Spacecaps

spacecaps

How to Earn Money Playing Blockchain Games in 2025

When using Tailwind with Astro, you’ll notice that stop working when you use it with Astro Components or Slots. Tailwind’s space utilities 
<div class='space-y-4'>
  <Component client:load />
  <Component client:load />
</div> The reason is simple. I’ve written about the cause in and how to fix it. a previous article You can read that article for more information, but the gist is: Astro components and slots wrap their contents in a div that has display: contents The selector, which Tailwind uses for its space utilities, cannot target the elements within these Astro components and slots * + * A simple fix Fixing this is simple. We have to modify Tailwind’s space utilities with a plugin — so they can dive one level beyond Astro’s components and slots. I’ve created this plugin and added it as part of Splendid UI. You can install Splendid UI like this. npm install splendid-ui Then you can use the plugin in your Tailwind config file like this: module.exports = {
  plugins: [require('splendid-ui/tailwind/plugins/astro-space.cjs')],
} (I know the path looks long and complicated right now. It's something I'll simplify in the future as Splendid UI becomes more mature. For now, enjoy something that works! 🙃). That’s it! Further Reading Splendid UI Astro Space Utility documentation . Feel free to visit that if you want to have these articles delivered to your email first-hand whenever they're released! 🙂. By the way, this article was originally written on my blog

Using Splendid AI — A Tailwind Utility for Astro

An Adventure Amidst the Industrial Revolution

Astar Network's Plan for Seamless Interoperability in the Blockchain Space Welcome to "Behind the Startup," a series where we delve into the journey and vision of the pioneers revolutionizing the tech landscape. In this edition, we had the opportunity to speak with Greg Luneau, the Senior Integration Developer of Astar Network. With a rich background in cryptography and blockchain, Greg sheds light on Astar Network's inception, its role as a smart contract hub for Polkadot, and the unique features that set it apart from other blockchain projects. Join us as we explore the inner workings of Astar Network and discuss its ambitious plans for the future. Fueling Astar Network's Growth and Developer Incentives Ishan Pandey: Hi Greg, welcome to our series “Behind the Startup.” Please tell us about yourself and your journey to becoming the Senior Integration Developer of Astar Network? Greg Luneau: It all started with the integration of public and private key cryptography into the e-commerce platform of the Smithsonian Institute. This led me to register a US patent for transferring credit card numbers over the Internet. Jump 20 years and I'm working with blockchains first with Steem/Hive, then with EOS and finally with Polkadot. I had the opportunity to work with Acala and connect most chains at the time with HRMP channels for the goal of composability through XCM. And now, with Astar, I have the opportunity to realize that vision of integrating the very best that every para chain has to offer. Ishan Pandey: How did the Astar Network team come up with the idea of developing a "smart contract hub" for Polkadot, and what motivated you to pursue this project? Greg Luneau: For a nascent ecosystem like polkadot, developer tooling is essential. We saw that Wasm was the future and developed tools like Swanky & Sumi. Polkadot, as a relay chain only does security, it needs an L1 for smart contract execution and that's us. Think of solidity as the language for the EVM, and now ink! is the language for building smart contracts on Wasm. We're bridging the gap between the EVM and Wasm, figuratively and literally, with the XVM project. Ishan Pandey: Can you explain how Astar Network functions as a parachain for Polkadot and how it enhances the capabilities of the Polkadot ecosystem? Greg Luneau: We're a smart contract platform. Both EVM virtual machine and Wasm are supported; we're the glue between the Polkadot ecosystem and continuously work on the proof of concepts to connect with other para chains through XCM and execution transactions remotely. Ishan Pandey: The native token of Astar Network is "ASTAR." Could you elaborate on its utility and the role it plays within the ecosystem? Greg Luneau: ASTR tokens are required to pay for network resources and use decentralized applications on Astar Network. More importantly, Astar has a unique and innovative incentive mechanism for developers called dApp Staking, which leverages ASTR token inflation to maintain the ecosystem's growth while rewarding builders and participants simultaneously. We have a program called Astar SpaceLabs to support developers building on Astar Network. Our community leaders and members of the Astar team lead it. Ishan Pandey: With the growing concerns surrounding data privacy, how does Astar Network ensure user data remains secure while maintaining the efficiency of its blockchain? Greg Luneau: Being connected as a parachain means we inherit all the security of Polkadot for block production. Astar is working hard to develop and promote the light clients for developers and users. IP harvesting, for example, is a privacy issue that RPC could be doing by choice or edict. Developers could, through smart contracts and XCM, connect to other para chains that offer roll-ups or off-chain workers and utilize those privacy-enhancing features for their dApps. Ishan Pandey: How does Astar Network plan interoperability, which is a problem often faced by other blockchain projects? Greg Luneau: Traditionally, blockchains were isolated from one another due to technical limitations. However, with the progress made in bridge technology and layer 0 interoperability protocols, it is now possible to transfer tokens between blockchains, which has led to a greater variety within the ecosystem. Additionally, we have our Cross Virtual Machine (XVM). It is a new feature that our team is working on because we believe EVM is a great tool, but we also want to create something new with Wasm smart contracts. We’ll introduce how we will expand ‘Web3’ to the larger digital landscape at our upcoming event: . Wasm Launch Day Ishan Pandey: What partnerships and collaborations has Astar Network established to help expand its ecosystem and adoption across various industries? Greg Luneau: We continue to integrate with many advanced projects that can help us create a multi-chain ecosystem–cross-chain communication, new applications, and gaming. Recently we’ve had three important collaborations that will incubate the next wave of blockchain adoption: our web3 Hackathon sponsored by Toyota, Web3 Incubation Program with Sony Network Communications, and ink!ubation program with Polkadot. This means our developers have access with ample funding and close connections with different industries. Ishan Pandey: Can you share some insights into the future roadmap of Astar Network, and what new features or developments users can expect in the coming years? Introducing new tools to Astar mainet is on the short-term roadmap. This includes fully functional XVM, more cross-chain integrations, and making it possible for any developer to build a decentralized application. Astar is the first parachain that allows developers to build ink! smart contracts. Over the coming years, we will improve opportunities for blockchain developers with new on-chain features and add an ecosystem of dApps that anyone can use. You can follow our progress on . Greg Luneau: Astar homepage Starmap Ishan Pandey: Recently, the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has sent shockwaves through the financial industry. What is your perspective on this event, and how do you think it will impact the blockchain and cryptocurrency space moving forward? Greg Luneau: It is essential that we decentralize everything in the blockchain space. As Gavin Wood mentions, otherwise, we will face greater regulatory scrutiny to say it lightly. We need to strive to remove all single points of failure, avoid all centralized traps and follow the footsteps of our cyberpunk forefathers to bring freedom to all. Don’t forget to like and share the story! : Vested Interest Disclosure The author is an independent contributor publishing via our . Be it through direct compensation, media partnerships, or networking, the author has a vested interest in the company/ies mentioned in this story. HackerNoon has reviewed the report for quality, but the claims herein belong to the author. #DYOR brand-as-author program

Bridging the Gap: How Astar Network Enhances the Polkadot Ecosystem

Cerrando la brecha: cómo Astar Network mejora el ecosistema de Polkadot

Combler le fossé : comment le réseau Astar améliore l'écosystème Polkadot

गैप को पाटना: कैसे एस्टार नेटवर्क पोलकाडॉट इकोसिस्टम को बढ़ाता है

ギャップを埋める: Astar Network が Polkadot エコシステムを強化する方法

Preenchendo a lacuna: como a Astar Network aprimora o ecossistema Polkadot

Thu hẹp khoảng cách: Mạng lưới Astar tăng cường hệ sinh thái Polkadot như thế nào

弥合差距：Astar Network 如何增强 Polkadot 生态系统

Voodoo Planet by Poul Anderson, is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. You can jump to any chapter in this book here . VII Voodoo Planet Chapter VII Darkness closed in while they waited for Nymani's return. There had been no further attack from the blaster wielder; perhaps he was only trying to pin them down where they were. Out over the swamp, weird patches of phosphorescence moved in small ghostly clouds, and bright dots of insects with their own built-in lighting systems flashed spark-fashion or sailed serenely on regular flight plans. At night the wonder of the place was far removed from the squalid reality of the day. They chewed on their rations, drank sparingly of the water, and tried to keep alert to any sight or sound. That monotonous undertone, which might or might not be drums, continued as a basic hum to the noises of the night, drowned out at intervals by a splash, a mutter or cry from some swamp creature. Beside Dane, Jellico stiffened, moved his blaster, as someone wriggled through the brush, trilling softly. "Off-worlders," Nymani reported in gasps to Asaki, "and outlaws, too. They make a hunting sing—tomorrow they march for a killing." Asaki rested his chin on his broad forearm. "Outlaws?" "They show no lord's badge. But each I saw wears a bracelet of three, five, or ten tails. They are Trackers indeed, and Hunters of the best!" "They have huts?" "Not so. There are no dwellers in the inners courts here." Out of habit Nymani used the polite term for the women of his race. "I would say they tarry only for the space of a hunt. And on the boots of one I saw salt crust." "Salt crust!" Asaki snapped and half arose. "So that is the type of lure they use. There must be a saline mire near here to pull game—" "How many off-worlders?" Jellico broke in. "Three who are Hunters, one who is different." "How different?" questioned Asaki. "He wears upon his body garments which are strange; on his head a round covering such as we see upon the off-worlders of the ships—" "A spaceman!" Asaki laughed harshly. "Why not? They must have some method of transporting their hides." "You can't tell me," Jellico returned, "that anyone is able to set a ship down in this muck. It would simply be buried for all time." "But, Captain, what type of a spaceport does a Free Trader need? Do you not planet your own ship on worlds where there are no waiting cradles, no fitter shops, none of the conveniences such as mark the field Combine maintains on Xecho?" "Of course I do. But one does need a reasonably smooth stretch of territory, open enough so the tail flames won't start a forest fire. You don't ever ride a tail push down in a swamp!" "Which testifies to a trail out of here, fairly well-traveled, and some kind of a usable landing space not too far away," Asaki replied. "And that could very well serve us." "But they know we are here," Tau pointed out. It was Nymani's turn to laugh. "Man from the stars, there is no trail so well-hidden that a Ranger of the preserves cannot nose it out, nor any Hunter—be he a two or five bracelet veteran—who can keep pinned down a determined man of the forest service!" Dane lost interest in the argument at that moment. He was at the edge of their line, the nearest to the swamp, and he had been watching patches of ghostly light flitting above the rank water-weeds. For the past few moments those wisps of faded radiance had been gathering into a growing anthropomorphic blot hanging over the morass several yards away. And the misty outlines were now assuming more concrete shape. He watched, unable to believe in what he was seeing. At first the general outline, non-defined as it was, made him think of a rock ape. But there were no pointed ears above the round skull, no snout on the visage turned in profile toward him. More and more patches of swamp luminescence were drawn to that glowing figure. What balanced there now, as if walking the treacherous surface of the swampland, was no animal. It was a man, or the semblance of one, a small, thin man—a man he had seen once before, on the terrace of Asaki's mountain fortress. The thing stood almost complete, its head cocked in what was an attitude of listening. "Lumbrilo!" Dane identified it, still knowing that the witch doctor could not be standing there listening for them. But, to shake him still farther, the head turned at his cry. Only there were no eyes, no features on the white expanse which should have been a face. And somehow that made the monster more menacing, convincing Dane against sane logic that the thing was spying on them. "Demon!" That was Nymani; and over his sudden quaver, robbed of all the confidence which had been there only moments earlier, came Asaki's demand: "What stands there, Medic? Tell us that!" "A whip to drive us out of hiding, sir. As you know as well as I. If Nymani spied upon them, then they have spied upon us in turn. And this, I think, also answers another question. If there is a canker of trouble on Khatka, then Lumbrilo is close to its root." "Nymani!" The Chief Ranger's voice was the crack of a lash. "Will you forget again that you are a man, and run crying for shelter against a shaft of light? As this off-world Medic says, Lumbrilo fashions such as that to drive us into our enemies' hands!" The shadow thing in the swamp moved, putting its foot forward on surface which would not bear the weight of a human body, taking a deliberate step and then another, heading for the concealing brush where the fugitives lay. "Can you get rid of it, Tau?" Jellico asked in his usual crisp voice. He might have been inquiring about some problem aboard the Queen. "I'd rather get at the source." There was a grim note in the Medic's reply. "And to do that I want to look at their camp." "Well enough!" Asaki crept back in the brush. The ghost of that which was not a man had reached the shore of the island, stood there, its blank head turned toward them. Weird as it was, now that the first shock of sighting it was over, the spacemen could accept and dismiss it as they had not been so able to dismiss the phantom rock ape. "If that thing was sent to drive us," Dane ventured, "wouldn't we be playing their game by going inland now?" The Chief Ranger did not pause in his crawl to the left. "I think not. They do not expect us to arrive with our wits about us. Panic-stricken men are easy to pull down. This time Lumbrilo has overreached himself. Had he not played that game with the rock ape, he might have been able to stampede us now." Though the white thing continued to move inland, it did not change course to fall in behind them on the new route. Whatever it was, it did not possess a mind. There was a rustling, faint but distinguishable. Then Dane caught Nymani's whisper. "The one left to watch the inland trail does so no longer. We need not fear an alarm from him. Also, here is another blaster for our use." Away from the open by the swamp, the gloom was deeper. Dane was guided only by the noises of the less-experienced Jellico and Tau made in their progress. They edged down into a small cut, floored with reeds and mud, where some of the moisture from the soggy land about them gathered into a half pool. Straight through this swale the Khatkans set course. The drum beat grew louder. Now there was a glow against the dark—fire ahead? Dane squirmed forward and at last gained a vantage point from which to survey the poachers' camp. There were shelters erected there, three of them, but they were mainly roofs of leaves and branches. In two of them were stored bales of hides sewn into plastic cloth, ready to ship. Before the third hut lounged four off-worlders. And Nymani was very right; one of them wore ship's uniform. To the right of the fire was a ring of natives and another man, slightly apart, who beat the drum. But of the witch doctor there was no sign. And Dane, thinking of that mist-born thing at the swamp's edge, shivered. He could believe Tau's explanation of the drug which produced hallucinations back on the mountain side. But how that likeness fashioned of phosphorescence had been sent by an absent man to hunt his enemies was a eerie puzzle. "Lumbrilo is not here." Nymani's thoughts must have been moving along the same path. Dane could hear movements in the dark beside him. "There's a long-distance com unit in that third hut," Tau observed. "So I see," Jellico snapped. "Could you reach your men over the mountain with that, sir?" "I do not know. But if Lumbrilo is not here, how can he make his image walk the night?" the Chief Ranger demanded impatiently. "We shall see. If Lumbrilo is not here—he shall come." And the promise in Tau's tone was sure. "Those off-worlders will have to be out of action first. And with that walking thing sent to drive us in, they must be waiting for us." "If they have sentries out, I will silence them!" promised Nymani. "You have a plan?" Asaki's wide shoulders and upheld head showed for an instant against the light from the camp. "You want Lumbrilo," Tau replied. "Very well, sir, I believe I can give him to you, and in the doing discredit him with your Khatkans. But not with the off-worlders free to move." The program was not going to be easy, Dane decided. Every one of the poachers was armed with a Patrol blaster of the latest type, and a small part of his mind speculated as to what would be the result of that information conveyed to official quarters. Free Traders and Patrolmen did not always see eye-to-eye over the proper action to be taken on the galactic frontier. The Queen's crew had had one such brush with authority in the immediate past. But each realized that the other had an important role in the general scheme of things, and if it came to a clash between the law and outlaws, Free Traders fought beside the Patrol. "Why not give them what they expect—with reservations?" inquired Jellico. "They've set us up to be stampeded into camp, flying ahead of that tame ghost of theirs. Suppose we do stampede—after Nymani has removed any sentries—stampede so well we sweep right over them? I want to get at that com unit." "You don't think they'll just mow us down as we come in?" "You delivered a blow to Lumbrilo's pride; he won't be satisfied with just your burning," the captain answered Tau, "not if I'm any judge of character. And we'd furnish hostages of a sort—especially the Chief Ranger. No, if they had wanted to kill us they would have shot us off those islands when we came here. There would have been no playing around with ghosts and goblins." "There is reason in your words. And it is true they would like to have me, those outlaws down there," Asaki commented. "I am of the Magawaya and we have pressed always for stronger security methods to be used against such as they. But I do not see how we can take the camp." "We won't go in from the front—as they expect us to do. But a try from the north, getting at the off-worlders first.... Three men causing enough disturbance to cover operations of the other two...." "So?" There was a moment of silence as the Chief Ranger evaluated that. Then he added a few comments of his own. "That off-worlder who wears spaceman's clothing, his weapon is not drawn, though the others are ready. But I believe that you are right in thinking they expect to be warned by sentries. Those we can see to. Suppose then, Captain, you and I play the fear-crazed men running from demons. Nymani will cover us from the dark and your two men—" Tau spoke up, "Give me leave to flush out our other quarry, sir. I believe I can keep him occupied. Dane, you'll take the drum." "Drum?" With his mind on blasters, it was startling to be offered a noise-maker. "It's your business to get that drum. And when you get it I want you to beat out 'Terra Bound.' You certainly can play that, can't you?" "I don't understand," Dane began and then swallowed the rest of his protest, knowing that Tau was not going to explain why he needed to have the hackneyed popular song of the spaceways played in a Khatkan swamp. As a Free Trader he had had quite a few odd jobs handed him during the past couple of years, but this was the first time he had been ordered to serve as a musician. They waited for Nymani through dragging minutes. Surely those in the camp would expect their arrival soon now? Dane's fire ray was in his hand as he measured the distance to the drummer's stand. "It is done," Nymani whispered from the darkness behind them. Jellico and the Chief Ranger moved to the left; Tau crept to the right and Dane pushed level with the medic. "When they move," Tau's lips were beside his ear, "jump for that drum. I don't care how you get it, but get it and keep it!" "Yes, sir!" There was a wailing cry from the north, a howl of witless fear. The singers stopped in mid-note, the drummer paused, his hand uplifted. Dane darted forward in a plunge which carried him to that man. The Khatkan did not have time to rise from his knees as the barrel of the fire rod struck his head, sending him spinning. Then the drum was cradled in the spaceman's arm, close to his chest, his weapon aimed across it at the startled natives. The crackle of blaster fire, the shrill whine of needlers in action, raised a bedlam from the other end of the camp. Backing up a little, Dane went down on one knee, his weapon ready to sweep over the bewildered natives, the drum resting on the earth against his body. Keeping the fire rod steady, his left hand went to work, not in the muted cadence the Khatkan drummer had chosen, but in hard and vigorous thumps which rolled across the clamor of the fight. There was no forgetting the beat of "Terra Bound" and he delivered it with force, so that the familiar da-dah-da-da droned loud enough to awaken the whole camp. Dane's move appeared to completely baffle the Khatkan outlaws. They stared at him, the whites of their eyes doubly noticeable in their dark faces, their mouths a little agape. As usual the unexpected had driven them off guard. He dared not look away from that gathering to see how the fight at the other end of the camp was progressing. But he did see Tau's advance. The medic came into the light of the fire, not with his ordinary loose-limbed spaceman's stride, but mincingly, with a dancing step, and he was singing to the drum beat of "Terra Bound." Dane could not understand the words, but he knew that they patterned in and out of the drum beats, weaving a net between singer and listeners as Lumbrilo had woven his net on the mountain terrace. Tau had them! Had every one of the native outlaws ensnared, so that Dane rested his weapon across his knee and took up the lower beat with the fingers of his right hand as well. Da-dah-da-da.... The innocuous repetitive refrain of the original song which had been repeating itself in his mind faded, and somehow he caught the menace in the new words Tau was mouthing. Twice the medic shuffled about a circle of his own making. Then he stooped, took a hunting knife from the belt of the nearest Khatkan and held it point out toward the dark east. Dane would not have believed the medic knew the drill he now displayed, for with no opponent save the dancing firelight he fought a knife duel, feinting, striking, twisting, retreating, attacking, all in time to the beat of the drum Dane was no longer conscious of playing. And as he strove it was very easy to picture another fighting against him. So that when the knife came up in a vicious thrust which was the finish of his last attack, Dane stared stupidly at the ground, half expecting to see a body lying there. Once more Tau ceremoniously saluted with his blade to the east. Then he laid it on the ground and stood astride its gleaming length. "Lumbrilo!" His confident voice arose above the call of the drum. "Lumbrilo—I am waiting." 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. Andre Alice Norton (2006). Voodoo Planet. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved October 2022 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/18846/pg18846-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 .

Darkness closed in while they waited for Nymani's return

All Cats Are Gray by Andre Alice Norton, is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. You can jump to any chapter in this book here . All Cats Are Gray All Cats Are Gray Under normal conditions a whole person has a decided advantage over a handicapped one. But out in deep space the normal may be reversed—for humans at any rate. Steena of the spaceways—that sounds just like a corny title for one of the Stellar-Vedo spreads. I ought to know, I’ve tried my hand at writing enough of them. Only this Steena was no glamour babe. She was as colorless as a Lunar plant—even the hair netted down to her skull had a sort of grayish cast and I never saw her but once draped in anything but a shapeless and baggy gray space-all. Steena was strictly background stuff and that is where she mostly spent her free hours—in the smelly smoky background corners of any stellar-port dive frequented by free spacers. If you really looked for her you could spot her—just sitting there listening to the talk—listening and remembering. She didn’t open her own mouth often. But when she did spacers had learned to listen. And the lucky few who heard her rare spoken words—these will never forget Steena. She drifted from port to port. Being an expert operator on the big calculators she found jobs wherever she cared to stay for a time. And she came to be something like the master-minded machines she tended—smooth, gray, without much personality of her own. But it was Steena who told Bub Nelson about the Jovan moon-rites—and her warning saved Bub’s life six months later. It was Steena who identified the piece of stone Keene Clark was passing around a table one night, rightly calling it unworked Slitite. That started a rush which made ten fortunes overnight for men who were down to their last jets. And, last of all, she cracked the case of the Empress of Mars. All the boys who had profited by her queer store of knowledge and her photographic memory tried at one time or another to balance the scales. But she wouldn’t take so much as a cup of Canal water at their expense, let alone the credits they tried to push on her. Bub Nelson was the only one who got around her refusal. It was he who brought her Bat. About a year after the Jovan affair he walked into the Free Fall one night and dumped Bat down on her table. Bat looked at Steena and growled. She looked calmly back at him and nodded once. From then on they traveled together—the thin gray woman and the big gray tom-cat. Bat learned to know the inside of more stellar bars than even most spacers visit in their lifetimes. He developed a liking for Vernal juice, drank it neat and quick, right out of a glass. And he was always at home on any table where Steena elected to drop him. This is really the story of Steena, Bat, Cliff Moran and the Empress of Mars, a story which is already a legend of the spaceways. And it’s a damn good story too. I ought to know, having framed the first version of it myself. For I was there, right in the Rigel Royal, when it all began on the night that Cliff Moran blew in, looking lower than an antman’s belly and twice as nasty. He’d had a spell of luck foul enough to twist a man into a slug-snake and we all knew that there was an attachment out for his ship. Cliff had fought his way up from the back courts of Venaport. Lose his ship and he’d slip back there—to rot. He was at the snarling stage that night when he picked out a table for himself and set out to drink away his troubles. However, just as the first bottle arrived, so did a visitor. Steena came out of her corner, Bat curled around her shoulders stole-wise, his favorite mode of travel. She crossed over and dropped down without invitation at Cliff’s side. That shook him out of his sulks. Because Steena never chose company when she could be alone. If one of the man-stones on Ganymede had come stumping in, it wouldn’t have made more of us look out of the corners of our eyes. She stretched out one long-fingered hand and set aside the bottle he had ordered and said only one thing, “It’s about time for the Empress of Mars to appear again.” Cliff scowled and bit his lip. He was tough, tough as jet lining—you have to be granite inside and out to struggle up from Venaport to a ship command. But we could guess what was running through his mind at that moment. The Empress of Mars was just about the biggest prize a spacer could aim for. But in the fifty years she had been following her queer derelict orbit through space many men had tried to bring her in—and none had succeeded. A pleasure-ship carrying untold wealth, she had been mysteriously abandoned in space by passengers and crew, none of whom had ever been seen or heard of again. At intervals thereafter she had been sighted, even boarded. Those who ventured into her either vanished or returned swiftly without any believable explanation of what they had seen—wanting only to get away from her as quickly as possible. But the man who could bring her in—or even strip her clean in space—that man would win the jackpot. “All right!” Cliff slammed his fist down on the table. “I’ll try even that!” Steena looked at him, much as she must have looked at Bat the day Bub Nelson brought him to her, and nodded. That was all I saw. The rest of the story came to me in pieces, months later and in another port half the System away. Cliff took off that night. He was afraid to risk waiting—with a writ out that could pull the ship from under him. And it wasn’t until he was in space that he discovered his passengers—Steena and Bat. We’ll never know what happened then. I’m betting that Steena made no explanation at all. She wouldn’t. It was the first time she had decided to cash in on her own tip and she was there—that was all. Maybe that point weighed with Cliff, maybe he just didn’t care. Anyway the three were together when they sighted the Empress riding, her dead-lights gleaming, a ghost ship in night space. She must have been an eerie sight because her other lights were on too, in addition to the red warnings at her nose. She seemed alive, a Flying Dutchman of space. Cliff worked his ship skillfully alongside and had no trouble in snapping magnetic lines to her lock. Some minutes later the three of them passed into her. There was still air in her cabins and corridors. Air that bore a faint corrupt taint which set Bat to sniffing greedily and could be picked up even by the less sensitive human nostrils. Cliff headed straight for the control cabin but Steena and Bat went prowling. Closed doors were a challenge to both of them and Steena opened each as she passed, taking a quick look at what lay within. The fifth door opened on a room which no woman could leave without further investigation. I don’t know who had been housed there when the Empress left port on her last lengthy cruise. Anyone really curious can check back on the old photo-reg cards. But there was a lavish display of silks trailing out of two travel kits on the floor, a dressing table crowded with crystal and jeweled containers, along with other lures for the female which drew Steena in. She was standing in front of the dressing table when she glanced into the mirror—glanced into it and froze. Over her right shoulder she could see the spider-silk cover on the bed. Right in the middle of that sheer, gossamer expanse was a sparkling heap of gems, the dumped contents of some jewel case. Bat had jumped to the foot of the bed and flattened out as cats will, watching those gems, watching them and—something else! Steena put out her hand blindly and caught up the nearest bottle. As she unstoppered it she watched the mirrored bed. A gemmed bracelet rose from the pile, rose in the air and tinkled its siren song. It was as if an idle hand played…. Bat spat almost noiselessly. But he did not retreat. Bat had not yet decided his course. She put down the bottle. Then she did something which perhaps few of the men she had listened to through the years could have done. She moved without hurry or sign of disturbance on a tour about the room. And, although she approached the bed she did not touch the jewels. She could not force herself to that. It took her five minutes to play out her innocence and unconcern. Then it was Bat who decided the issue. He leaped from the bed and escorted something to the door, remaining a careful distance behind. Then he mewed loudly twice. Steena followed him and opened the door wider. Bat went straight on down the corridor, as intent as a hound on the warmest of scents. Steena strolled behind him, holding her pace to the unhurried gait of an explorer. What sped before them both was invisible to her but Bat was never baffled by it. They must have gone into the control cabin almost on the heels of the unseen—if the unseen had heels, which there was good reason to doubt—for Bat crouched just within the doorway and refused to move on. Steena looked down the length of the instrument panels and officers’ station-seats to where Cliff Moran worked. On the heavy carpet her boots made no sound and he did not glance up but sat humming through set teeth as he tested the tardy and reluctant responses to buttons which had not been pushed in years. To human eyes they were alone in the cabin. But Bat still followed a moving something with his gaze. And it was something which he had at last made up his mind to distrust and dislike. For now he took a step or two forward and spat—his loathing made plain by every raised hair along his spine. And in that same moment Steena saw a flicker—a flicker of vague outline against Cliff’s hunched shoulders as if the invisible one had crossed the space between them. But why had it been revealed against Cliff and not against the back of one of the seats or against the panels, the walls of the corridor or the cover of the bed where it had reclined and played with its loot? What could Bat see? The storehouse memory that had served Steena so well through the years clicked open a half-forgotten door. With one swift motion she tore loose her spaceall and flung the baggy garment across the back of the nearest seat. Bat was snarling now, emitting the throaty rising cry that was his hunting song. But he was edging back, back toward Steena’s feet, shrinking from something he could not fight but which he faced defiantly. If he could draw it after him, past that dangling spaceall…. He had to—it was their only chance. “What the….” Cliff had come out of his seat and was staring at them. What he saw must have been weird enough. Steena, bare-armed and shouldered, her usually stiffly-netted hair falling wildly down her back, Steena watching empty space with narrowed eyes and set mouth, calculating a single wild chance. Bat, crouched on his belly, retreating from thin air step by step and wailing like a demon. “Toss me your blaster.” Steena gave the order calmly—as if they still sat at their table in the Rigel Royal. And as quietly Cliff obeyed. She caught the small weapon out of the air with a steady hand—caught and leveled it. “Stay just where you are!” she warned. “Back, Bat, bring it back!” With a last throat-splitting screech of rage and hate, Bat twisted to safety between her boots. She pressed with thumb and forefinger, firing at the spacealls. The material turned to powdery flakes of ash—except for certain bits which still flapped from the scorched seat—as if something had protected them from the force of the blast. Bat sprang straight up in the air with a scream that tore their ears. “What…?” began Cliff again. Steena made a warning motion with her left hand. “ ” Wait! She was still tense, still watching Bat. The cat dashed madly around the cabin twice, running crazily with white-ringed eyes and flecks of foam on his muzzle. Then he stopped abruptly in the doorway, stopped and looked back over his shoulder for a long silent moment. He sniffed delicately. Steena and Cliff could smell it too now, a thick oily stench which was not the usual odor left by an exploding blaster-shell. Bat came back, treading daintily across the carpet, almost on the tips of his paws. He raised his head as he passed Steena and then he went confidently beyond to sniff, to sniff and spit twice at the unburned strips of the spaceall. Having thus paid his respects to the late enemy he sat down calmly and set to washing his fur with deliberation. Steena sighed once and dropped into the navigator’s seat. “Maybe now you’ll tell me what in the hell’s happened?” Cliff exploded as he took the blaster out of her hand. “Gray,” she said dazedly, “it must have been gray—or I couldn’t have seen it like that. I’m colorblind, you see. I can see only shades of gray—my whole world is gray. Like Bat’s—his world is gray too—all gray. But he’s been compensated for he can see above and below our range of color vibrations and—apparently—so can I!” Her voice quavered and she raised her chin with a new air Cliff had never seen before—a sort of proud acceptance. She pushed back her wandering hair, but she made no move to imprison it under the heavy net again. “That is why I saw the thing when it crossed between us. Against your spaceall it was another shade of gray—an outline. So I put out mine and waited for it to show against that—it was our only chance, Cliff. “It was curious at first, I think, and it knew we couldn’t see it—which is why it waited to attack. But when Bat’s actions gave it away it moved. So I waited to see that flicker against the spaceall and then I let him have it. It’s really very simple….” Cliff laughed a bit shakily. “But what this gray thing? I don’t get it.” was “I think it was what made the Empress a derelict. Something out of space, maybe, or from another world somewhere.” She waved her hands. “It’s invisible because it’s a color beyond our range of sight. It must have stayed in here all these years. And it kills—it must—when its curiosity is satisfied.” Swiftly she described the scene in the cabin and the strange behavior of the gem pile which had betrayed the creature to her. Cliff did not return his blaster to its holder. “Any more of them on board, d’you think?” He didn’t look pleased at the prospect. Steena turned to Bat. He was paying particular attention to the space between two front toes in the process of a complete bath. “I don’t think so. But Bat will tell us if there are. He can see them clearly, I believe.” But there weren’t any more and two weeks later Cliff, Steena and Bat brought the Empress into the Lunar quarantine station. And that is the end of Steena’s story because, as we have been told, happy marriages need no chronicles. And Steena had found someone who knew of her gray world and did not find it too hard to share with her—someone besides Bat. It turned out to be a real love match. The last time I saw her she was wrapped in a flame-red cloak from the looms of Rigel and wore a fortune in Jovan rubies blazing on her wrists. Cliff was flipping a three-figure credit bill to a waiter. And Bat had a row of Vernal juice glasses set up before him. Just a little family party out on the town. 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. Andre Alice Norton (2009). All Cats Are Gray. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved October 2022 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/29019/pg29019-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 .

All Cats Are Gray

Why Crypto is Back in the News in Japan The political elite of Japan wants to usher the country into the Web3 age with little bureaucratic red table to bring investments and create a friendly regulatory environment for blockchain startups in Japan. Several lawmakers have this year to advance crypto and Web3 policy by issuing studies and proposing revisions to current legislation and regulations. Fumio Kishida, Prime Minister of Japan, identified Web3 as a foundation of economic transformation at the beginning of the year, which kicked off the fast advancement of the crypto industry in Japan. This move by the Prime Minister has changed the perception of crypto in Japan as regulators and political elites warm up to crypto. taken the initiative In November of 2021, Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) candidate Kishida became prime minister of Japan, where his Web3 vision coincides with his administration’s goals of economic revival and revitalization. , blockchain, NFTs and Web3 have the potential to bring private investment back to Japan and help him deliver on his promise of economic expansion and more evenly distribution of wealth in the Japanese society. The change in the regulatory landscape has increased the bullishness toward crypto in Japan, a piece of exciting news for entrepreneurs looking to break into the Japanese market. According to Kishida https://twitter.com/TAIRAMASAAKI/status/1486143128113676294?embedable=true Understanding Why Japan is Critical for the Success of the Cryptocurrency Industry Japan’s crypto asset sector has seen a rise in interest and trading volume in recent years. As per Statista, in Japan, the traded in the 2020 fiscal year reached 117.97 trillion yen, an amount which showcases that crypto adoption in Japan may not be far from the reality due to continued trading interest from retail investors. Additionally, the total value of all trades on the spot market reached about 20.61 trillion yen, whereas all margin trades were 97.4 trillion yen, approximately five times as much, indicating that Japanese traders are interested in trading cryptocurrencies on leverage to maximize their profit potential. Banking on the trading interest, the political elite is trying to capitalize on Japanese traders’ interests by creating regulations protecting investor interests. total value of all cryptocurrencies About three million people in Japan held crypto assets on crypto exchanges in 2021. People in their forties made up the bulk of account holders, with those in their thirties coming in a close second. BitFlyer, Coincheck, and GMO Coin were three of Japan’s most important cryptocurrency exchanges. However, the current regulations in Japan are stringent in nature due to which Japanese cryptocurrency exchanges include fewer assets than their foreign counterparts due to strict laws restricting the listing of new cryptocurrencies, even though cryptocurrencies are growing in popularity in Japan. A self-regulatory authority for the cryptocurrency sector, the Japan Virtual and Crypto assets Exchange Association, issued a “green list” of virtual currencies that do not need to be screened before being listed by brokerage firms in 2022, making it easier for virtual asset platforms to list cryptocurrencies. Such business-friendly moves by industry stakeholders are bringing Japan back on the map for blockchain startups and investors as a favourable jurisdiction for setting up businesses. Further, Japan officially stablecoins as a form of legal tender on June 3, 2022. The Financial Services Agency (FSA) of Japan drafted the first version of the law in December 2021. By March of 2022, it had made it into Parliament, where it received overwhelming support. The legislation’s principal goal is to safeguard investments and will take effect in 2023 - a regulatory step that aims to bring back blockchain investors to Japan. As Japan is the third largest economy in the world, such regulatory developments are playing a huge role in cementing the crypto industry in Japan. recognised and legalised What is Happening? By bringing together the leading companies in Japan to collectively usher in the future of Web3, , a smart contracts platform, broke a world record by publishing a national newspaper advertising with the largest brands in a single ad. The September 26 issue of Nikkei featured advertising from 329 blue chip firms backing cryptocurrencies. Astar Network According to the Japanese Blockchain Association, Astar Network is Japan’s most widely used blockchain on the Layer-1 technology stack. The Nikkei newspaper includes an advertisement with a QR code in the bottom right corner that may be scanned to acquire a free, non-transferable NFT. If a user does not have a wallet address, the QR code will create one for them. This move is a marketing masterstroke critical for increasing the adoption of NFTs in Japan and introducing millions of people to the NFT industry. : Vested Interest Disclosure The author is an independent contributor publishing via our . Be it through direct compensation, media partnerships, or networking. The author has a vested interest in the company/ies mentioned in this story. HackerNoon has reviewed the report for quality, but the claims herein belong to the author. #DYOR brand-as-author program Presently, Web3 is a critical component of the Japanese government’s national policy. Astar Network CEO Sota Watanabe is guiding the government and many major Japanese corporations toward success in this area. Web3 represents a significant chance for the nation to increase its GDP. Large financial institutions and well-known corporations like GMO, DeNA, Accenture, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, and others support the plan because they want to see Japan succeed in increasing the adoption of blockchain and cryptocurrencies among Japanese citizens. What is Astar Network? The Astar Network allows developers to create decentralised applications using EVM and WASM smart contracts and provides them with real interoperability through cross-consensus communications (XCM).  Astor Network is built by developers for developers. Astar’s innovative Build2Earn approach enables developers to be compensated for their work through a decentralised application (dApp) staking mechanism. With the backing of all major exchanges and tier 1 VCs, Astar’s dynamic ecosystem has emerged as Polkadot’s dominant Parachain internationally. Astar gives developers the versatility of all Ethereum and WASM toolings to create their dApps. Top TVL dApps may use an incubator hub from to help their development on the Polkadot and Kusama Networks. Astar SpaceLabs Final Thoughts on Astar Network Nikkei Advertisement In my opinion, the Nikkei advertisement with an built-in NFT QR code is a genius marketing move that introduces millions of users to the world of crypto and NFTs. The continued support of the regulators and the push for friendly regulations from industry stakeholders may change the cryptocurrency landscape in Japan in the coming future. This may bring millions of users to crypto, which will assist in increasing the adoption of cryptocurrencies with billions of dollars being invested in Japan to attract institutional investors and entrepreneurs. Don’t forget to like and share the story! Image credits: and . Jezael Melgoza Clay Banks

Nikkei Advertisement for Astar Network Receives the Backing of Record 329 Japanese Corporations

Anuncio Nikkei para Astar Network recibe el respaldo de 329 corporaciones japonesas

What is Happening To boost DeFi on Polkadot, DeFi network Acala has partnered with Polkadot's innovation center Astar Network. The "Astar x Acala DeFi Rising" initiative was just released by the two top parachains to provide developers with more options and incentives. The growing number of decentralized applications (dApps) on Astar is largely due to the range of adaptable financial products offered by Acala, which supports the Polkadot network. Due to this partnership, developers may use Acala-native assets like aUSD, LDOT, and ACA to create a protocol on the Astar DeFi environment with the added bonus of collecting ACA and other benefits from the many different teams that make up the Astar ecosystem. : Vested Interest Disclosure The author is an independent contributor publishing via our . Be it through direct compensation, media partnerships, or networking, the author has a vested interest in the company/ies mentioned in this story. HackerNoon has reviewed the story for quality, but the claims hereon belong to the author. #DYOR brand-as-author program What is Acala The aUSD ecosystem is powered by the decentralised Acala financial network. Acala USD is the native stablecoin of the Polkadot ecosystem, and it is a decentralized, multi-collateral, crypto-backed stablecoin. The DeFi protocols built into Acala's Ethereum-compatible blockchain can be used by application developers. These protocols include a trustless staking derivative (liquid DOT — LDOT), a decentralised exchange, and the EVM+, a hybrid EVM that provides an Ethereum-compatible development environment that is also fully compatible with Substrate. Compostability, Parachains and Bridges on Polkadot - The Next Frontier for DeFi . There is a higher barrier to entry and the need for trust amongst communication chains in proof-of-stake systems because teams must discover and bootstrap their own set of validators. When using Polkadot, on the other hand, interchain communication is not dependent on whether or not the receiving chain trusts the sending chain. Parachains share an equivalent level of trust, simplifying things for programmers and guaranteeing consumers a consistent experience across platforms. All parachains coupled to the Polkadot Relay Chain get economic security from the Relay Chain validators, which is crucial to DeFi composability Polkadot implements asynchronous communication across parachains using cross-chain message passing (XCMP). With XCMP, sending a message either assures a response from the receiving chain or allows the sending chain to transmit the message with the expectation of getting a response of some kind (such as the return value of a function called on the receiving chain). Using bridges, Ethereum and Bitcoin-based DeFi will be able to interact with other nodes on the Polkadot network. Polkadot's robust feature set is ideal for use in DeFi initiatives. Allowing for the creation of decentralised blockchains opens the door to several fascinating applications. Instead of creating their own native parachain, some organisations opt to install their infrastructure on top of existing DeFi chains in the Polkadot ecosystem. For instance, Ren deployed its RenVM bridge module on the Acala Network as part of an alliance with Acala. Developers may choose to build on top of parachains in one of two ways: by creating runtime modules and integrating them into the parachain, or by using a parachain like Moonbeam, Plasm, or Edgeware that already supports smart-contracts (specifically, Solidity or Ink! based smart contracts). In the future, we anticipate that some groups will still choose to develop using preexisting frameworks. Liquid staking is a special type in DeFi. Staking token holders may acquire instant liquidity without a lockup period by exchanging their tokens for a synthetic token that can be traded on exchanges. Despite the increased centralization risk, token holders clearly profit from this. In the near future, Polkadot will likely be the most widely used blockchain ecosystem for liquid staking, since at least six companies are already developing solutions for it. Polkadot's DeFi initiatives aren't just carbon copies of others; they're pioneering whole new fields of study. Acala's decentralized sovereign wealth fund is one such case (dSWF). The goal of the dSWF is to ensure the long-term financial viability of the Acala project by defraying the costs of maintaining the Polkadot network and funding ongoing R&D. Like MakerDAO, Acala's stablecoin platform necessitates the payment of a stability charge upon the termination of a collateralized debt position (CDP). The stability fees collected after a CDP is decommissioned are to be held in a central account. Then, anytime the system profit is over a particular level, the extra ACA tokens will not be burned but utilized to buy DOT on the open market and added to the dSWF's DOT reserve. Innovation in the Polkadot ecosystem is moving forward at an alarming rate with the implementation of cross-chain message passing and compatibility between protocols and blockchains. Understanding the Acala Ecosystem and Polkadot aUSD, the de facto stablecoin of the Polkadot and Kusama ecosystems, is issued and traded over the Acala DeFi network, which also powers financial apps on Polkadot. Staking DOT tokens on the relay chain ensures security and keeps users liquid using LDOT, a token backed by staked DOT, one of Acala's freshly released DeFi solutions. Using Astar's Cross-Consensus Messaging Format (XCM) to carry out trustless and decentralized cross-chain transfers, the DeFi Rising initiative is the first step toward a healthy DeFi ecosystem. For Astar to become the de facto standard for multichain smart contracts, developers will need access to a large supply of high-quality assets like aUSD and LDOT. Astar programmers may use Acala's solid foundation to construct novel decentralised applications. In exchange, early use cases for widespread aUSD adoption throughout the multichain future will be developed by the Astar ecosystem. Acala's $250 million aUSD Ecosystem Fund and Astar's SpaceLabs initiative are available to projects that improve the value of aUSD on the Astar Network. Start-ups developing robust stablecoin use cases on either Polkadot or Kusama parachain are encouraged to apply to the $250 million aUSD Ecosystem Fund. The aUSD community is looking for use cases, including money markets, DEXs, derivatives, asset management, DAOs, payments, and other use cases that may be powered by Solidity or Substrate and increase the currency's yield or usefulness. Final Thoughts on Astar and Acala DeFi Rising Program The collaboration between Astar and Acala is critical for the Polkadot ecosystem as it brings developers together and furthers the innovation in DeFi. In my opinion, for the Polkadot ecosystem to compete with Ethereum, such programs are essential for attracting software developers to build the next generation of applications. Don’t forget to like and share the story! Image credits: GuerrillaBuzz Blockchain PR Agency , and . , Mike Enerio Nik Shuliahin

Astar Network and Acala Partner to Launch DeFi Rising for Unlocking New Opportunities for Developers

Astar Network y Acala se asocian para lanzar DeFi Rising para desbloquear nuevas oportunidades para desarrolladores

So let’s start! Tell us a bit about yourself. For example, name, profession, and personal interests. I’m Tyler Langlois and I’m a recovering SRE. I’ve been operating Linux systems in one form or another since before I had my drivers’ license, from salvaged discarded servers in my closet to large datacenters. My most recent professional work has been a kaleidoscope of operational engineering, software engineering, management, and writing. I’m currently taking some time to take a crack at freelance writing and consulting to find whether I can go at it solo and still make enough money to not starve. I decompress with a few hobbies like birdwatching and gardening, but the reality is that I’m a profoundly boring person and like to clock out from working on and writing about systems in order to head into my homelab in order to work on and write about systems some more. Interesting! What was your latest Hackernoon Top story about? I wrote which is just a collection of small low-level tricks for Linux systems. I’ve found that lots of people tend to collect esoteric knowledge that ends up locked away in their heads for a rainy day, and sharing a few of those that have stuck in my mind felt like a useful exercise. 20,000 Leagues Under Your Shell Do you usually write on similar topics? If not, what do you usually write about? “Interesting content about Linux internals” is probably my topic, but I’ve sort of been all over the place. I’ve written for , , , , and , and the topics vary pretty widely, from “how to use journals” to “how to run a Terraria server”. I once wrote a that made it to the number one story at Hacker News, complete with angry commenters telling me that I was using ssh wrong, so I’ve been able to fully enjoy the wide range of feedback on the Internet. favorite sysadvent opensource.com Linode DigitalOcean my own blog guide to ssh Great! What is your usual writing routine like (if you have one?) I’m a uddite, so I author almost all of my content within emacs (specifically, ) using org-mode in order to easily track my time, execute code snippets, and export my content in whatever format the outlet that I’m working on with expects copy in. I try and write as inefficiently as possible, so I avoid headphones (so I can hear my two-year-old screaming in the background), with a stream or podcast on another monitor, and with Twitter and Slack ready to interrupt me at a moment’s notice. I can only imagine what kind of superhuman efficiency I’ll unlock if I ever practice writing discipline like an actual professional, but I’m a masochist. L spacemacs What is the next thing you hope to achieve in your career? Technical writing blends the opportunity to learn new tools and topics, operate independently, and get words out on paper, which I really enjoy, so amplifying that further into something like an actual physical technical book sounds like something I’d love to achieve. Holding a book in my hands that I wrote about a topic that I’m passionate about would be supremely satisfying. Wow, that’s admirable. Now, something more casual: What is your guilty pleasure of choice? Working on my homelab servers without any sort of configuration management. Do you have a non-tech-related hobby? If yes, what is it? I came close to studying ornithology in college because I have a keen interest in birds, which I’ve scaled back to just occasional birdwatching, feeding the local birds in our area, and seeking out rare species I haven’t spotted before. I’ve contaminated my son with the urge to look for birds, and he can reliably identify species in our neighborhood by their calls alone, which I’m pretty proud of. What can the Hacker Noon community expect to read from you next? There’s some leading-edge tools out there that I wished more people knew about and used like ZFS on Linux and nix that I’d like to write about. The more people that use some of these compelling projects, the more attention they get and hopefully additional support as well. Thanks for taking the time to join our “Meet the writer” series. It was a pleasure. Do you have any closing words? First, feel free to reach out to me if there’s a topic that you’re interested in that you’d like to read about. I mentioned my growing drafts folder, but that’s just because I’m not sure what people would enjoy reading! Any feedback is helpful. Second, everyone should do a little technical writing themselves. Apart from sharing your knowledge which benefits the community as a whole, I’ve had numerous opportunities open up for me because of my technical writing and blogging, and you can, too.

An Interview with a Recovering Site Reliability Engineer

Entering the world of mechanical keyboards can be a daunting task with so many options becoming more available by the day. The first step in finding the right fit for you is deciding which layout fits your needs best. Let’s dive in! Layouts You Should Consider Layouts are one of the most important aspects of a keyboard’s function, as well as creating a pleasing aesthetic. Whether you’re a casual gamer, data entry expert, or just the average PC user, discovering the perfect landscape of keys at your fingertips can open a world of productivity and comfort. Let’s look at the most popular offerings from major peripheral companies. Full size - 1800/96% keyboards are, and have been, the office standard for years. Featuring a full function row (F1, F2, etc.) and a number pad, this layout has been a favorite of the accountant and data entry fields because of the efficiency a number pad brings to productivity. However, full-size keyboards aren’t the most compact in terms of desk space; that’s where the full-size’s little brother, the 1800/96% comes in. Full size boards feature most of the same keys as a full size, meaning it won’t impact productivity much, while freeing up a little desktop real estate. These keyboards very well may be the future of most office, cutting down on simple costs like material by making the cases smaller, and offering more desk room for other projects. 1800/96% Best for; office work, accounting Tenkeyless (TKL) - 75% (also known as TKL) keyboards usually have ~87 keys, and feature the function row, arrow keys, and some of the special and cursor control keys (for example Print Screen, Page up/down) you’d find on a full-size keyboard. Where the TKL differs, however, is the lack of a number pad. Tenkeyless This is also, generally speaking, where more of the high-end or enthusiast boards start coming into play, with much of the community preferring to forego the number pad. And to be honest, most people probably won’t have much use for one unless you’re doing large amounts of numerical work. For those that can’t do without that feature, many keyboard companies have started producing stand-alone number pads to match their respective models, so you’d never have to sacrifice aesthetics for performance. As we slim down even further, we come across the 75% board. keyboards feature roughly the same amount of keys and functions as a tenkeyless layout but save a little bit of space by organizing the home keys into a neat, vertical row. 75% models also have arrow keys placed a little bit more efficiently, making the right shift key smaller to accommodate. These are your last chance to enjoy that function row, so keep that in mind! 75% Best for office work, gaming, the middle ground of full size and smaller models 65% - 60% Here is where things really start slimming down. The boards trade the function row for a function modifier key, making your top number row act as function keys while it’s pressed. These models are great for anyone who wants portability. Keep in mind that functions and key combinations may differ from company to company, making memorizing some of the combinations a little more tricky. Moving down even further in scale, we have the 60%. 65% The is the smallest keyboard we’ll look at today, usually sporting 66-68 keys, much less than the 104 on a full-sized model. These boards are usually the go-to for most gamers, especially FPS players, where accessing a function row isn’t a necessity. Featuring the smallest case, lightest weight, and increasing availability, eSports players have gravitated highly to using the 65%/60% offerings. 60% The 60% lacks the arrow keys, however, so if you’re a programmer, you might become a little annoyed using layered key binds to navigate lines of code with these in particular. Some 60% boards have truly gone the extra mile into thoughtfully crafting their layers for dedicated purposes, namely HHKB (Happy Hacking Keyboard), which are designed with programming in mind and have created a very dedicated following and fanbase. Best for gaming, word processing, small setups Switches Mechanical keyboard switches are truly in their golden days. With innovation taking place almost nonstop, it’s hard not to be impressed with how far this once niche hobby has come in the last decade. Some of the larger producers like Cherry have been producing switches and keyboards for 40 plus years,  creating icons such as Cherry Black and the more recent Cherry Yellow. Challenging their reign, however, newer companies like Zeal, Novelkeys, and C3 are trying to push the industry even further, catering to the most die-hard of enthusiasts by coming up with groundbreaking designs, using the highest quality of materials. With 3 main types of switches (linear, tactile, and clicky) you’re bound to find the perfect feel and sound for your enthusiast-grade board. switches (think Gateron Yellow, Cherry Red, Novelkeys Cream) will have a smooth travel and actuation, and the only feedback you’ll feel from the switch is the stem bottoming out in the housing. Linear switches are one of the more sought-after for modding as well, as a coating of lubricant, such as krytox 205g0, will make these switches feel undeniably smooth. Linear switches (think Holy Panda, Cherry Brown, Durock T1’s) feature a nice, responsive “bump” at some point in the keystroke. Tactile switches can vary on feel though, so don’t expect a Cherry Brown to feel the same as a Glorious Panda switch. Many of these switches also benefit from a coating of lubricant, with some preferring to use a thinner mixture such as Tribosys 3204 and skip the lubing on the front of the stem’s legs in order to keep maximum tactility. Tactile switches (think Cherry Blue, Kailh Box White, Zeal Clickiez) are closer to tactile switches in terms of feel, but offer an audible “click” when actuating a key. This type of switch doesn’t have the same level of fandom as the other two, but with more companies trying to reinvent the clicky switch and how it works, such as Zeal did with their “Clickiez”, the landscape could soon be changing. Just remember, these probably wouldn’t be your roommate’s first pick of switches, so keep noise level in mind. Clicky Other Considerations ABS plastic has been the standard for keycaps in terms of thermoplastics, boasting the widest assortment of colors. These caps will be more prone to shining over time, however. These caps generally are slightly higher priced than PBT. GMK is one of the most sought-after, collectible keycap manufacturers in the industry, and only produces caps with ABS Keycap material: plastic. PBT is seeing more and more use in keycap manufacturing, with companies specializing in increasing the once-limited color palette associated with the plastic. These caps will have a rougher texture but are more resistant to shine, and generally have a deeper pitch. due to the arrow keys being placed more inwards on the board, the right shift key will generally be 1.75u instead of 2.25u on a TKL. Make sure when purchasing keycaps that they come with the right modifier keys, including shift, control, windows key, and spacebars in some cases. 65% and 75% right shift: Keyboards with a north-facing LED will have interference with Cherry profile keycaps, causing odd noise and feel on the 3rd row of keys. North-facing/south-facing switches: Conclusion Finding the right keyboard, switches, and keycaps can be quite the journey, so always make sure to check resources like Youtube in regards to sound. Many of the content creators also have very well-thought-out and detailed reviews, making buying a model in any of these sizes much easier. Whatever you decide, customizing it with different switches, keycaps and cables can make it truly one-of-a-kind, so have some fun!

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