🐝 Three Blockchains, One New Account – Did My Curiosity Just Get Me Into Trouble?

Sometimes Curiosity Can Be Dangerous... Apparently!

Well, I may have done something rather dangerous in the blockchain world. No, I haven't lost my private keys, transferred my tokens to the wrong wallet or accidentally shut down a server. Although, knowing my luck with technical experiments, those things are probably always a possibility!

What I did was much simpler. I discovered a new blockchain called MELEK, registered an account and decided to write about my experiences on three other platforms: Blurt, Hive and Steemit.

Sounds harmless enough, doesn't it?

But anyone who has spent some time in the blockchain world knows that talking about another blockchain can sometimes be like walking into a football stadium wearing the wrong team's shirt. Suddenly, people start wondering which side you're on.

And that's exactly what made me think. Had I just managed to get myself into trouble with three different blockchain communities simply because I wanted to explore something new?

I certainly expected a few raised eyebrows. After all, I've been active on these platforms for years, and I've seen how quickly discussions about competing blockchain projects can become emotional.

But the reactions were actually more interesting than I expected.

How This Whole Adventure Started

For anyone who hasn't read my first introduction here on MELEK, perhaps I should explain how I ended up on this platform in the first place.

It all began with a comment under one of my older blog posts. The article was already about a year old when someone suddenly informed me that I still owned 65.99 VKBT and 0.361 CURE tokens on Hive-Engine.

I had practically forgotten about them.

Naturally, I checked my wallet. The VKBT tokens were indeed there, although their displayed value was almost zero. So unfortunately, I hadn't discovered a forgotten cryptocurrency fortune that would allow me to retire early.

That was a little disappointing. I already had plenty of ideas for spending all that free time!

But the comment also contained information about MELEK, and that was where things became interesting. I followed the links, explored the website and started reading about the project.

At first, everything looked familiar. Blogging, voting, rewards, witnesses and a blockchain running in the background. Anyone familiar with Steemit, Hive or Blurt would immediately recognise the basic concept.

My first thought was probably the same as that of many other people: Do we really need another blockchain doing almost the same thing?

But the more I looked, the more curious I became.

According to the project's documentation, MELEK launched without a premine or a token allocation reserved for its founders. Everyone also has to register a new account rather than automatically inheriting their previous balances and influence from another blockchain.

That doesn't guarantee a fair distribution forever, of course. But it was an interesting starting point, especially considering the history of some older blockchain projects.

There were also other things I wanted to explore, including the token engine, bridges, community applications and Hathor, the AI-operated witness.

Eventually, curiosity won.

I created my account, published my first introduction and started looking around.

And then I had another idea.

Why not write about this discovery on the platforms where I've already been blogging for years?

That was when things became interesting for a second time!

Three Communities, Three Different Perspectives

I didn't simply copy the same article to all three platforms. Instead, I approached the subject from different perspectives because each blockchain has its own history and community.

On Blurt, I focused on a question that was important to me personally: Why should exploring something new automatically mean abandoning something familiar?

I've spent years there, published many articles and become involved in the technical side of the network. I operate my own Blurt Witness and have recently developed a project that collects witness statistics and produces weekly reports.

Those projects don't suddenly become meaningless because I've registered somewhere else. My Witness doesn't stop producing blocks just because I'm reading articles on MELEK!

On Hive, I approached the subject a little differently. I've sometimes noticed how strongly people identify with their preferred blockchain. Of course, that's understandable. When you've invested years of your time in a community, you naturally develop a connection to it.

But I also find it strange when that connection turns into the belief that everything outside your own ecosystem must automatically be inferior.

Isn't blockchain technology supposed to represent openness, independence and the freedom to explore different possibilities?

Then we should probably be willing to look at different approaches as well.

And finally, there was Steemit.

That article took me back to the history of blockchain blogging and the conflicts surrounding the events of March 2020. Anyone who experienced that period will probably remember how emotional the discussions became.

The dispute over control of the Steem network eventually led to the creation of Hive. Opinions about those events still differ, and I wasn't interested in reopening every old argument.

But the history raised a question that remains relevant today: How decentralised is a blockchain when substantial economic influence can become concentrated among relatively few accounts?

And could a new project like MELEK approach some of these problems differently?

I wanted to discuss the possibilities, not announce that anyone had already found the perfect solution.

And Then the Comments Started Arriving

Now comes the interesting part.

I had expected some negative reactions, perhaps even a little hostility. After all, I'd just written about a new blockchain on three established platforms.

But instead of being attacked from every direction, I received several thoughtful comments.

On Steemit, one reader remembered the events of March 20, 2020, and told me how closely they had followed the conflict from another community. What particularly caught their attention was my observation that a blockchain doesn't automatically become free from power struggles simply because it uses the word decentralisation.

They wanted to know what had convinced me that MELEK might be different this time.

Another reader asked whether MELEK could actually avoid the same concentration of power that has caused problems elsewhere.

Those are excellent questions.

And my answer is simple: I don't know yet.

I can't predict the future, and I certainly can't promise that MELEK will avoid every problem that older blockchain networks have experienced.

Starting without a premine is interesting, but it's not a magic solution. Even when everyone begins without a large reserved allocation, wealth and influence can still become concentrated over time.

The real test will come when the community grows, disagreements arise and decisions have to be made.

That's when we'll discover how well the project's principles work in practice.

On Hive, another reader raised a similar concern. They wondered how much stake the twenty largest accounts might control after a year.

I actually think that would be a fascinating statistic to examine.

They were also concerned about the AI-operated witness, Hathor.

I understand the caution, although I personally find the use of artificial intelligence interesting. AI is already becoming part of everyday life, and experimenting with it in blockchain infrastructure opens up questions worth exploring.

Of course, an AI-operated witness should be evaluated just as critically as any other part of the network. Who controls it? How does it operate? What responsibilities does it have?

Those are reasonable questions, not reasons to stop exploring.

And then there was another commenter who made me smile because they had a completely different attitude.

They explained that they blog on Blurt, Steemit, Hive and now MELEK as well. Even when things don't go particularly well on one platform, they continue publishing and enjoying the experience.

Their message was essentially: Blog everywhere, enjoy life and stay curious!

I rather liked that.

Because somewhere between all the technical discussions, token prices, witness rankings and disagreements, it's easy to forget that blogging is also supposed to be enjoyable.

So, Did I Actually Make Three New Enemies?

Looking at the reactions so far, I would say the answer is no.

At least nobody has arrived at my door with pitchforks and torches. And my motorcycle is still standing where I parked it, which I consider a good sign!

Seriously, though, I found the responses encouraging. They reminded me that people can disagree about technology without treating each other as enemies.

Some readers were interested in the unusual token distribution. Others were concerned about the concentration of voting power or the role of artificial intelligence. And some simply enjoyed the idea of discovering another blogging platform.

Not everyone approached the subject from the same perspective, and that's exactly what made the discussions worthwhile.

It would have been rather boring if everyone had simply written, "Great project!" without asking a single critical question.

After all, a blockchain isn't automatically good because its developers say it is. And it isn't automatically bad because it resembles an existing project.

What matters is how it works, how the community develops and whether the promises made at the beginning are reflected in reality.

That's something we can only discover over time.

And honestly, I'd much rather have a thoughtful discussion with someone who disagrees with me than a hundred comments that say nothing beyond "Nice post!"

The Question of Power and Fairness

One thing became particularly clear from the reactions: People haven't forgotten the problems that older blockchain communities have experienced.

Questions about large stakeholders, voting power, governance and decentralisation are still very much alive.

And perhaps that's a good thing.

When MELEK says it began without a premine or reserved founder allocation, that naturally attracts attention. It's an interesting decision, especially for people who have experienced disagreements about token ownership and influence elsewhere.

But the initial distribution is only the beginning.

What happens after six months? After a year? After five years?

Will voting power remain relatively distributed, or will a small number of accounts eventually control a substantial share?

Will ordinary users have meaningful opportunities to participate, or will the same problems slowly appear again?

These are questions worth asking.

I already work with blockchain statistics through my Blurt Witness project, so the suggestion to examine the twenty largest MELEK stakeholders after a year immediately caught my attention.

Numbers can tell interesting stories, especially when you compare them over time instead of looking at a single snapshot.

That doesn't mean I'm announcing another big statistics project. I have enough unfinished ideas already!

But it would certainly be interesting to follow those developments.

For me, the most important point is that a project should be judged by what actually happens, not just by what is written in a whitepaper.

And the same standard should apply to established blockchains as well.

What About the AI Witness?

Another subject that attracted attention was Hathor, the AI-operated witness.

I can understand why this raises questions. Witnesses are an important part of blockchain infrastructure, and their reliability and accountability matter.

Personally, however, I don't consider the involvement of artificial intelligence something to be afraid of automatically.

AI has already become part of many areas of everyday life. We use it to analyse information, assist with programming, solve technical problems and support all kinds of creative projects.

So why shouldn't people also experiment with AI in blockchain technology?

Of course, that doesn't mean giving an AI system unlimited control and simply hoping everything will work out.

There should be clear responsibilities, transparency and ways to evaluate its performance.

I'm particularly interested in the practical implementation. Which tasks are automated? Which decisions are still made by people? How does the witness behave when problems occur?

MELEK's documentation also describes a protected active witness position for Hathor during the network's first year. That is a special arrangement, and it deserves scrutiny just like any other governance decision.

But I don't think we should reject an experiment simply because it involves technology that makes some people uncomfortable.

Being cautious is sensible.

Allowing caution to prevent us from learning anything new is something else entirely.

And who knows? Perhaps we'll discover that some ideas work extremely well while others still need considerable improvement.

That's what experiments are for.

I Haven't Changed My Mind About Blogging

One thing all these discussions reminded me of is why I started blogging in the first place.

I enjoy sharing experiences.

Sometimes I write about a motorcycle trip, sometimes about my Hyundai IONIQ 5, and sometimes about a large 3D printing project that has kept me busy for weeks.

Other times I write about technical subjects, server problems or developments in the blockchain world.

I don't expect everyone to be interested in every topic. That's perfectly normal.

But I do believe that personal experiences are worth sharing, especially when they lead to useful conversations.

And that's what happened with my MELEK articles.

A simple discovery led to posts on three different blockchains, and those posts led to discussions about fairness, decentralisation, artificial intelligence and the future of blogging communities.

Not bad for a few forgotten tokens that were apparently worth almost nothing!

In a way, those tokens turned out to be more valuable as a starting point for an interesting conversation than as a financial asset.

I certainly didn't expect that when I first read the comment.

One New Road Doesn't Mean Abandoning the Others

My nickname is Hornet on Tour, and perhaps that explains my attitude better than any technical argument.

When I'm out riding my Honda VFR 1200 F, I don't always take the same road. Sometimes I know exactly where I want to go. Other times I simply choose a direction and see what I discover along the way.

That doesn't mean I dislike the roads I've travelled before.

Some of them remain my favourites, and I return to them regularly.

But if I never explored unfamiliar roads, I would miss countless interesting places.

The same applies to my online activities.

I can continue writing on Blurt, Hive and Steemit while also exploring MELEK.

Each platform has its own history, technical characteristics and community. And each offers opportunities to meet people, exchange ideas and learn something new.

I don't see why enjoying one should automatically exclude the others.

After all, I don't sell my motorcycle every time I discover a new road!

And I'm certainly not going to throw away my 3D printers just because someone develops a new model.

Although my wife might appreciate it if I stopped looking at new printers quite so often!

What Happens Next?

For now, I'll continue exploring MELEK at my own pace.

I've created my account, published my introduction and started learning about the surrounding applications. There is still plenty I don't understand, and I'm sure I'll encounter a few surprises along the way.

I don't know whether MELEK will become a major blockchain community or remain a small project with a dedicated group of users.

I don't know how its token distribution will develop, how successful its applications will become or whether the AI-operated witness will prove to be a particularly useful experiment.

Nobody can answer all those questions today.

And that's perfectly fine with me.

I'm not here to predict the future.

I'm here because something caught my attention, and I wanted to find out more.

If the project develops in an interesting direction, perhaps I'll write about it again. If something disappoints me, I'll be equally happy to share that experience.

In the meantime, I'll continue working on my existing projects, riding my motorcycle whenever the weather allows and trying to find enough hours in the day for my next 3D printing idea.

So far, I haven't found a way to extend the day to 30 hours.

But if someone develops a blockchain that can do that, please let me know immediately!

Curiosity Is Not a Crime

So, did joining MELEK and writing about it on three other blockchains get me into trouble?

Not so far.

Instead, it led to interesting discussions, thoughtful questions and the reminder that there are plenty of people who still enjoy exploring new ideas.

And that's something I appreciate.

I don't believe we need to agree on everything to respect each other's curiosity.

It's perfectly reasonable to question a project's technology, financial structure or governance. In fact, those questions are essential if blockchain communities want to develop in a healthy direction.

But there's a big difference between examining something critically and rejecting it before you've even looked at it.

For me, experimenting with new technology has always been part of the fun.

Sometimes an experiment becomes a successful project. Sometimes it turns into a complicated problem that takes days to solve. And sometimes it simply teaches me something I didn't know before.

All three outcomes have their value.

I've discovered another road in the blockchain world, and I'm curious to see where it leads. That doesn't mean I've forgotten the roads that brought me here.

And if my curiosity eventually gets me into trouble on three different blockchains?

Well, at least I'll have enough material for another blog post!

Until then, I'll keep exploring, learning and sharing my experiences.

Have fun, enjoy life and stay curious! 🐝

Greetings from Greifswald on the Baltic Sea coast of Germany!

Hornet on Tour

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