exist, for example, and they are widely used even if the phenomenon is unknown to who doesnt have an interest in it or who is not technical enough. They are still way too technical for the average user, and even solely this use case could easily explode the moment everything is simplified and presented to the users with an intuitive and easy to use interface by a new service. A lot also depends on the infrastructure improving - IPFS is great, for example. But its not as fast as a server, forcing you to store very little data using it. For the moment, any use case that will involve IPFS must fit into those narrow confines. Actually, same goes for most of crypto - Ethereum is a framework that you can literally, actually program on. But you wont be compiling any complex modern app code and serving it from there. One reason why the use cases still revolve around financial things, NFTs and other things that are built on the ledger functionality. > but it won't be one resembling what anyone thinks That's entirely possible. > and won't be sexy. And that totally depends. Anything that gets mass adoption ends up 'sexy'...
  - simonw 4y ago
    Do you have any examples of DAOs that are doing something interesting that goes beyond just voting on re-allocation of tokens (or having their tokens stolen)? To be honest even an example of a DAO that only votes on token allocations but has spent them on something more useful than a book about Dune would be interesting.
    - zoklet-enjoyer 4y ago
      I know someone who works for a DAO full time doing customer service for a blockchain
    - intotheabyss 4y ago
      Look at MakerDAO. It's the longest running DAO in history.
      - simonw 4y ago
        From their website it looks like they write code for blockchain related things and maintain a stablecoin. Are there any DAOs that do something that's NOT entirely about crypto things?
        unity1001 4y ago
        > Are there any DAOs that do something that's NOT entirely about crypto things? That will be difficult until crypto is improved to have the user friendliness to allow non-crypto-savvy people to use crypto services. Even the very act of 'getting a wallet' is a high bar to entry for the majority of the population, leaving aside 'connecting it to something' then using the still-complex crypto features like DAOs.
  - JohnFen 4y ago
    > DAOs already exist They're also a pretty niche application. And I'm not convinced they're something that requires blockchain to accomplish anyway. > Anything that gets mass adoption ends up 'sexy' Not if it ends up being an invisible piece of machinery, which I think is the most likely result. Different bits of the more interesting tech will get incorporated into larger systems to support their goals. The larger systems may (or may not) be sexy, but the bits of crypto they incorporate will just be background players to that. But then, the surest way to be wrong is to predict the future. Who knows what will really happen?

JohnFen 4y ago

> The moment someone finds that use-case, it will explode True, but it's entirely possible that such a use case will never materialize. People haven't even been able think of plausible theoretical ones except in niche applications. That's not to say none are possible, but they're hiding pretty well. My personal hypothesis is that the interesting tech in crypto will eventually find a real, solid use -- but it won't be one resembling what anyone thinks, and won't be sexy.

unity1001 4y ago
> True, but it's entirely possible that such a use case will never materialize Hard disagree. DAOs already exist, for example, and they are widely used even if the phenomenon is unknown to who doesnt have an interest in it or who is not technical enough. They are still way too technical for the average user, and even solely this use case could easily explode the moment everything is simplified and presented to the users with an intuitive and easy to use interface by a new service. A lot also depends on the infrastructure improving - IPFS is great, for example. But its not as fast as a server, forcing you to store very little data using it. For the moment, any use case that will involve IPFS must fit into those narrow confines. Actually, same goes for most of crypto - Ethereum is a framework that you can literally, actually program on. But you wont be compiling any complex modern app code and serving it from there. One reason why the use cases still revolve around financial things, NFTs and other things that are built on the ledger functionality. > but it won't be one resembling what anyone thinks That's entirely possible. > and won't be sexy. And that totally depends. Anything that gets mass adoption ends up 'sexy'...
- simonw 4y ago
  Do you have any examples of DAOs that are doing something interesting that goes beyond just voting on re-allocation of tokens (or having their tokens stolen)? To be honest even an example of a DAO that only votes on token allocations but has spent them on something more useful than a book about Dune would be interesting.
  - zoklet-enjoyer 4y ago
    I know someone who works for a DAO full time doing customer service for a blockchain
  - intotheabyss 4y ago
    Look at MakerDAO. It's the longest running DAO in history.
    - simonw 4y ago
      From their website it looks like they write code for blockchain related things and maintain a stablecoin. Are there any DAOs that do something that's NOT entirely about crypto things?
      - unity1001 4y ago
        > Are there any DAOs that do something that's NOT entirely about crypto things? That will be difficult until crypto is improved to have the user friendliness to allow non-crypto-savvy people to use crypto services. Even the very act of 'getting a wallet' is a high bar to entry for the majority of the population, leaving aside 'connecting it to something' then using the still-complex crypto features like DAOs.
- JohnFen 4y ago
  > DAOs already exist They're also a pretty niche application. And I'm not convinced they're something that requires blockchain to accomplish anyway. > Anything that gets mass adoption ends up 'sexy' Not if it ends up being an invisible piece of machinery, which I think is the most likely result. Different bits of the more interesting tech will get incorporated into larger systems to support their goals. The larger systems may (or may not) be sexy, but the bits of crypto they incorporate will just be background players to that. But then, the surest way to be wrong is to predict the future. Who knows what will really happen?