Planned

planned

The Dance of Life by Havelock Ellis is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. You can jump to any chapter in this book here . Preface PREFACE This book was planned many years ago. As to the idea running through it, I cannot say when that arose. My feeling is, it was born with me. On reflection, indeed, it seems possible the seeds fell imperceptibly in youth—from F. A. Lange, maybe, and other sources—to germinate unseen in a congenial soil. However that may be, the idea underlies much that I have written. Even the present book began to be written, and to be published in a preliminary form, more than fifteen years ago. Perhaps I may be allowed to seek consolation for my slowness, however vainly, in the saying of Rodin that “slowness is beauty,” and certainly it is the slowest dances that have been to me most beautiful to see, while, in the dance of life, the achievement of a civilisation in beauty seems to be inversely to the rapidity of its pace. Moreover, the book remains incomplete, not merely in the sense that I would desire still to be changing and adding to each chapter, but even incomplete by the absence of many chapters for which I had gathered material, and twenty years ago should have been surprised to find missing. For there are many arts, not among those we conventionally call “fine,” which seem to me fundamental for living. But now I put forth the book vias it stands, deliberately, without remorse, well content so to do. Once that would not have been possible. A book must be completed as it had been originally planned, finished, rounded, polished. As a man grows older his ideals change. Thoroughness is often an admirable ideal. But it is an ideal to be adopted with discrimination, having due reference to the nature of the work in hand. An artist, it seems to me now, has not always to finish his work in every detail; by not doing so he may succeed in making the spectator his co-worker, and put into his hands the tool to carry on the work which, as it lies before him, beneath its veil of yet partly unworked material, still stretches into infinity. Where there is most labour there is not always most life, and by doing less, provided only he has known how to do well, the artist may achieve more. He will not, I hope, achieve complete consistency. In fact a part of the method of such a book as this, written over a long period of years, is to reveal a continual slight inconsistency. That is not an evil, but rather the avoidance of an evil. We cannot remain consistent with the world save by growing inconsistent with our own past selves. The man who consistently—as he fondly supposes “logically”—clings to an unchanging opinion is suspended from a hook which has ceased to exist. “I thought it was she, and she thought it was me, and when we come near it weren’t neither one of us”—that metaphysical statement holds, with viia touch of exaggeration, a truth we must always bear in mind concerning the relation of subject and object. They can neither of them possess consistency; they have both changed before they come up with one another. Not that such inconsistency is a random flux or a shallow opportunism. We change, and the world changes, in accordance with the underlying organisation, and inconsistency, so conditioned by truth to the whole, becomes the higher consistency of life. I am therefore able to recognise and accept the fact that, again and again in this book, I have come up against what, superficially regarded, seemed to be the same fact, and each time have brought back a slightly different report, for it had changed and I had changed. The world is various, of infinite iridescent aspect, and until I attain to a correspondingly infinite variety of statement I remain far from anything that could in any sense be described as “truth.” We only see a great opal that never looks the same this time as when we looked last time. “He never painted to-day quite the same as he had painted yesterday,” Elie Faure says of Renoir, and it seems to me natural and right that it should have been so. I have never seen the same world twice. That, indeed, is but to repeat the Heraclitean saying—an imperfect saying, for it is only the half of the larger, more modern synthesis I have already quoted—that no man bathes twice in the same stream. Yet—and this opposing fact is fully as significant—we really have to accept a continuous stream viiias constituted in our minds; it flows in the same direction; it coheres in what is more or less the same shape. Much the same may be said of the ever-changing bather whom the stream receives. So that, after all, there is not only variety, but also unity. The diversity of the Many is balanced by the stability of the One. That is why life must always be a dance, for that is what a dance is: perpetual slightly varied movements which are yet always held true to the shape of the whole. We verge on philosophy. The whole of this book is on the threshold of philosophy. I hasten to add that it remains there. No dogmas are here set forth to claim any general validity. Not that even the technical philosopher always cares to make that claim. Mr. F. H. Bradley, one of the most influential of modern English philosophers, who wrote at the outset of his career, “On all questions, if you push me far enough, at present I end in doubts and perplexities,” still says, forty years later, that if asked to define his principles rigidly, “I become puzzled.” For even a cheese-mite, one imagines, could only with difficulty attain an adequate metaphysical conception of a cheese, and how much more difficult the task is for Man, whose everyday intelligence seems to move on a plane so much like that of a cheese-mite and yet has so vastly more complex a web of phenomena to synthetise. It is clear how hesitant and tentative must be the attitude of one who, having found his life-work elsewhere ixthan in the field of technical philosophy, may incidentally feel the need, even if only playfully, to speculate concerning his function and place in the universe. Such speculation is merely the instinctive impulse of the ordinary person to seek the wider implications bound up with his own little activities. It is philosophy only in the simple sense in which the Greeks understood philosophy, merely a philosophy of life, of one’s own life, in the wide world. The technical philosopher does something quite different when he passes over the threshold and shuts himself up in his study— “Veux-tu découvrir le monde,Ferme tes yeux, Rosemonde”— and emerges with great tomes that are hard to buy, hard to read, and, let us be sure, hard to write. But of Socrates, as of the English philosopher Falstaff, we are not told that he wrote anything. So that if it may seem to some that this book reveals the expansive influence of that great classico-mathematical Renaissance in which it is our high privilege to live, and that they find here “relativity” applied to life, I am not so sure. It sometimes seems to me that, in the first place, we, the common herd, mould the great movements of our age, and only in the second place do they mould us. I think it was so even in the great earlier classico-mathematical Renaissance. We associate it with Descartes. But Descartes could have effected nothing if an innumerable crowd in many fields had not created the atmosphere by which he was enabled xto breathe the breath of life. We may here profitably bear in mind all that Spengler has shown concerning the unity of spirit underlying the most diverse elements in an age’s productivity. Roger Bacon had in him the genius to create such a Renaissance three centuries earlier; there was no atmosphere for him to live in and he was stifled. But Malherbe, who worshipped Number and Measure as devoutly as Descartes, was born half a century before him. That silent, colossal, ferocious Norman—vividly brought before us by Tallement des Réaux, to whom, rather than to Saint-Simon, we owe the real picture of seventeenth-century France—was possessed by the genius of destruction, for he had the natural instinct of the Viking, and he swept all the lovely Romantic spirit of old France so completely away that it has scarcely ever revived since until the days of Verlaine. But he had the Norman classico-mathematical architectonic spirit—he might have said, like Descartes, as truly as it ever can be said in literature, Omnia apud me mathematica fiunt—and he introduced into the world a new rule of Order. Given a Malherbe, a Descartes could hardly fail to follow, a French Academy must come into existence almost at the same time as the “Discours de la Méthode,” and Le Nôtre must already be drawing the geometrical designs of the gardens of Versailles. Descartes, it should be remembered, could not have worked without support; he was a man of timid and yielding character, though he had once been a soldier, not of the xiheroic temper of Roger Bacon. If Descartes could have been put back into Roger Bacon’s place, he would have thought many of Bacon’s thoughts. But we should never have known it. He nervously burnt one of his works when he heard of Galileo’s condemnation, and it was fortunate that the Church was slow to recognise how terrible a Bolshevist had entered the spiritual world with this man, and never realised that his books must be placed on the Index until he was already dead. So it is to-day. We, too, witness a classico-mathematical Renaissance. It is bringing us a new vision of the universe, but also a new vision of human life. That is why it is necessary to insist upon life as a dance. This is not a mere metaphor. The dance is the rule of number and of rhythm and of measure and of order, of the controlling influence of form, of the subordination of the parts to the whole. That is what a dance is. And these same properties also make up the classic spirit, not only in life, but, still more clearly and definitely, in the universe itself. We are strictly correct when we regard not only life but the universe as a dance. For the universe is made up of a certain number of elements, less than a hundred, and the “periodic law” of these elements is metrical. They are ranged, that is to say, not haphazard, not in groups, but by number, and those of like quality appear at fixed and regular intervals. Thus our world is, even fundamentally, a dance, a single metrical stanza in a poem which will be for ever xiihidden from us, except in so far as the philosophers, who are to-day even here applying the methods of mathematics, may believe that they have imparted to it the character of objective knowledge. I call this movement of to-day, as that of the seventeenth century, classico-mathematical. And I regard the dance (without prejudice to a distinction made later in this volume) as essentially its symbol. This is not to belittle the Romantic elements of the world, which are equally of its essence. But the vast exuberant energies and immeasurable possibilities of the first day may perhaps be best estimated when we have reached their final outcome on the sixth day of creation. However that may be, the analogy of the two historical periods in question remains, and I believe that we may consider it holds good to the extent that the strictly mathematical elements of the later period are not the earliest to appear, but that we are in the presence of a process that has been in subtle movement in many fields for half a century. If it is significant that Descartes appeared a few years after Malherbe, it is equally significant that Einstein was immediately preceded by the Russian ballet. We gaze in admiration at the artist who sits at the organ, but we have been blowing the bellows; and the great performer’s music would have been inaudible had it not been for us. This is the spirit in which I have written. We are all engaged—not merely one or two prominent persons xiiihere and there—in creating the spiritual world. I have never written but with the thought that the reader, even though he may not know it, is already on my side. Only so could I write with that sincerity and simplicity without which it would not seem to me worth while to write at all. That may be seen in the saying which I set on the forefront of my earliest book, “The New Spirit”: he who carries farthest his most intimate feelings is simply the first in file of a great number of other men, and one becomes typical by being to the utmost degree one’s self. That saying I chose with much deliberation and complete conviction because it went to the root of my book. On the surface it obviously referred to the great figures I was there concerned with, representing what I regarded—by no means in the poor sense of mere modernity—as the New Spirit in life. They had all gone to the depths of their own souls and thence brought to the surface and expressed—audaciously or beautifully, pungently or poignantly—intimate impulses and emotions which, shocking as they may have seemed at the time, are now seen to be those of an innumerable company of their fellow men and women. But it was also a book of personal affirmations. Beneath the obvious meaning of that motto on the title-page lay the more private meaning that I was myself setting forth secret impulses which might some day be found to express the emotions also of others. In the thirty-five years that have since passed, the saying has often recurred to my mind, and if I have sought in xivvain to make it mine I find no adequate justification for the work of my life. And now, as I said at the outset, I am even prepared to think that that is the function of all books that are real books. There are other classes of so-called books: there is the class of history books and the class of forensic books, that is to say, the books of facts and the books of argument. No one would wish to belittle either kind. But when we think of a book proper, in the sense that a Bible means a book, we mean more than this. We mean, that is to say, a revelation of something that had remained latent, unconscious, perhaps even more or less intentionally repressed, within the writer’s own soul, which is, ultimately, the soul of mankind. These books are apt to repel; nothing, indeed, is so likely to shock us at first as the manifest revelation of ourselves. Therefore, such books may have to knock again and again at the closed door of our hearts. “Who is there?” we carelessly cry, and we cannot open the door; we bid the importunate stranger, whatever he may be, to go away; until, as in the apologue of the Persian mystic, at last we seem to hear the voice outside saying: “It is thyself.” H. E. About HackerNoon Book Series: We bring you the most important technical, scientific, and insightful public domain books. This book is part of the public domain. Havelock Ellis (2019). The Dance of Life. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved October 2022 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/59214/pg59214-images.html This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org , located at https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html.

This book was planned many years ago

Previous chapter - The Last 3 Days (09): Hope Smells Like Bacon. All published chapters can be found here. 46:38:44 No sooner had Don shut the front door when Anne called from the kitchen. “Nick?” “Just me,” Don answered, as his wife appeared in the kitchen passage. “Did you find him?” “I haven’t even had a chance to start.” “What?” Asked Anne. “Then why are you here? You need to find him. Before it’s too late.” 46:31:27 A ragged figure, bearded and clad in worn desert camouflage, materialized from the scrub, the carcass of a young deer slung across his shoulders. The fresh blood staining his combat jacket might well have been his own, so scarred and ravaged was the left side of his face. Multiple combat tours in Afghanistan had gifted Tomas other traumas less obvious than his facial wound but far more damaging. He had no need of a mirror to remind him of his injury — he saw the shock and fear of those who looked at him and he could imagine the revulsion they felt. It seemed best for everyone if he removed himself to live in this isolated corner of the world. Tomas dropped his right shoulder and let his rifle strap slide down his arm, catching it in his hand. He rested the weapon against the soddy’s wall and moved around to the side. Lifting the deer from his shoulders, he lowered it to the ground and tied the hind legs together with twine from a rack made of saplings. Once the carcass was hung, he set a bucket under it and pulled an intimidating — and well used — combat knife from a scabbard on his belt and slit the animal’s throat. Satisfied, he wiped his hands on his pants, collected the rifle and headed inside. Above the door were two hooks spaced to accommodate the weapon. It needed cleaning but he was hungry, so he raised it to its proper place. Moving to the table, he lifted the pitcher to drink. It was empty. As was the linen bag. Less than a minute later, Tomas cradled his weapon in his elbow and studied the ground. For him, picking out the broken grass left by Nick’s shuffling gait was little more than instinct. 46:15:57 Peter Thurro had finished copying the names, addresses and phone numbers of his employees to the statement form and was watching television when Don walked past him to his own desk. Don logged in to the Police Resource Database, reclining in his chair to wait for the animated icon to grant him access. “I’m finished, Officer,” Thurro said, and placed the forms on the desk. “Great. I’ll be with you in a moment.” He carefully typed Jay’s full name with one finger, then hit Search. While he waited for the database to return results, he tugged Thurro’s statement closer and began to read. “Ryan Bellows? Why do I know that name?” He continued reading, turning the page when he reached the bottom, but the computer chimed and distracted him. At the top of the employee list of names and addresses was ‘Jay Taylor’. The database contained nothing Don didn’t already know. Sighing, he returned his attention to the statement — and chuckled. “Mysterious ways, indeed.” Next to Jay’s name was an address and phone number. Don stood and shook Thurro’s hand. “Excellent statement, Mr. Thurro,” Don added. “I’ll start interviewing your employees immediately. Please let yourself out.” Don picked up the page of names and left. 45:21:43 What had been scrub grass became bush often taller than Nick. Though cooler with the shade it provided, it also forced Nick to stop sporadically and check the position of the sun. It wasn’t much help now as it was directly overhead, so he tried choosing the tallest vegetation in sight and walking to it. This was a short-lived strategy, because as the bushes and small trees rose in height, so too did they crowd together until one thicket looked like the next. When he stopped to take his next bearing, he heard movement in the bush behind him. 45:01:54 Anne sat on the sofa in front of the TV, but ignored it as she repeatedly dialled Nick’s phone and let it ring through to his messages. On screen, the news anchor had hit his stride. He had never looked so competent, so dedicated. He didn’t need the teleprompter now. He knew his stuff. “And so the mystery surrounding the asteroid Benevolence B7438 and the fate of Noah Hoag, the student who discovered it, continues to deepen.“ 44:53:21 Jay climbed out of the cab outside his home a new man. Wearing a new dress shirt and chinos, his hair was freshly cut. He used his foot to close the door of the cab, careful not to soil his new lace-ups, because his hands were full of shopping bags. There was nothing he could do when his arms were grasped from behind. Ryan stepped in front of him. “New threads for a new job.” He reached out and ruffled Jay’s hair. “And a haircut. Nice. Waste of money, though.” “What do you want, Ryan?” Ryan leaned in. “Payback,” he said, and laughed. “Surely you didn’t think ratting me out would go unpunished?” Jay laughed back. “You take fifteen percent of our wages and then blame us for not submitting.” Shrugging, Ryan said, “I take what I want.” A strange voice interrupted. “And I stop people like you.” Don stood several paces away, gun drawn. “Over here, Jay,” he ordered. “The rest of you, on your knees, hands on your heads.” Dave and Steve released Jay’s arms and knelt beside Bobby. Ryan looked ready to run, until Don cocked his weapon. Keeping out of reach, Don circled to stop in front of Ryan. “You’re a classic bully, aren’t you, Ryan? It is Ryan, right? I pulled you over yesterday before you could hit your girl. Get on your knees.” Scowling, Ryan took his time to kneel beside the others, but Don wouldn’t bite. Only when he had settled did Don look at Jay. “Go stash your bags, son, then come back. We need to talk. Quickly, now.” Nodding, Jay moved off to obey. Don closed the distance to the kneeling Ryan — who stared back, hatred plain on his face. Don just smiled. “See yourself as a real gangster, do you, Ryan, extorting and beating women? Very macho. Until you’re behind bars. A pretty boy like you would learn very quickly you’re more sex toy than gangster.” Moving down the line, he addressed the other three. “On any other day, I would gladly let you spend the weekend in jail. That’s not an option at the moment.” Jay exited the apartment block. “So what are the options?” He continued. “I can either let you go. Or just shoot you.” That got the reaction he wanted. “Not to kill, mind,” Don added, “just to ruin what could be the last weekend of your lives.” Taking two steps back, Don glanced at Jay. “Get in the car, son.” Instead, Jay stopped, his head cocked. He turned back. Don heard it then. Nick’s ringtone. Ryan and his friends forgotten, Don instinctively rushed towards the sound, and his son. Jay was retrieving something from the flower bed. Behind them, Ryan hit Bobby’s arm as he pushed himself up and bolted. One after another, the others followed. Jay held out the ringing phone. Don briefly debated between the phone and the running men. He answered. “Hello? … No. Anne. It’s me. We found Nick’s phone … Only because we heard it ring … No, Anne, it doesn’t mean anything … No … Yes … I don’t know … Bye.” Don followed Jay to the patrol car, waited while Jay got in. Then he circled Ryan’s car and shot all four tires before he climbed into the cruiser and pulled away. 43:44:17 Nick moved faster now, jogging where he could, careless of direction except to track away from the source of whatever was behind him. Out of breath, he stopped and listened. Silence. Relaxing, he checked the sun again and pushed through a thicket. Before him stood a monster in bloody camouflage, holding a rifle. It was too much. Fear and stress and heat stroke overwhelmed him. Nick fainted. 43:35:23 Don slowed as he encountered pedestrian traffic in his path, changing lanes to avoid the stragglers of a vast, unorganized crowd coalescing in a park whose pathways and flower beds wound between war memorials and a veteran’s monument. He couldn’t help smiling as he caught sight of the pastor perched on the monument’s plinth and reading from his Bible. As he accelerated once again, Jay said, “Thanks for saving me.” “You’re welcome. When did you last talk to Nick?” “Last night. He called to ask if he could sleep on my sofa.” Don looked over as he asked, “Where was he when he called?” Without hesitation, Jay said, “Waiting outside my apartment block.” “Damn. Where else would he go?” It looked like most summer Saturdays on the streets they passed, except less purposeful. People seemed to move more slowly than usual, as if under a collective drowsiness, though few were without food or a drink in their hands. Jay flipped open Nick’s phone and scanned the call history. “His last call was to me. Should I check his texts?” “So he should have been there,” Don said, his attention on turning onto a side street. “Sure,” he said, after a moment. “Good idea.” Scrolling through the messages, Jay found nothing useful. When he looked up, houses lined the street. His old neighbourhood. “Nothing,” he said. “Where are we going?” “Home. I’m taking you home.” “No.” Jay sat up and pointed at the curb. “Let me out here. Please.” The older man could only sigh. “If I pull over, will you hear me out?” “OK.” Don brought the car to a halt. “I promised your mother I’d find you and bring you home. Whatever it was you fought about, the Earth is facing the greatest threat in human history. You need to go home.” Jay stared at his lap in silence for several moments before drawing a deep breath. “I’m the reason my father is dead.” The statement caught Don off-guard. “What? How? Your father was killed by a drunk driver.” “Yeah, but he was out looking for me.” “Why was he looking for you?” Jay looked up. “We argued and I left. When I didn’t come home that night, he went out searching and — never came home.” “Well, your mom needs you now. She told me to tell you to come home.” Don put the car into Drive, but Jay tugged on the door latch. “I’m still going to get out here. I need time to think of what to say.” “Sure,” Don replied. “If you hear from Nick, tell him I’m over it.” Also Published Here

The Last 3 Days (10): Some Days, Nothing Goes as Planned

Since the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade in June, location data firms, , and have been facing increased scrutiny from Congress for trading in sensitive user data that could indicate when someone is seeking an abortion. app developers online abortion pill providers The Markup has found that location data company INRIX, which collects, analyzes, and sells aggregated vehicle, traffic, and parking data includes Planned Parenthood clinics in its . INRIX IQ Location Analytics dashboard Using a free trial of the product, The Markup was able to locate at least 71 Planned Parenthood clinics in dozens of states. INRIX is a major, established mobility data company that has been in business for 17 years. It lists the U.S. Federal Highway Administration, Microsoft, the Los Angeles Department of Transportation, BMW, Zillow, and IBM among its clients. The Markup’s findings follow recent reports by Motherboard identifying two other location data firms— and —that also included Planned Parenthood visitor data in their similar dashboard products. Both companies have since removed that data. Safegraph Placer.AI Mark Daymond, the CTO and data protection officer at INRIX told The Markup in an email, “INRIX receives anonymized data and further de-identifies it then aggregates that data. Identities of individuals are irrelevant for our business.” The free version of INRIX’s Location Analytics dashboard listed only the address, hours, and average annual daily traffic counts on nearby streets for each clinic, but the paid version shows more detailed statistics for sample points of interests in its database, including demographic and ethnic breakdowns of visitors, visitor counts by hour and day, aggregated heat maps of the origins and destinations for visitors, and drive times to and from the business location. The Planned Parenthood locations remained in the INRIX dashboard after we contacted the company, and were still there hours before publication of this story. Planned Parenthood did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Daymond said the approach INRIX takes to limit detail on the maps protects users from being identified. “Location Analytics only displays results down to the census block group level. We source data from a variety of map providers whose information is commercially available,” he said. With the legal landscape changing rapidly since Dobbs v. Jackson triggered more restrictive abortion laws, people seeking the procedure face increased risks to their privacy, and many technology companies have been racing to respond. Anti-abortion activists have used tools built by the location data industry, , to dissuade abortion-seeking patients with targeted ads. Now, the stakes are higher as nine states have criminalized the procedure. such as geofencing Scrutiny from Congress Some Democratic lawmakers are demanding action. Following reports by Motherboard, 14 Democratic senators to location data companies Safegraph and Placer.AI seeking details about their data collection and asking them to cease including abortion clinics. sent letters and have removed the clinics and other sensitive locations from their databases following the Motherboard reports. On July 1, Google when a user visits an abortion provider, fertility center, or other sensitive location. Safegraph Placer.AI pledged to erase visitor location data Last week, the location data companies Placer.AI, Safegraph, Babel Street, X-Mode (Outlogic), Gravy Analytics, and five reproductive health app developers and , the sources of their location data, and all data partnerships as part of an investigation into abortion and reproductive health patient data privacy. House Oversight Committee contacted asked them to disclose their data collection practices “This is a great example of how comprehensive privacy laws need to be put in place that restrict the collection of that kind of data that can be weaponized against users by fingerprinting, identifying them, and selling that sort of behavioral data or identifying data to anyone that wants it, law enforcement or otherwise,” said Daly Barnett, a staff technologist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Location Analytics Dashboards INRIX, a privately held company based in Kirkland, Wash., offers parking, traffic, and aggregated location data to transportation agencies, car manufacturers, and software developers. In a brochure for its “Vehicle Trips” product, the company boasts that its data “ ” and 36 billion “real-time data points” each day, with updates as frequent as every three seconds. captures over 150 million anonymous trips Location data companies like INRIX, Placer.AI, and Safegraph offer similar products: an easy-to-use dashboard where users can quickly analyze foot and vehicle traffic to millions of retail businesses, highlighting patterns in visits with charts and maps and tools to compare competing businesses. One of the sample locations The Markup was able to explore was a chicken sandwich restaurant in New Jersey. Such data is extremely valuable for city planners, retail businesses, and commercial real estate and private equity firms. The data powering these aggregated insights comes from multiple sources, , connected vehicles, traffic sensors, and data purchased from other brokers. including mobile phone apps While tracking the aggregate number of people visiting a chicken sandwich shop seems innocent enough, when people are seeking an abortion, the privacy risks change drastically. Some location data companies have recognized the risks of including sensitive locations like doctors’ offices and houses of worship. For example, location intelligence firm Cuebiq publishes a public “ ” policy defining the types of locations it excludes to protect the privacy of the users in its datasets. Sensitive Points of Interest Data Partners INRIX’s states that it collects personal data from third-party sources, including “[d]ata brokers from which we purchase data to supplement the data we collect,” though it does not disclose the identity of any of its partners. privacy policy The data that powers the dashboard we used contains clues to the source of INRIX’s points of interest (POI) data. We observed the autocomplete function on INRIX’s dashboard to the API for location data company HERE, which provides location results for a boundary specified by the map coordinates. making a call There also appears to be a HERE-provided unique ID for each location in the data. HERE spokesperson Kasey Farrar told The Markup in an email that the company “… maintains robust ‘privacy by design’ data practices with strict terms and conditions for data usage by customers. HERE does not collect origin-destination data of individuals.” Farrar noted the company’s “ ” which details some of the specific measures taken to protect user privacy. privacy charter, The business review site Yelp also makes an appearance in the POI data. Yelp is listed as the “supplier” within the data powering INRIX’s dashboard. Yelp spokesperson Julianne Rowe said that the company does not have a partnership with INRIX and that businesses “can obtain Yelp content and data through our free API or from an approved partner.” She noted that the business location, hours, and contact information are all publicly available, including on Planned Parenthood’s website. There are several categories assigned to the Planned Parenthood locations we found on INRIX. Categories included “Medical Services/Clinics,” “Hospital or Health Care Facility,” and “Consumer Services.” While most of the data we could see on INRIX’s dashboard appeared to be aggregated, risks do remain for users. Many companies in the highlight that user privacy is protected, due to the fact that they only sell aggregated data, such as a certain number of people visiting a particular business during a specific week. multibillion-dollar location data industry Daymond said INRIX does not sell data that is tied to individual users. “INRIX is not a data broker…. We don’t store personal identifiers that can be tied back to an individual to help ensure no personal data is discovered.” On the industry-wide use of aggregated data to protect user privacy, EFF’s Barnett said that even aggregated data carries risks for user privacy, and individuals . can still be identified in some circumstances INRIX’s Daymond said, “Our terms of use explicitly prohibit our customers from using our products in a way that violates laws and regulations.” While business location and visitor traffic may seem innocuous, Barnett said, the context matters. “These seemingly … observed-in-a-vacuum, harmless datasets don’t exist in vacuums. They can be snowballed together too.” Written By Jon Keegan Also published here Photo by on Alina Grubnyak Unsplash

Your Planned Parenthood Data Is Being Collected, Analyzed, and Sold

আপনার পরিকল্পিত পিতামাতার ডেটা সংগ্রহ করা, বিশ্লেষণ করা এবং বিক্রি করা হচ্ছে

Ihre Daten zur geplanten Elternschaft werden gesammelt, analysiert und verkauft

Sus datos de Planned Parenthood están siendo recopilados, analizados y vendidos

Vos données sur la planification familiale sont collectées, analysées et vendues

आपका नियोजित पितृत्व डेटा एकत्र, विश्लेषण और बेचा जा रहा है

あなたの計画された親子関係のデータが収集され、分析され、販売されています

귀하의 가족 계획 데이터가 수집, 분석 및 판매되고 있습니다.

Seus dados de paternidade planejada estão sendo coletados, analisados e vendidos

Planlı Ebeveynlik Verileriniz Toplanıyor, Analiz Ediliyor ve Satılıyor

Dữ liệu Kế hoạch làm cha mẹ của bạn đang được thu thập, phân tích và bán

您的计划生育数据正在被收集、分析和出售

Within just a couple of days, the price of LUNA crashed from above $83 to almost zero, and an algorithmic stablecoin of the ecosystem called UST lost its peg to the US dollar. This event shook the cryptocurrency market and pulled the prices of all cryptocurrencies down. Even USDT, which is backed by USD and securities was traded at a rate slightly lower than 1 USD for a while. But while USDT recovered rapidly, UST, after a short improvement, continued its freefall. What Happened and What Lessons can be Learned from the LUNA Collapse? Many people believe that a “ ” has arrived and that this crash was one of the expected effects. However, I doubt it. crypto-winter That is because there are so many smaller and less impactful projects that still exist and even flourish in their way. Even if we have to deal with crypto-winter consequences, it has no relation with such an impactful and resourceful project as Terra (LUNA). Others insist that such a fall is a “punishment” for the arrogance of Do Kwon, the project’s founder. Just a week before the LUNA bloodbath, . he said that "95% are going to die [coins], but there's also entertainment in watching companies die too" Even though I don’t believe that the current situation with Do Kwon’s brainchild is connected with this statement, it sounds ironic. He watched his project collapse without being able to do anything about it (even though he tried). What happened to LUNA then? I think that the answer lies in UST. The stablecoin of the Terra network is an and is not backed by any asset. The LUNA coin was created to absorb market volatility and ensure the stability of UST. Simply put, the algorithm that was supposed to take care of the UST dollar peg works like this: algorithmic stablecoin When the UST value goes up, the algorithm burns LUNA tokens to mint UST. The circulating volume of UST increases, and the token price drops. If on the contrary, the UST value starts dropping, the algorithm releases LUNA by removing UST tokens from circulation thus increasing the demand for UST and triggering a UST price increase. The mechanism seemed to be perfect until it stopped functioning as expected. Moreover, it stopped functioning suddenly, and even the emergency measures taken by the project founders - namely the $10b BTC purchased to back up UST in case of an emergency - didn’t work. I do not think that all algorithmic coins will break down just because they aren’t backed up by real assets. We all know that demand and supply drive the market and that the USD is just a piece of paper whose value depends on that demand. In this regard, USD is not more valuable than UST. So if it wasn’t faulty countermeasures, then what happened? To me, it looks like a well-planned attack. The project was destroyed intentionally, and the one who did it could forecast the measures to make LUNA recover. Let me explain how it all evolved. But first, some background information. A Soros Attack From 1989 to 1990, the economic situation in England worsened by pushing the country to join the European Monetary System. At that time, the British pound was highly overvalued, which allowed the country to benefit from cheap imports. On the other hand, this overvalued national currency penalized exporting companies. Combined, these factors led the country into a recession in 1991. It was at this time when , an American investor, and billionaire, had a brilliant idea that made him richer by $1.1b and made the Bank of England crash. He decided to perform a speculative attack on the Bank of England. George Soros It all started on September 16, 1992, when Soros took short positions on the GBP for approx. 10 billion pounds. He also managed to persuade other important investors and investment banks such as the Bank of America and JP Morgan that the British Pound was going to fail. These banks started selling GBP on a large scale. To stabilize the situation, the Bank of England started purchasing GBP by using its reserves in foreign currency. However, the reserves of the bank were not sufficient to handle the attack, and Britain had to leave the European Monetary System with a GBP devaluation of approx. 15%. Investors and banks that participated in the attack were able to repay all the loans they had in GBP but with a pound devalued against USD. In total, this attack brought George Soros around $1.1b in capital gains. Of course, this attack was not without risk. Any of these factors would make the attack impossible: A strong response from the Bank of England If other central banks had provided support for GBP Poor coordination between attackers Now, let’s look at how the collapse of the GBP in 1992 is connected with the collapse of UST and LUNA. The Soros Type Attack Just before the UST depegging, the balance in the looked like this: curve liquidity pool As you can see, everything is pretty well-balanced. Then, the attacker starts depositing more UST liquidity in the curve: It creates the liquidity unbalance in the liquidity pool, and causes the depegging of UST: In this example, the depeg was almost unnoticeable and could be restored relatively quickly. But this was just the beginning. This move granted the attacker access to how many UST were injected into the liquidity pool to trigger the coin depeg and it made other major investors fear that the coin may not be as stable as it was supposed to be. Also, the attacker could see the two main wallets used to restore the peg. So, to make the attack succeed, these two wallets need to be neutralized and the attacker does this by forbidding their UST exit positions as part of an arbitrage trade. With it, the foundation for a full-scale attack was ready. The attacker first disbalances the liquidity pool. And sends the UST price into a free fall. But this time, the main resources that could be used to restore the balance are blocked in two main wallets, and the investors’ trust deteriorates. When the pool crashed, main depositors rushed to withdraw their UST and swap them to LUNA. This reduced Terra's liquidity and made the company unable to buy back UST to reduce the circulation volume and restore the peg or stabilize the situation. Meanwhile, the attacker sells more UST to keep the coin depegged and drain Terra’s liquidity. Terra again uses its capital. This time, it uses the reserves in BTC to buy back UST. It, in turn, puts the entire cryptocurrency market under pressure and sends the BTC price down. The attacker instantly benefits from it by swapping his LUNA to BTC and thus, sending the LUNA price even deeper. Terra is buying back discounted UST from the attacker by liquidating its asset portfolio and depleting its resources. UST holders continue swapping the coin to LUNA. At some point, the system suffers from a total loss of liquidity and cannot manage the disbalance anymore. Like in the case of the Soros attack on the Bank of England, this attack could be partially or completely prevented if: The attacker didn’t have enough resources to complete the attack If users didn’t start swapping UST to LUNA which would  support the stablecoin If other market players supported Terra (even though in the current circumstances, I do not see clearly how it could be done) Who organized the attack? There are speculations. In any case, it was somebody who knew Terra very well to forecast how the company would react to recover the peg and had enough resources to make such an impact. Will LUNA Recover? Kwon is trying to save the situation by forking the LUNA protocol. Now, Terra (LUNA) 2.0 is live and started producing blocks. To me, it looks like trying to save a sinking boat but I may be mistaken. In some time, we will see whether the project revitalizes. I believe that creating an algorithmic stablecoin was a brilliant idea, but there should be something else to back it up besides an algorithm. Algorithmic stablecoins are in their infancy stage, and once the technology is developed, we might face a different financial world. For now, though, these coins are too vulnerable, and if a system has a vulnerability, even a small one, there will be somebody willing to exploit it.

LUNA Debacle: A Planned Attack or an Imperfection in the System?

Debacle de LUNA: ¿Un ataque planeado o una imperfección en el sistema?

Débâcle de LUNA : une attaque planifiée ou une imperfection du système ?

लूना पराजय: एक नियोजित हमला या सिस्टम में एक अपूर्णता?

LUNA の大失敗: 計画された攻撃か、システムの欠陥か?

LUNA Debacle: um ataque planejado ou uma imperfeição no sistema?

LUNA Debacle: Một cuộc tấn công có kế hoạch hay một sự không hoàn hảo trong hệ thống?

LUNA 崩溃：有计划的攻击还是系统的缺陷？

Fail-fast Agile and well-planned DevOps are the two sides of a single coin, though they are not essentially the same. Merging them is possible through understanding their core values and practices. Agile has adopted fail-fast approach long ago. This means the developers tend to experiment freely when trying to reach the desired outcomes, but they are also quick to abandon the development lines that do not bring the desired results. Doing so allows minimizing the risks both for the customers and for the software development teams while ensuring more predictable software delivery process. This also raises the chances for the customers to get what they expect, under the estimated budget and within the timeframes. On the other hand, such experiments in DevOps are not recommended, as the costs of operating the infrastructure can amount to tens of thousands of USD daily, and playing around with the production environment for the sake of experimenting cannot be justified. This is why before provisioning the infrastructure the DevOps team must define the project’s structure, scope, main requirements, possible scalability issues and the ways to ensure resilience and immutability. All of this will be essential to both deliver the software on time and ensure positive customer experience afterward, as unlike traditional Agile developers, DevOps engineers are responsible for the full software lifecycle, from the design to the maintenance and final decommissioning. Thus said, merging these two methodologies is impossible without answering several painful questions: What practices have to be adopted? What practices have to be ditched? Who will do what in the team? What skills and tools will we need to master? How do we start doing DevOps after all? There are both short and long answers to these questions. The short one is “ ”. The long one is below. shift to the left How to merge Agile with DevOps The main thing to keep in mind is that these two approaches cannot be combined in their pure forms, meaning the Agile practices must be updated. The most important are the three cornerstones of DevOps: of new code batches into a centralized mainline; of new builds to testing environments and pushing them into production through rolling updates; and building , where the containerized apps can be deployed to production environments that are described in clear and declarative language, where the servers are provisioned, configured, managed and decommissioned through code commands, not manually. The last, but not the least important practice is building automated unit tests from the get-go, instead of leaving the testing to be the pre-release stage of the software development lifecycle. practices to adopt continuous integration continuous delivery infrastructure as code The most important are following multiple Agile methodologies, like . Scrum is about micromanagement, where each team member announces what was done since the last Scrum, and if there are any for going forward that lie outside the . True DevOps engineers care little about the scopes, as these are cross-functional teams, so every team member devotes their effort to overcome the challenge at hand, having a clear overall picture in mind. In addition, every bottleneck is perceived as a system flaw that provides a room for improvement, not as a team member’s fault. practices to be abandoned Scrum project management bottlenecks scope of their responsibility As it is clear from the above, there are no strictly defined roles in DevOps teams, as the same person can build the infrastructure, configure the CI/CD pipeline and handle the customer’s support request. This means that on the road to DevOps-as-a-Service world they have to learn to do multiple kinds of tasks using multiple kinds of tools and forming all-around capable teams. Evidently, both the Dev and Ops tools must be available to every team member and they must be able to use them. Cross-team training and learning are essential in mastering the full kit of for project management, communication, and collaboration; software development, testing, deployment, and monitoring; infrastructure design, scaling, and maintenance; customer feedback collection and application. DevOps tools The key point in merging Agile and DevOps is accepting the different mindset. The is built around “you built it, you run it” paradigm, meaning the DevOps teams are responsible for the full range of software delivery-related processes and tasks. Such approach to business workflows must have a wholehearted support from the grassroots all the way up to the C-suite, as it will be a sure way to failure otherwise. DevOps culture transition to DevOps Conclusions on merging Agile with DevOps Agile as a methodology of software delivery has long ago transformed into something that greatly contradicts the core values and principles explained in . However, this approach to project management is still much better than Waterfall and other old-school methods. The acceptance of “fail fast, fail often” mindset ensures the iterative approach to software delivery, where rapid customer feedback loops help the developers better direct their efforts and deliver the features the customers really expect. the Agile manifesto This same iterative approach is greatly empowered through CI/CD, where the automation of code batch building, testing and pushing to production ensures uninterrupted customer experience, fewer bugs and shorter recovery times, according to the report. State of DevOps adoption 2017 Merging these two paradigms is no easy deal, yet if applied correctly, your Agile development teams can benefit greatly by becoming much more competent and competitive in the fast-paced business world we live in. We hope this article will be of use to you and in case you want us to explore some other topics — please name them in the comments below, we will cover them in the future articles! Initially, I’ve posted this story on my company’s blog — https://itsvit.com/blog/agile-vs-devops-merging-fail-fast-agile-with-well-planned-devops/

Agile vs DevOps: Merging Fail-Fast Agile with Well-Planned DevOps

iOS updates may not be deliberately slowing down on older devices Update: A couple of months after I wrote this post, Apple finally admitted it does slow down older devices via new iOS updates, supposedly to prevent them from crashing because of failing batteries. I did wonder if I should take down this post. But on revisiting it, I found that most of my arguments are still valid despite Apple’s admission. So I let it be. I had written about Apple’s a few months ago. It had some harsh thoughts about Apple, which were probably the result of my iPad 3 turning sluggish following an installation of iOS 9. What really upset me was there was no easy way to uninstall iOS 9, and go back to iOS 8. planned obsolescence However a couple iOS upgrades later, I am inclined to give Apple the benefit of doubt. I must admit this change of mind was partly influenced by the fact that I had explored the Android side, and realised the grass wasn’t particularly greener over there. The simple fact is a new OS is designed to run on newer hardware, and there’s no way it will run seamlessly on older hardware. This is true not just for Apple but any phone. Let me explain with just one aspect of new hardware, its RAM. My previous Android phone, the Xiaomi’s Mi4i had 2GB RAM. Whereas my current Android the Redmi Note 4 has 4GB RAM. The old phone slowed down when I loaded a beta version of MiUI 9 (a Android Nougat fork or customised version for Xiaomi phones). But one good thing about Android is that it is more geeky, and I quickly spotted a revealing stat. The Mi4i only had 500MB of free RAM, with no apps running. Whereas the Redmi Note 4 on the same OS has around 1.6 GB of free RAM, with no apps running. Newer phones have more free RAM which allows apps to load faster and perform better Basically a new OS uses more RAM to run its new features, and there will be less RAM left for apps to run on older phones. So my Mi4i struggled to perform while the Note 4 chugged along smoothly. I feel that even iOS, which is better at managing RAM, is affected by this issue. The important thing here is that RAM is just one of the many bits of hardware that makes a new phone’s hardware better than an older one’s. Like new processors, graphic processors, improved sensors, and many other components which a layman like me is not even aware of. There is no doubt an element of ‘planned obsolescence’ with Apple. They could find ways so that performance on older phones are not hit badly by a new OS. Maybe make alternate versions of the new OS that will use less system resources. But I guess it does not make business sense to divert too much resources to developing new versions of OS for old phones. Having said that, I think Apple is indeed taking a slightly different approach to this issue in India. They are probably influenced by the fact that India is a cost-sensitive market, and seem to be developing cheaper models of old phones that run well on the new iOS. The first one in this series is the iPhone SE. It has the same size and looks of the iPhone 5S, but most of the innards are of the iPhone 6S, and it costs just ₹19000 ($290). My wife has this phone and I can vouch that iOS 11 is running smoothly on it. The strategy seems to be working for Apple. Though it has only 3% of India’s mobile market, the iPhone’s higher prices means that in terms of sales value, Apple is №3 in India, and is expecting sales of $3 billion in the country this year! Looking back on my iPad misadventure with iOS 9, I would go about it differently if I could do it again. I would run a beta of the new OS on my phone before taking a decision on whether to install an OS. Simply because you can if you find your device is struggling. Besides, installing public betas of iOS these days is pretty simple as Apple wants as many free testers as possible after the Maps debacle. uninstall a beta iOS In fact, that’s exactly what I have done on my iPhone 6S+. (My beta adventure is recorded in a .) The phone didn’t show any signs of crashing, slowing or excessive battery usage which are the most common complaints by new users of an OS. Based on that, I decided to go ahead and get iOS 11. previous post There was one little twist in this tale. To install iOS 11, you need to first uninstall the beta iOS 11, and then download the official iOS 11. However I kept procrastinating over this till one fine day I got a message saying that iOS 11.1 beta is available for download. It seemed that since I hadn’t uninstalled the beta, Apple assumed that I didn’t mind continuing to be a beta tester. Oh, well, I have always been the one who rushes in where angels fear to tread, and so I continue to merrily beta-test away. However, be warned that betas can be glitchy, and are not for people who dislike surprises. Like for a while, my lockscreen notifications used to be only half visible. The positive side is you get to see interesting new features before the risk-averse majority. Though I must say it’s sometimes hard to say if it’s a new feature, or an old feature that I was unaware of, or a glitch. Like right now, my iPhone starts playing music automatically the instant it connects to my car’s music system via bluetooth, even if the music app had been turned off on the phone. I have no clue why it does so, but it’s cool! I feel the risk element is a bit exaggerated as Apple releases relatively stable betas to the general public, and does this only after ironing out its serious issues via beta releases to developers. However I do take one precaution. I avoid installing the beta the day it arrives. Like after the iOS beta 11.2 was announced, I waited a day before installing it. If I see panicked screams on the internet about the beta crashing the phone, I hold off on the installation. As for my expedition into Android land, there was a bright side to it. Unlike higher priced iPhones, my Mi4i only cost ₹10000 ($150). So when it slowed down, I just exchanged it for my current phone (Redmi Note 4) at a net cost of ₹8500 ($130). That’s kind of acceptable, unlike iPhones where even older models like the iPhone 7S+ retail for over $1000 in India. The price difference does show in quality. For instance, my Android’s camera is not comparable to an iPhone. But my Android has frills like extra storage via an SD card, the ability to read files off a USB pendrive, not to mention software goodies like MiUI 9’s split screen apps, quick switching between two apps, and more. If I still prefer iOS to Android, it’s probably because I have been on Apple forever. To sum up, obsolescence, planned or unplanned, is going to inevitably happen as long as technology is improving at today’s rapid pace. We may not be able to stop it but there are ways to live with it. All we have to do is decide which of these ways suits us best.

Revisiting Apple’s ‘planned obsolescence’

iPad sales are down This morning, I read that iPad sales are down, and I have to admit I took a certain grim pleasure in the news. The thing is I dislike other people making plans for me. And Apple is guilty of planning obsolescence into my gadgets, which doesn’t sit well with me. Many of the tasks my iPad 3 used to handle have been taken over by my phones that have grown bigger. So my iPad’s primary function is to serve as a bigger screen, which will be easier on my eye for reading, basic writing, messaging, video and video chats, and the occasional presentation. With such a limited role, I see no reason why I should keep replacing my iPad every two years. I instead planned to stick to a 5 year replacement cycle. That is closer to the replacement cycle for a PC than a phone, which makes sense as the iPad takes over more roles from the PC. But Apple had other plans worked out for me. I think they believed a 3-year replacement cycle suited me better. So around the time my iPad turned three, it began to slow down, till it became downright sluggish, and would take an inordinately long time to start up. Even after the passcode screen shows up, it wouldn’t respond to touchscreen swipes for another five minutes. Apps also ran painfully slow. Take Apple News. Clicking on the app meant a wait of several minutes before it finally loads to the last page I was reading. Clicking to go back home (For You) would be another few minutes wait. The message from Apple was clear. Get a new iPad. Which sort of got my goat. You see when I bought my iPad some 3–4 years ago, it was called ‘The New iPad.’ Barely six months later, the iPad 4 came out with a lightning connector and a faster processor, and my New iPad had become the Old iPad. I sort of forgave Apple for that. But this not so subtle push towards a new iPad wasn’t acceptable, and I wasn’t going to give in without a fight. In other words, it was time to call in Superman. Otherwise known as the ‘Reset’ button. I accordingly went ahead and reset my iPad. That wiped out all the apps on it, and I could start from scratch. I reloaded just a few basic apps for email, chat, video, news, browsing and writing. Also, instead of sticking to Apple apps, I tried third party apps, like Flipboard and News360 for news. The difference was palpable. The iPad felt like it had got itself a fresh lease of life. It’s still sluggish, but bearable. I guess I can run it for another year. Apple’s planned obsolescence obviously hasn’t gone as planned with me. I think that would make me a deferred customer, whom they would have got this year if things had gone to plan. Anyway, a deferred customer is better than no customer at all. I must add there is one category of people for whom planned obsolescence in iPads might be applicable. This would be the iPad Pro user who is into complex design work and such. They need faster iPads for their processor intensive apps, and they wouldn’t mind constantly upgrading their devices. But even this would be a small market as the real design professional would be using a Mac Pro or its equivalent. Unfortunately for Apple, the majority of iPad users are ordinary folk. I’m guessing that most of these folks who planned to buy an iPad, have already done so. And many of these iPad users have put off replacing their old iPads for a year or two, like I did. That would explain why iPad sales are dropping. I think Apple shouldn’t really be expecting the iPad to sell like the iPhone. After all, what people need from a phone is quite different from what they need in an iPad. That may be why in iPhones, planned obsolescence is a successful strategy. For instance, my old iPhone 4 doesn’t have a motion processor that will count steps. So any app that is based on the phone counting your steps, won’t work on it. That would make all iPhones before the iPhone 5S obsolete to any iPhone user who’s into exercise. At least, this was so till fitness bands came along, which are easier to have on your person at all times as compared to a phone. Obviously, Apple wasn’t just going to let its customers walk away. That’s why the Apple Watch. I believe it’s selling well as compared to other smart watches, which makes it a success. It isn’t selling as well as the iPhone, which doesn’t make it a failure. Nothing sells like the iPhone. Coming back to planned obsolescence. What about someone who doesn’t need a motion processor? My wife, for instance, is still sticking with her old faithful iPhone 4 as she isn’t interested in step counting apps. She prefers the small, compact size of the iPhone 4 to the bigger iPhones, and it works perfectly to suit her needs which are calls, messages, email, and occasionally browsing and navigation. She is not into tech, but she does get annoyed with Apple’s planned obsolescence in the iPhone 4, the same way that I do about my iPad. Fortunately for Apple, most iPhone users are more like me, than my wife. I currently own the iPhone 6S+, but can’t stop dreaming about the iPhone 7+ with its dual lens camera and water proof ability. On the positive side, it’s more than six months since the iPhone 7 came out, and I’m still with my iPhone 6S+. With luck, Apple's plans to change my plans may once again not go as planned. So is there a solution? I think Elon Musk of Tesla has one. He seems to have figured out this kind of forced purchases is alienating loyal customers, and creating avoidable environmental pollution. So Tesla started fitting its cars with new future-proof hardware that can be updated with newer software. This means an old Tesla car will have the same software and features as a brand new one! I think that model should be a benchmark for the tech industry. Edit: Looks like I was wrong about Tesla. Like Musk points out (see below), future proof technology may not be practical. Even in phones, initiatives for modular phones like Google’s Project Ara haven’t got going. Nevertheless, my point still holds. Companies need to find a balance between innovation and longer product lives. The cycle of consumerism which is killing our environment (and draining my wallet) needs to be slowed, even if can’t be stopped.

Apple’s ‘planned obsolescence’ isn’t going as planned

The Zone returns: its gates have re-opened 17 years later, promising a journey like no other. November 20 has officially become a red-letter day for gamers worldwide with the release of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl—the long-awaited sequel to the iconic franchise by the Ukrainian studio GSC Game World. The original title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, debuted in 2007 and immediately captured the imaginations of a generation with its unique blend of atmospheric exploration, survival horror, and first-person shooter action. Now, almost two decades later, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 has arrived to rekindle that old flame and ignite a new one in a whole new generation of gamers. Dedicated to Ukraine's Heroes In a poignant tribute featured in the game’s launch trailer, GSC Game World dedicated S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl to Ukraine's current defenders. Through death and pain, war, fear, and cruelty, Ukraine will endure and prevail. It always has, and it always will. Dedicated to everyone who has fought and continues to fight for Ukraine. Eternal memory to those taken by this war. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKO4PL8Xzik&t=27s&embedable=true This heartfelt message resonates far beyond gaming, reflecting the resilience and determination of a nation under siege. Smashing Records Before Launch Before its official release, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 had already made waves, topping Steam's global paid games chart earlier in the week and coming in second overall to the free-to-play Counter-Strike 2. Demo versions showcased at Summer Game Fest, Gamescom, and Tokyo Game Show earned high praise from gaming journalists and experts. In his interview with GamesRadar+ at Gamescom 2024, Yevhenii Kulyk, the technical producer of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, revealed that they deliberately avoided procedural generation—a commonly used design technique that creates or arranges variations of in-game assets to save time and costs. Instead, the team painstakingly handcrafted every building and room to deliver a completely unique experience. As he explained, "Everything you may notice or experience in our game was made by the hands of our talented level designers, level artists, team designers, and so on. You will not notice two exact buildings or two exact rooms with the same placement of the same props of meshes or something like that. So every player that is playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will get their story." The estimated time to complete the game is around 100 hours of pure gameplay. While building on the legacy of the original title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 also incorporates modern gameplay mechanics, stunning graphics, and an immersive open world that appeals to a new generation of gamers. This ensures the series continues to thrive, drawing in younger players who are new to the Zone. A Launch That Rocked the Internet The launch caused such a feeding frenzy that internet services in Ukraine struggled to keep up as fans rushed to download the game. Within hours, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 recorded over 113,000 concurrent players on Steam alone. The game is also available on PC via GOG and Epic Games, on Xbox Series X|S, and through Game Pass, so the actual player count is likely far higher. Expect these numbers to soar over the weekend as gamers dive into the Zone worldwide. The Long Road to Release S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was first announced in August 2010 and was planned for release in 2012. However, in 2011, GSC Game World founder Serhii Hryhorovych disbanded the team to pursue his passion for motorsport. It wasn't until 2018 that the project was resurrected, with Hryhorovych promising a 2021 release. Since then, the game has faced countless delays caused by factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a fire in GSC's Prague office, and others. Despite these challenges, the game has finally reached the finish line—a testament to the team's grit and determination. More Than a Game: A Cultural and Political Statement In today's world, where politics and pop culture are deeply intertwined, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is a powerful statement. The war impacted more than just the timing of the game’s release. Following the full-scale invasion, the game’s title was updated to use the Ukrainian spelling, “Chornobyl,” replacing the Russian version, “Chernobyl.” Additionally, GSC Game World removed Russian voiceovers and made the decision not to sell the game in Russia. The game’s unapologetically patriotic themes have drawn the ire of Russian officials, with some calling for the game to be banned. In 2023, Russian hackers targeted GSC Game World, leaking 30 GB of game data in an unsuccessful attempt to blackmail the developers. Far from backing down, GSC used the incident to rally support from fans worldwide. A Surefire Commercial Success While exact figures remain under wraps, expectations are sky-high. Some experts estimate that the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl generated $18.3 million in revenue, with the entire franchise (including S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky (2008) and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat (2009)) selling over 33 million copies and earning $34.1 million. Analysts peg the budget for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 at $30–60 million, making it the most expensive game ever developed in Ukraine. From Screenshots to Gameplay: The Wait Is Over For gamers, the time for speculation is over. In a playful nod to the game's release, one Ukrainian company even offered employees an extra day off if they could prove they'd purchased the game on Steam. Whether during late-night gaming sessions or weekends dedicated to exploring the Zone, the moment to transition from reading about the game to living it has arrived. And even if you’re not an avid gamer, experiencing this masterpiece can be a tribute to Ukraine’s defenders and the resilient spirit of its people. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl isn’t just a game—it’s a cultural landmark, a story of perseverance, and a powerful reminder of what determination can achieve, both in gaming and beyond. Discover more about the game’s creation, the creative journey behind it, and how the war in Ukraine shaped its gameplay by watching this insightful documentary on YouTube! The Zone returns: its gates have re-opened 17 years later, promising a journey like no other. The Zone returns: its gates have re-opened 17 years later, promising a journey like no other. November 20 has officially become a red-letter day for gamers worldwide with the release of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl —the long-awaited sequel to the iconic franchise by the Ukrainian studio GSC Game World. red-letter day S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl The original title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl , debuted in 2007 and immediately captured the imaginations of a generation with its unique blend of atmospheric exploration, survival horror, and first-person shooter action. Now, almost two decades later, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 has arrived to rekindle that old flame and ignite a new one in a whole new generation of gamers. S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl Dedicated to Ukraine's Heroes Dedicated to Ukraine's Heroes In a poignant tribute featured in the game’s launch trailer, GSC Game World dedicated S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl to Ukraine's current defenders. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl Through death and pain, war, fear, and cruelty, Ukraine will endure and prevail. It always has, and it always will. Dedicated to everyone who has fought and continues to fight for Ukraine. Eternal memory to those taken by this war. Through death and pain, war, fear, and cruelty, Ukraine will endure and prevail. It always has, and it always will. Dedicated to everyone who has fought and continues to fight for Ukraine. Eternal memory to those taken by this war. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKO4PL8Xzik&t=27s&embedable=true https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKO4PL8Xzik&t=27s&embedable=true This heartfelt message resonates far beyond gaming, reflecting the resilience and determination of a nation under siege . nation under siege Smashing Records Before Launch Smashing Records Before Launch Before its official release, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 had already made waves, topping Steam's global paid games chart earlier in the week and coming in second overall to the free-to-play Counter-Strike 2 . topping Counter-Strike 2 Demo versions showcased at Summer Game Fest , Gamescom , and Tokyo Game Show earned high praise from gaming journalists and experts. Summer Game Fest Gamescom Tokyo Game Show In his interview with GamesRadar+ at Gamescom 2024, Yevhenii Kulyk, the technical producer of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, revealed that they deliberately avoided procedural generation —a commonly used design technique that creates or arranges variations of in-game assets to save time and costs. Instead, the team painstakingly handcrafted every building and room to deliver a completely unique experience. interview interview procedural generation As he explained, "Everything you may notice or experience in our game was made by the hands of our talented level designers, level artists, team designers, and so on. You will not notice two exact buildings or two exact rooms with the same placement of the same props of meshes or something like that. So every player that is playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will get their story." The estimated time to complete the game is around 100 hours of pure gameplay. While building on the legacy of the original title, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 also incorporates modern gameplay mechanics, stunning graphics, and an immersive open world that appeals to a new generation of gamers. This ensures the series continues to thrive, drawing in younger players who are new to the Zone. A Launch That Rocked the Internet A Launch That Rocked the Internet The launch caused such a feeding frenzy that internet services in Ukraine struggled to keep up as fans rushed to download the game. Within hours, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 recorded over 113,000 concurrent players on Steam alone. feeding frenzy 113,000 concurrent players The game is also available on PC via GOG and Epic Games, on Xbox Series X|S, and through Game Pass, so the actual player count is likely far higher. Expect these numbers to soar over the weekend as gamers dive into the Zone worldwide. The Long Road to Release The Long Road to Release S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 was first announced in August 2010 and was planned for release in 2012. However, in 2011, GSC Game World founder Serhii Hryhorovych disbanded the team to pursue his passion for motorsport. It wasn't until 2018 that the project was resurrected, with Hryhorovych promising a 2021 release. Since then, the game has faced countless delays caused by factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a fire in GSC's Prague office, and others. Despite these challenges, the game has finally reached the finish line—a testament to the team's grit and determination. More Than a Game: A Cultural and Political Statement More Than a Game: A Cultural and Political Statement In today's world, where politics and pop culture are deeply intertwined , S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is a powerful statement. politics and pop culture are deeply intertwined The war impacted more than just the timing of the game’s release. Following the full-scale invasion, the game’s title was updated to use the Ukrainian spelling, “Chornobyl,” replacing the Russian version, “Chernobyl.” Additionally, GSC Game World removed Russian voiceovers and made the decision not to sell the game in Russia. The game’s unapologetically patriotic themes have drawn the ire of Russian officials, with some calling for the game to be banned. impacted more “Chornobyl,” “Chernobyl.” some calling In 2023, Russian hackers targeted GSC Game World, leaking 30 GB of game data in an unsuccessful attempt to blackmail the developers. Far from backing down, GSC used the incident to rally support from fans worldwide. A Surefire Commercial Success A Surefire Commercial Success While exact figures remain under wraps, expectations are sky-high. Some experts estimate that the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl generated $18.3 million in revenue, with the entire franchise (including S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky (2008) and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat (2009)) selling over 33 million copies and earning $34.1 million. Analysts peg the budget for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 at $30–60 million, making it the most expensive game ever developed in Ukraine . estimate expensive game ever developed in Ukraine From Screenshots to Gameplay: The Wait Is Over From Screenshots to Gameplay: The Wait Is Over For gamers, the time for speculation is over. In a playful nod to the game's release, one Ukrainian company even offered employees an extra day off if they could prove they'd purchased the game on Steam. Whether during late-night gaming sessions or weekends dedicated to exploring the Zone, the moment to transition from reading about the game to living it has arrived. And even if you’re not an avid gamer, experiencing this masterpiece can be a tribute to Ukraine’s defenders and the resilient spirit of its people. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl isn’t just a game—it’s a cultural landmark, a story of perseverance, and a powerful reminder of what determination can achieve, both in gaming and beyond. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl Discover more about the game’s creation, the creative journey behind it, and how the war in Ukraine shaped its gameplay by watching this insightful documentary on YouTube ! documentary on YouTube

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: From Legacy to Legend 

Chain4Travel hosted its second Decode Travel hackathon in Antalya, Turkey, bringing together over 30 specialists from five countries to develop blockchain-based solutions for the travel industry. The event, held at SAN TSG & Paximum headquarters, attracted participants from established travel companies including SunExpress, A3M Global Monitoring, and AERTiCKET Group. The two-day event focused on addressing technical challenges in the travel sector through blockchain technology, particularly using the Camino Network infrastructure. Seven teams worked on various projects targeting industry-specific issues, from payment systems to data privacy. Two teams concentrated on micropayment solutions, developing systems for automated conditional payments and multi-party disbursement. Their proposals aimed to streamline settlement processes and dispute resolution in travel transactions through smart contract implementation. The hackathon also addressed data privacy concerns, with one team creating a blockchain protocol for selective data sharing among travel businesses. Another team developed a platform based on Self-Sovereign Identity principles, focusing on GDPR compliance while maintaining personalization capabilities. Major industry players SunExpress and Paximum participated with teams working on distribution optimization and B2B payment automation. The winning team, from TripX Travel in Macedonia, received 10,000 CAM tokens for their AI-integrated solution for travel packaging, which utilized the Camino Messenger system for personalized booking experiences. "We aim to support the digital transformation in the sector by combining technology and tourism," said Erol Türk, CEO of SAN TSG. The event marked Turkey's first Web3 travel hackathon, representing a significant step in regional travel technology development. Pablo Castillo, CEO of Chain4Travel, emphasized the hackathon's role in demonstrating blockchain's practical applications: "The solutions created during Decode in Turkey prove that innovation can be realized in a matter of days." The event highlighted several key developments in travel technology: Integration of blockchain with existing travel infrastructure


Development of automated payment distribution systems


Implementation of privacy-preserving data sharing protocols


Creation of AI-enhanced booking systems


Establishment of cross-border collaboration frameworks The hackathon's international participation reflected growing interest in blockchain applications within the travel industry. Participants from Turkey, Germany, Macedonia, Spain, and Georgia contributed diverse perspectives to technical solutions. The Camino Network Foundation announced its continuing support for travel technology development through a grant program, encouraging developers and businesses to build on its open-source infrastructure. Industry analysts note that such events signal increasing adoption of blockchain technology in travel operations, particularly in areas of payments, data management, and booking systems. The solutions developed during the hackathon demonstrate potential applications for reducing operational costs and improving service delivery in the travel sector. The event's success in attracting established industry players suggests growing recognition of blockchain's role in travel technology development. Future hackathons are planned to continue fostering innovation and collaboration between travel companies and technology developers. Don’t forget to like and share the story! Vested Interest Disclosure: This author is an independent contributor publishing via our business blogging program. HackerNoon has reviewed the report for quality, but the claims herein belong to the author. #DYOR Chain4Travel hosted its second Decode Travel hackathon in Antalya, Turkey, bringing together over 30 specialists from five countries to develop blockchain-based solutions for the travel industry. The event, held at SAN TSG & Paximum headquarters, attracted participants from established travel companies including SunExpress, A3M Global Monitoring, and AERTiCKET Group. Chain4Travel The two-day event focused on addressing technical challenges in the travel sector through blockchain technology, particularly using the Camino Network infrastructure. Seven teams worked on various projects targeting industry-specific issues, from payment systems to data privacy. Two teams concentrated on micropayment solutions, developing systems for automated conditional payments and multi-party disbursement. Their proposals aimed to streamline settlement processes and dispute resolution in travel transactions through smart contract implementation. The hackathon also addressed data privacy concerns, with one team creating a blockchain protocol for selective data sharing among travel businesses. Another team developed a platform based on Self-Sovereign Identity principles, focusing on GDPR compliance while maintaining personalization capabilities. Major industry players SunExpress and Paximum participated with teams working on distribution optimization and B2B payment automation. The winning team, from TripX Travel in Macedonia, received 10,000 CAM tokens for their AI-integrated solution for travel packaging, which utilized the Camino Messenger system for personalized booking experiences. "We aim to support the digital transformation in the sector by combining technology and tourism," said Erol Türk, CEO of SAN TSG. The event marked Turkey's first Web3 travel hackathon, representing a significant step in regional travel technology development. Pablo Castillo, CEO of Chain4Travel, emphasized the hackathon's role in demonstrating blockchain's practical applications: "The solutions created during Decode in Turkey prove that innovation can be realized in a matter of days." The event highlighted several key developments in travel technology: Integration of blockchain with existing travel infrastructure Development of automated payment distribution systems Implementation of privacy-preserving data sharing protocols Creation of AI-enhanced booking systems Establishment of cross-border collaboration frameworks Integration of blockchain with existing travel infrastructure Integration of blockchain with existing travel infrastructure Development of automated payment distribution systems Development of automated payment distribution systems Implementation of privacy-preserving data sharing protocols Implementation of privacy-preserving data sharing protocols Creation of AI-enhanced booking systems Creation of AI-enhanced booking systems Establishment of cross-border collaboration frameworks Establishment of cross-border collaboration frameworks The hackathon's international participation reflected growing interest in blockchain applications within the travel industry. Participants from Turkey, Germany, Macedonia, Spain, and Georgia contributed diverse perspectives to technical solutions. The Camino Network Foundation announced its continuing support for travel technology development through a grant program, encouraging developers and businesses to build on its open-source infrastructure. Industry analysts note that such events signal increasing adoption of blockchain technology in travel operations, particularly in areas of payments, data management, and booking systems. The solutions developed during the hackathon demonstrate potential applications for reducing operational costs and improving service delivery in the travel sector. The event's success in attracting established industry players suggests growing recognition of blockchain's role in travel technology development. Future hackathons are planned to continue fostering innovation and collaboration between travel companies and technology developers. Don’t forget to like and share the story! Vested Interest Disclosure: This author is an independent contributor publishing via our business blogging program. HackerNoon has reviewed the report for quality, but the claims herein belong to the author. #DYOR Vested Interest Disclosure: This author is an independent contributor publishing via our business blogging program . HackerNoon has reviewed the report for quality, but the claims herein belong to the author. #DYOR Vested Interest Disclosure: business blogging program business blogging program

Chain4Travel Hosts Hackathon as Travel Industry Leaders Explore Blockchain Solutions in Turkey

With GameFi entering beast-mode in 2024, new entertaining products are sprouting up like mushrooms. While the developers effortfully try to stand out with elaborate gameplays, the play-to-earn model remains at the heart of their projects. Today’s report is analysing how the latest crypto games keep up to the robustness, fairness, and sequence of the financial incentive; simply put – distinguishes games that are worth your playing time, and games that are not. Let’s dive in. Contenders List The research is specifically focused on the games launched by centralised cryptocurrency exchanges within The Open Network (TON). The reasons for the criteria does not end on chronological relevance, while these projects are one of the freshest in the market In this day and age, GameFi products act as marketing funnels for the crypto companies; through offering playing experience, exchanges are introducing both “hot” and “cold” audiences to the product ecosystems in a more straightforward way. Consequently, this strategy acts both as a precondition and incentive for building a product around the P2E model, seeing that this deeply correlates with the natural user fostering strategy that exchanges implement. Ultimately, four contenders were chosen for the report: Moonbix, a Binance-developed game, in which players control avatars in a space-themed environment, using a claw to collect items within a limited time. They earn points through daily tasks and game rounds, which can be exchanged for tokens
Coinsweeper, a tribute to Minesweeper launched by Bybit, where players uncover safe tiles while avoiding mines. Players earn points based on their performance and can compete for rewards through a leaderboard system.
Bull Run, an application dedicated to the birthday of WhiteBIT crypto exchange, in which players participate in daily Bitcoin price prediction challenges on Telegram, choosing whether Bitcoin will rise or fall. Accurate predictions help their chosen in-game character race faster, competing for daily crypto rewards.
OKX Racer, a relatively long-standing “clicker” by the eponymous company. In it, players predict Bitcoin's price movement as either "Moon" (rise) or "Doom" (fall) within a five-second timeframe. Correct predictions earn points, and consecutive wins activate multipliers for increased rewards. How will the games be evaluated? The goal of the report is to highlight the best-rewarding game from the point of relation to trustworthiness and fostering features. Thus, they will be rated upon the following criteria: User count – a metric that will reveal how a game is staying up-to-date and highlight the consistency of rewarding process
Prize pool, which reveals a size of financial incentive offered to users
Technical and financial factors – a range of metrics, which reveal the essential qualities a potential gamer heed in a product. It breaks down into disclosing rewarding systems, fund conversion accessibility, bugs history, and more. All factors combined will help you get a bigger, more compelling picture on each game’s factual returns. User count differs dramatically. With over 8.4 million users, Moonbix clearly dominates the list, as well as OKX Racer that was notably released two months earlier. Bull Run, while existing less than a month, has already attracted over 571,000 users – more than Coinsweeper, launched nearly simultaneously with Moonbix. Rewards Prize pool is another criteria where numbers diverge. Coinsweeper and OKX Racer lead the list with nearly identical amounts of 70,000 USDT. Meanwhile, Moonbix’s total prize pool can’t be estimated, as it will clearly depend on the in-game points’ conversion rate into a specific token – MBIX. As of writing time, MBIX value remains unknown, while token’s listing is planned to take place in the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025. Crucially, Moonbix is the only game to promise self-sustained token as a rewarding currency. Coinsweeper players will receive payouts in Mantle (MNT), while OKX Racer offers rewards in USDT. Notably, Bull Run players are already receiving the payments in USDT, Leksis (LEKS), and WhiteBIT Coin (WBT). At the same time, Bull Run is the only game among contenders which ensures factual daily rewards of visible size, apart from the ultimate monthly bonus. The total rewards are received by the end of the week – every Friday. By contrast, other games utilising airdrop model – single token payout by the end of the activity span. Bybit, for example, gives a clear pool distribution across gaming activities, while the exact in-game points (also known as Mantle Bits) conversion rate to MNT is to be determined based on the total number of users engaged. Rewards for OKX Racer players are promised to be announced later. Still, OKX Racer stands out by its daily bonuses feature alongside Bull Run, and it is the only game in which you can receive points in your absence. Other products do not envisage idling. Crucially, severe bugs have not been mentioned in the communities of four games, which makes them all rather playable products. To sum up: While sharing similar ideas and origins, the four aforementioned games differ dramatically not only in terms of gameplay, but also in rewarding framework and financial metrics. However, all of them share the necessary robustness, as the security measures at Binance, WhiteBIT, Bybit, or OKX have been verified. Now, it is all up to you, the user experience you seek, and rewards you expect. In the end, the individual preferences are the essence! With GameFi entering beast-mode in 2024, new entertaining products are sprouting up like mushrooms. While the developers effortfully try to stand out with elaborate gameplays, the play-to-earn model remains at the heart of their projects. Today’s report is analysing how the latest crypto games keep up to the robustness, fairness, and sequence of the financial incentive; simply put – distinguishes games that are worth your playing time, and games that are not. Let’s dive in. Contenders List The research is specifically focused on the games launched by centralised cryptocurrency exchanges within The Open Network (TON). The reasons for the criteria does not end on chronological relevance, while these projects are one of the freshest in the market In this day and age, GameFi products act as marketing funnels for the crypto companies; through offering playing experience, exchanges are introducing both “hot” and “cold” audiences to the product ecosystems in a more straightforward way. Consequently, this strategy acts both as a precondition and incentive for building a product around the P2E model, seeing that this deeply correlates with the natural user fostering strategy that exchanges implement. Ultimately, four contenders were chosen for the report: Moonbix, a Binance-developed game, in which players control avatars in a space-themed environment, using a claw to collect items within a limited time. They earn points through daily tasks and game rounds, which can be exchanged for tokens Coinsweeper, a tribute to Minesweeper launched by Bybit, where players uncover safe tiles while avoiding mines. Players earn points based on their performance and can compete for rewards through a leaderboard system. Bull Run, an application dedicated to the birthday of WhiteBIT crypto exchange, in which players participate in daily Bitcoin price prediction challenges on Telegram, choosing whether Bitcoin will rise or fall. Accurate predictions help their chosen in-game character race faster, competing for daily crypto rewards. OKX Racer, a relatively long-standing “clicker” by the eponymous company. In it, players predict Bitcoin's price movement as either "Moon" (rise) or "Doom" (fall) within a five-second timeframe. Correct predictions earn points, and consecutive wins activate multipliers for increased rewards. Moonbix , a Binance-developed game, in which players control avatars in a space-themed environment, using a claw to collect items within a limited time. They earn points through daily tasks and game rounds, which can be exchanged for tokens Moonbix Coinsweeper , a tribute to Minesweeper launched by Bybit, where players uncover safe tiles while avoiding mines. Players earn points based on their performance and can compete for rewards through a leaderboard system. Coinsweeper Bull Run , an application dedicated to the birthday of WhiteBIT crypto exchange, in which players participate in daily Bitcoin price prediction challenges on Telegram, choosing whether Bitcoin will rise or fall. Accurate predictions help their chosen in-game character race faster, competing for daily crypto rewards. Bull Run OKX Racer , a relatively long-standing “clicker” by the eponymous company. In it, players predict Bitcoin's price movement as either "Moon" (rise) or "Doom" (fall) within a five-second timeframe. Correct predictions earn points, and consecutive wins activate multipliers for increased rewards. OKX Racer How will the games be evaluated? The goal of the report is to highlight the best-rewarding game from the point of relation to trustworthiness and fostering features. Thus, they will be rated upon the following criteria: User count – a metric that will reveal how a game is staying up-to-date and highlight the consistency of rewarding process Prize pool, which reveals a size of financial incentive offered to users Technical and financial factors – a range of metrics, which reveal the essential qualities a potential gamer heed in a product. It breaks down into disclosing rewarding systems, fund conversion accessibility, bugs history, and more. User count – a metric that will reveal how a game is staying up-to-date and highlight the consistency of rewarding process Prize pool, which reveals a size of financial incentive offered to users Technical and financial factors – a range of metrics, which reveal the essential qualities a potential gamer heed in a product. It breaks down into disclosing rewarding systems, fund conversion accessibility, bugs history, and more. All factors combined will help you get a bigger, more compelling picture on each game’s factual returns. User count differs dramatically. With over 8.4 million users, Moonbix clearly dominates the list, as well as OKX Racer that was notably released two months earlier. Bull Run, while existing less than a month, has already attracted over 571,000 users – more than Coinsweeper, launched nearly simultaneously with Moonbix. Rewards Prize pool is another criteria where numbers diverge. Coinsweeper and OKX Racer lead the list with nearly identical amounts of 70,000 USDT. Meanwhile, Moonbix’s total prize pool can’t be estimated, as it will clearly depend on the in-game points’ conversion rate into a specific token – MBIX. As of writing time, MBIX value remains unknown, while token’s listing is planned to take place in the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025. Crucially, Moonbix is the only game to promise self-sustained token as a rewarding currency. Coinsweeper players will receive payouts in Mantle (MNT), while OKX Racer offers rewards in USDT. Notably, Bull Run players are already receiving the payments in USDT, Leksis (LEKS), and WhiteBIT Coin (WBT). At the same time, Bull Run is the only game among contenders which ensures factual daily rewards of visible size, apart from the ultimate monthly bonus. The total rewards are received by the end of the week – every Friday. By contrast, other games utilising airdrop model – single token payout by the end of the activity span. Bybit, for example, gives a clear pool distribution across gaming activities, while the exact in-game points (also known as Mantle Bits) conversion rate to MNT is to be determined based on the total number of users engaged. Rewards for OKX Racer players are promised to be announced later. Still, OKX Racer stands out by its daily bonuses feature alongside Bull Run, and it is the only game in which you can receive points in your absence. Other products do not envisage idling. Crucially, severe bugs have not been mentioned in the communities of four games, which makes them all rather playable products. To sum up: While sharing similar ideas and origins, the four aforementioned games differ dramatically not only in terms of gameplay, but also in rewarding framework and financial metrics. However, all of them share the necessary robustness, as the security measures at Binance, WhiteBIT, Bybit, or OKX have been verified. Now, it is all up to you, the user experience you seek, and rewards you expect. In the end, the individual preferences are the essence!

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