Everybody, we welcome Storj.IO, the rapidly developing cloud storage platform again. We believe you still remember these guys since the last update on Storj and you have been waiting for some news. So, we want to share some things with you.
First, we found an interesting article written by Jeremy Epstein, Founder at Never Stop Marketing. In his opinion, downloading our mind to the cloud and having a direct connection to the Internet could be an intelligence game-changer. Together, new issues and challenges arise for the storage and security of our brain’s data. The author hopes that all the data will get stored on a decentralized cloud like Storj or the Permaweb. Furthermore, the author asks himself if we all want out brain waves, thoughts, meta-neuro data stored on Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud? What if those data centers, holding your brain functions, are hacked and then sold on the Dark Web? So we agree with him. The truth of the matter is, the centralized clouds (Amazon, Google) are fraught with hacking attacks. So it seems irrational to use them.
Second, we observed a few comments on Reddit related to the number of rewards. User, ‘u/Spacesider’, wrote that he had received a payout of 0.00039999 STORJ for the last 30 days. At 15 cents per token that’s a whopping $0.0000879978. In his opinion, that is not quite worth it. Furthermore, user ‘u/adanufgail’ wrote that he got about 89 STORJ. According to him, it’s based on several points: how much data node stores; how much uptime the machine has; how much of the stored data is accessed. We believe that Spacesider will solve the problem with his payout. Anyway, since the Storj network is still undeveloped, all the nodes get a small size of rewards. With the development of the project and the user number rising, the nodes will get enough payouts.
Third, Storj Labs announced that Katherine Johnson has joined the company as its Vice President of Compliance and Human Resources. Katherine will oversee both departments, as well as serving as General Counsel, managing the company’s day-to-day legal efforts. Johnson has a long tenure of working in compliance, including her time at the digital currency platform Coinbase. Her experience will be critical for Storj Labs as it launches the first enterprise-ready decentralized cloud storage platform later this year and navigates the evolving regulatory landscape. Johnson previously joined the Storj Labs advisory board in February of 2019 and will remain as an advisor, where her background and experience can inform board-level decisions.
To conclude, we appreciate Storj for a work well done. Storj is creating this business from nothing, brick by brick until it will be the most extensive cloud storage in the world.
Development
GitHub metrics:
Developer activity (from Coinlib.io):
Development Update 29
- Finished implementing the initial version of the SNO Dashboard, it will be released soon, so be on the lookout for an announcement.
- Enhanced the data repair process to utilize hashes. This improvement will validate whether the pieces are correct so downloading fewer pieces from SNOs is available when performing repairs on the network.
- Created another auditor on the Satellite that more evenly audits storage nodes, instead of auditing them based on how much data they have. This is going to ensure nodes are vetted in a timely manner when they join the network.
- Made some enhancements on the Satellite user interface to improve the users’ experiences.
Social encounters
Upcoming events:
- OpenCoreSummit — 19/20 September
- Q3 2019 Storj Labs Town Hall — Sep 24, 2019 01:00 PM EST
Storj Labs invites you to join its next town hall on September 24, 2019. During this meeting, Storj Labs leaders will share updates on the Pioneer 1 Beta; Pioneer 2 Beta and Production launch gates; upcoming events; storage node operator recruitment, and other announcements from the business development, marketing, and engineering teams.
If you have questions for Storj that you would like answered during the town hall, please send them to ask@storj.io.
Roadmap
- Explorer: Public Alpha for Storage Node Operators — Q1 2019 — DONE
Release Description: The public alpha for storage node operators will be the third major V3 network release. This release will allow people to download the storage node software and start sharing hard drive space on the V3 network. Initially, Storj will be gating the onboarding of new storage node operators based on the current wait list to maximize initial network stability.
With this release, Storj will begin to build the supply side of the V3 network. Throughout this phase of the alpha, the team will be up- and downloading data to test the performance, stability, and durability of the files stored on the network. The development team will be paying storage node operators for storage space and bandwidth utilized during this testing as if the company was operating the production network. Specific details on payments and earnings for storage node operators will be shared in the coming weeks.
From the start, storage node operators will begin to build reputation scores that will determine how much data they are given to store and how much bandwidth allocation they receive. Watch for more blog posts on the details behind reputation, payout calculations, and what it takes to be a successful storage node operator on V3.
Success criteria: The community is able to run storage nodes that store and deliver data, be compensated for storage and bandwidth utilization they provide to the network, and build a reputation for their storage nodes. Storj is able to build a supply of long-term, reliable and available storage nodes, as well as validate the assumptions around reputation and incentives.
- Vanguard: Public Alpha for Storage Uplink Clients — Q1/Q2 2019 — Ongoing
Release Description: This public alpha for users interested in storing data on the V3 network will be the fourth major release. This release will allow developers to register for accounts on Satellites, create API credentials, and develop applications that use the Storj V3 network as their storage layer. Developers will be able to use the CLI, S3 gateway, and Libuplink developer library. Storj will also provide Ditto, a simple service that will mirror data on two different S3 compatible data stores.
Developers will be able to store and retrieve data from the storage node operators, although there will be caps on network utilization. One key factor for developers is that during the alpha releases, Storj may perform periodic data wipes as part of the release process. During the alpha releases, no important data should be stored on the V3 network, unless safe backup copies exist elsewhere.
During this public alpha, Storj will be able to test the performance and stability of the network. Developers will be measuring key performance indicators such as node uptime, node churn, file repair, and file durability. While developers will not be charged for data uploaded and retrieved during this alpha (within the previously mentioned cap), storage node operators will continue to be compensated.
Success criteria: The developer community is able to store and retrieve data on the V3 network. Storage node operators are able to build a reputation and earn STORJ tokens for contributing storage space and bandwidth to the network. Storj Labs is able to test payment services and continue to monitor performance, availability, and durability.
- Pioneer: Beta Release — Testing Billing and Payments — Q2/Q3 2019
Release Description: The beta release for testing billing and payments will be the last major release before the production launch of the V3 network. With the beta release, the V3 network will be feature-complete for the initial concrete implementation specified in the V3 white paper.
During the beta release, Storj expect developers to build and test applications in advance of the production release. Storj will continue to build a supply of long-term reliable and available storage nodes. The team will continue to monitor and test billing and payment services, and continue to assess performance, availability, and durability. The beta release will continue for several billing cycles until the network achieves the availability and durability benchmark performance metrics established for the production network. At the end of the beta release, developers should expect the possibility of a final network reset that will wipe all test data.
Success criteria: The network is operational and payment and billing testing has been completed. The network is feature complete for reliable storage and retrieval of data.
- Voyager: Production Release — Q3 2019
Release Description: The production release will mark the transition of the V3 network to a paid service backed by SLAs for availability and durability.
Success criteria: The network achieves and maintains the availability and durability benchmark performance metrics established for the production network.
Partnerships and team members
On September 17, Storj Labs announced that Katherine Johnson has joined the company as its Vice President of Compliance and Human Resources. Katherine will oversee both departments, as well as serving as General Counsel, managing the company’s day-to-day legal efforts. Johnson’s long tenure of working in compliance, including her time at digital currency platform Coinbase, will be critical for Storj Labs as it launches the first enterprise-ready decentralized cloud storage platform later this year and navigates the evolving regulatory landscape.
Johnson previously joined the Storj Labs advisory board in February of 2019, and will remain as an advisor, where her background and experience can inform board-level decisions.
“We’re thrilled to have Katherine join our team and oversee several important parts of our business. She’s been a huge contributor to the company since joining our advisory board in February, and we look forward to utilizing her skillset as Storj Labs grows its business and the regulatory landscape matures,” said Ben Golub, executive chairman, and interim CEO at Storj Labs. “The world of digital assets is quickly progressing, and Katherine has been at the center of the conversation since nearly its beginning, making her perfectly suited for the role — especially as Storj Labs continues its effort of being a leader in token governance.”
Rumors
Downloading your brain to the cloud and having a direct connection to the Internet could be an intelligence game-changer. Simultaneously, new questions and challenges arise for the storage and security of your brain’s data. Author hopes that all the data will get stored on a decentralized cloud like Storj or the Permaweb. Furthermore, the author asks himself if we all want out brain waves, thoughts, meta-neuro data stored on Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud? What if those data centers, holding your brain functions, are hacked and then sold on the Dark Web?
Social media metrics
Social media activity:
The graph above shows the dynamics of changes in the number of Twitter followers. The information is taken from Coingecko.com.
