
Building Web3 into the Web
Together with members of Geometry - Tom Walpo and Ben Levy - we’ve been thinking about how we upgrade the Internet and build Web3 directly into the Web, such that it is available by default in every webpage. Every web app could become a financial app, enabling: Micropayments - content creators can directly monetise, paywalls can offer one time payment options Seamless web purchases - assets can be bought and swapped within web articles Digital content integrity - the authenticity of all digit...

When the World Goes Phygital!!!!
The Forefront Journal publishes essays from the frontier of consumer and social crypto. This is a guest essay from Aleksija Vujicic. In the future, fashion and commerce will be phygital (no matter how much you hate the word). It could look a little like this: After purchasing a Staud bag online, it arrives embedded with an NFC chip. A quick tap of your phone mints its digital twin as an NFT in your digital fashion closet (DFC), a social platform where friends & followers can see your fashion ...

Object Histories
Welcome to Folklore, a community exploring the labyrinth of networked worlds. We’re happy to showcase a guest post by Timour Kosters. Timour is an investor and builder working in crypto, governance, and ml. We encourage you to support Folklore by minting and sharing this article. Want to join the Folklore community? Purchase your membership here.If walls could talk I have a vivid memory of a particular moment in 2019: it was a sunny spring day, and I had just picked up the keys to my new apar...
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Building Web3 into the Web
Together with members of Geometry - Tom Walpo and Ben Levy - we’ve been thinking about how we upgrade the Internet and build Web3 directly into the Web, such that it is available by default in every webpage. Every web app could become a financial app, enabling: Micropayments - content creators can directly monetise, paywalls can offer one time payment options Seamless web purchases - assets can be bought and swapped within web articles Digital content integrity - the authenticity of all digit...

When the World Goes Phygital!!!!
The Forefront Journal publishes essays from the frontier of consumer and social crypto. This is a guest essay from Aleksija Vujicic. In the future, fashion and commerce will be phygital (no matter how much you hate the word). It could look a little like this: After purchasing a Staud bag online, it arrives embedded with an NFC chip. A quick tap of your phone mints its digital twin as an NFT in your digital fashion closet (DFC), a social platform where friends & followers can see your fashion ...

Object Histories
Welcome to Folklore, a community exploring the labyrinth of networked worlds. We’re happy to showcase a guest post by Timour Kosters. Timour is an investor and builder working in crypto, governance, and ml. We encourage you to support Folklore by minting and sharing this article. Want to join the Folklore community? Purchase your membership here.If walls could talk I have a vivid memory of a particular moment in 2019: it was a sunny spring day, and I had just picked up the keys to my new apar...
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Web3 is a strange, ambivalent space. The perception of web3 outside the space is generally negative and viewed with suspicion. And we seem to be happy to fuel this view with weekly news about scams, rug pulls, hacks, and other security flaws. Some critics are happily mentioning the bad news regularly: more proof that web3 is just a giant scam and does not work.
Admittedly, the web3 experience could be easier, more pleasant, and more welcoming. Buzzwords like permissionless, ownership, decentralization, immutability,... are hurled at newcomers without providing context and explanation.
The technology itself makes matters worse. Often it is not self-explanatory how things work or what users have to pay attention to; that is even true for core components like wallets. A slew of technical terms need to be understood. Yes, there are FAQs, text and video tutorials, and other material available. But how much material is a newcomer supposed to read and watch if they want to start with web3? Setting up a wallet, purchasing ETH,... Oh, that cute NFT is on Polygon? What is Polygon? Can't I just buy it with my ETH? Most people will drop out at this stage if they are not very curious about the space or technology, especially if the use case is not obvious to them. It is simply too much effort.
So, much of the technology is not ready for mainstream adoption and the industry is plagued with scammers and ponzis. Why should I stay and watch the space or even get involved?
I think there is an alternative web3 beyond the headlines. Some people envision a better, more just world. ReFi and impact DAOs come to mind. Sure, several projects will never be fully realized and will remain pipe dreams. But imagination is the first step to changing circumstances. If we cannot imagine a better world, why are we here anyway?
Oddly, both critics and proponents of web3 agree that the current web of big tech and platform economy needs to change. Our data and efforts to provide content are monetized by corporations, profits stay in the pockets of the c-suite and shareholders. They only leave crumbs - if any - for the rest of us.
Web3 is offering new tools and ways for creators to earn an income. Mind you, nobody is claiming that all creators will make a living off their work if they only entered the magic world of web3. If anyone is claiming this, be suspicious of them! But it is an opportunity to change the rules, to bypass the middlemen.
Maybe I will be disillusioned about the space in a few months or years. Until then, I try to support people, companies, and projects that try to change the current state of the web. It is much easier to stay on the sidelines and just criticize without making a real effort and providing an alternative.
Currently, web3 is hope.
Web3 is a strange, ambivalent space. The perception of web3 outside the space is generally negative and viewed with suspicion. And we seem to be happy to fuel this view with weekly news about scams, rug pulls, hacks, and other security flaws. Some critics are happily mentioning the bad news regularly: more proof that web3 is just a giant scam and does not work.
Admittedly, the web3 experience could be easier, more pleasant, and more welcoming. Buzzwords like permissionless, ownership, decentralization, immutability,... are hurled at newcomers without providing context and explanation.
The technology itself makes matters worse. Often it is not self-explanatory how things work or what users have to pay attention to; that is even true for core components like wallets. A slew of technical terms need to be understood. Yes, there are FAQs, text and video tutorials, and other material available. But how much material is a newcomer supposed to read and watch if they want to start with web3? Setting up a wallet, purchasing ETH,... Oh, that cute NFT is on Polygon? What is Polygon? Can't I just buy it with my ETH? Most people will drop out at this stage if they are not very curious about the space or technology, especially if the use case is not obvious to them. It is simply too much effort.
So, much of the technology is not ready for mainstream adoption and the industry is plagued with scammers and ponzis. Why should I stay and watch the space or even get involved?
I think there is an alternative web3 beyond the headlines. Some people envision a better, more just world. ReFi and impact DAOs come to mind. Sure, several projects will never be fully realized and will remain pipe dreams. But imagination is the first step to changing circumstances. If we cannot imagine a better world, why are we here anyway?
Oddly, both critics and proponents of web3 agree that the current web of big tech and platform economy needs to change. Our data and efforts to provide content are monetized by corporations, profits stay in the pockets of the c-suite and shareholders. They only leave crumbs - if any - for the rest of us.
Web3 is offering new tools and ways for creators to earn an income. Mind you, nobody is claiming that all creators will make a living off their work if they only entered the magic world of web3. If anyone is claiming this, be suspicious of them! But it is an opportunity to change the rules, to bypass the middlemen.
Maybe I will be disillusioned about the space in a few months or years. Until then, I try to support people, companies, and projects that try to change the current state of the web. It is much easier to stay on the sidelines and just criticize without making a real effort and providing an alternative.
Currently, web3 is hope.
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