Node Application 10567093945, submitted 2019-03-03 11:52:29

Respondent Id 10567093945
Application Date 2019-03-03 11:52:29
Application Language English
Applicant City Frisco
Applicant State/Province TX
Applicant Country United States
What languages do you speak? English, Spanish, Portuguese (Basic)
What is your occupation? Digital Marketing Director with BSEE background
How many years experience in your field? 16+
What is the highest degree or level of school you have completed? Master’s degree (for example: MA, MS, MEng, MEd, MSW, MBA)
Please describe your experience in the Crypto/Blockchain space, if any? I was first exposed to Crypto in 2013 and although I saw its potential, never thought it would be the game changer that is has been so far. I invested a small ammount then and have been watching it grow. Through some hard forks I came to research further and found Ethereum and better understood the potential of a decentralized system. Since 2013 I have been trading Crypto as a side endeavor to my main professional activities as Senior Marketing Director for a Healthcare Company. Since I am pretty vocal about my optimism about the space, I have been christened the "blockchain expert" within our company and have given some presentations at the CXO level to help leadership prepare for potential changes to come.
Are you an individual or a group? Individual
Node City Frisco
Node State TX
Node Country United States
For which networks Have you ever operated a node? I have never operated a node.
What kind of improvements would you like to see in Elixxir nodes vs. previous the previous nodes you have supported? I have never supported other nodes.
What are potential setbacks preventing you from operating an Elixxir node? none.
What is a reasonable maximum connection speed on which you could operate a BetaNet node in your geographic region? (Where 0 = 10 Megabits/second, and 100 = 10 Gigabits/second) 100
What is a reasonable uptime estimate you can provide for your BetaNet node? (As a percentage) 91
Please estimate the cost of electricity in the geographic area where your BetaNet node will be running. . $0.09 / KWh
On a monthly basis, how much time can you publicly commit to dedicating toward governance if you were selected as a BetaNet node operator? (Where 0 = 1 hour/month, and 100 = 20 hours/month) 40
If you were selected to run a BetaNet node, would it run on your own hardware or be deployed to cloud-based servers? Both
In what type of environment would this server be located? Personal Home
Do you have past experience deploying hardware servers in a datacenter? No
Do you already own sufficient hardware to meet the published Elixxir BetaNet node specifications? No
Yes (Please list specs)
Do you have hardware you would like to use but does not meet the stated BetaNet node specs? If so, please provide specs on that hardware below:
Do you have past experience deploying servers to cloud-based services? Yes (please specify)
Yes (please specify) Have deployed servers to both Azure and AWS for personal use but not for any Crypto related endeavor.
Why do you want to be a node? - Possibility of starting at ground 0 with an innovative proposal - Financial compensation - Engaging deeper in the Crypto Space - Using my tech knowledge
How did you originally hear about Elixxir? Twitter
Which current Elixxir communities are you a member of? Twitter
Are you an active member of those communities? No
What specifically, interests you about the Elixxir platform? It is a re-imagining of the original concept after seeing what works and what doesn't. In a sense it is an enhanced iteration on the existing framework. I see it as a potential Facebook to Myspace relationship.
Outside of Elixxir communities, are you an active participant in other node or developer community groups? If so, which ones? Nope. Just a somewhat quiet participant in the Crypto Trading space.
Have you ever attended a blockchain conference? If so, which one(s)? Nope. I was slated to go to a Healthcare blockchain conference in January in SF and it got cancelled.
As part of growing the Elixxir community, are you willing to create content as part of operating an Elixxir BetaNet node? Examples would be node setup & on-boarding review vlog post, bi-weekly twitter update, medium review of on-going node operational process, etc. Yes (how much content on a monthly basis?)
If yes, how much content on a monthly basis? 1 update a week
What is the difference between decentralized networks and distributed networks, and where on the decentralization spectrum do you sit? Decentralized refers to control and distributed refers to location. A decentralized and distributed network has independent "nodes" across the network making control decisions based on agreed upon rules. I am conceptually agnostic, it is in the implementation where things can go wrong. One of the promises of Bitcoin (decentralized and distributed) is that no main entity can/should control the network. This argument typically places "Big Finance" as the oppressors and gatekeepers of the flow of money, with the ability to charge hefty fees. As long as edge case scenarios are taken into account and addressed in the implementation, I am not concerned with purist ideals.
As best as you can given currently available information, please describe the value proposition of the Elixxir platform and how it differs from other current blockchain solutions. As I understand it, it provides for real scale. It is a viable cryptographic solution for real life transaction volumes that maintains the core benefits of a distributed and decentralized network.
Privacy by Default is a goal of the Elixxir Platform. In your opinion, why is Privacy by Default critical for the future of the internet? The Ad Supported model has created the wrong incentives. Fake news, tribalism and divisive activity are the result of attention optimizing algorithms. The individual should have control of their data and gain value from it. Here I am not as agnostic. Here I align more with Tim Berners-Lee's work on Inrupt:Solid. Even in a world where there is decentralization and distributed control, if the activity is not protected (privacy) the "gatekeepers" can still effect the same level of control through regulation that they currently effect through $.
Tags Individual, United States, English
1 Like

I like that this applicant describes their experience advocating for blockchain solutions in their day job… how important should considerations like this be for our BetaNet?