HiveFest Reflections 5: Church, Chats & Cheers!

After a busy first full day yesterday, there was no rest for the wicked. We had the small matter of conference day 2 to attend to, with all the talks (both official and unofficial) and perhaps take a tipple or two later. First, we head to church!

Church tower and bells above our venue for day 2. Pic by @rubencress

Yes, the second day venue was at the Zuiderkerk, a restored church in central Amsterdam now used for conferences, events and concerts… and hiving. 

First challenge was finding the place but once I entered the courtyard I saw some familiar faces buzzing around. After a tour round the outside of the building trying to find the correct entrance we ended back at the first door which now had Roeland opening up and welcoming us in. 

Straight to the coffees and cakes… and some catch up with some characters before official play resumed. Without further ado - time for more talks. What do we have in store?

The Presentations

After some opening chat from Roeland aka The Man in the Hive Pyjamas, we got on with the juice. And first up a super interesting project and explanation of an item contained in my bag received at registration. 

@hiq / @hiq.magazine by @smooms        

This is a monthly magazine put together by Smooms and the team, both in digital and now hard copy too. I skimmed the one we were given at the event but only just got round to reading it properly the other day. A really interesting read featuring our man @roelandp along with a great interview with @blocktrades and other happenings around the HiveSphere. 

So this talk was about that and potential next steps. It was asked if there would be a Spanish version, and the answer was of course with the resources. That would go for any language I would guess (it’s currently in English and German). They may be interested in contributors too so something for us all to consider.  

@ocd by @livinguktaiwan

A really interesting talk on the OCD and other projects LivingUKTaiwan and associates have going on. She was presenting on behalf of @acidyo who couldn’t make it and did an excellent job. I must admit I didn’t know the extent of the particulars of this project and all the other initiatives they’re involved with. Not even an error with the slides could put her off! (she mentioned it, I didn’t notice)

@peakd by @jarvie       

One of the best projects and most used interfaces out there. It changed the game in the SteemPeak days as that was the first (and more user friendly) alternative to Steemit.com. Well, there was busy.org too but this upped the ante. 

PeakD has taken that to Hive and ran with it. It goes from strength to strength with its features and there is no end to the possibilities, especially if combined with others for full effect. Jarvie did a great job going through what they’re about and future plans with only a slightly smug grin following last night’s Boules victory. 

Also before lunch we had @lecharles talking about Carbonds, @lrock posing the question - and trying to answer - who is Satoshi? (and was it really Craig Wright?), @keys-defender on Crypto Shots and @edb on Hybrid Delegation. Let’s not forget our ol’ pal @arcange with his Hive Authentication Services which adds an extra layer of ease and security to log ins.

Let’s Eat

Time for lunch, and we had a spread of all sorts. Sandwiches galore, chickpea couscous, many other nibbles… and @coldbeetrootsoup! Yes, the Beet Boys were back and serving us some of what they told us about yesterday. And yes, it was delicious. 

Dispute over Beetroot? Pic by @rubencress

The finished product being munched at lunch - pic by @rubencress 

I had a little bit of everything, did the rounds trying to chat to a few more people then back into the afternoon session…

The Big 3

The last 3 talks on this day summed up a lot of what Hive is all about and where things go in the future. They left things on a good note as they were well presented but also suggest a huge impact on Hive, blockchain, and the world in general.

SPK.network by @starkerz 

The larger scope of the Spk project is beyond me, but if I understand it at all it seems like a potential game changer and next evolution. Whilst I haven’t actually used 3Speak and not delved in properly to the extended network plans, I have been following along with the likes of @taskmaster4450 who has been banging on this drum for a while. 

Starkerz’s style is very much a stand and deliver; cool, calm and collected kind of vibe. It was a case of taking us through some of their plans, and to the untrained eye it all seems fascinating. I’m intrigued to know how it all pans out and integrates with everything else. Unfortunately, @theycallmedan couldn’t attend as it would be interesting to meet him and get his take, and he’s been a driving force of all things Speak and Hive. 

Podping & Value4Value by @brianoflondon 

Brian’s talk was mostly about his Podping project (essentially an indexing and alert system for podcasts updates) and also incorporated his work bridging the Lightning network built by Bitcoin bods to Hive, that being v4v.app (value for value). Both of these initiatives help this whole ecosystem excel.

An interesting guy who knows his onions… I’ve just rewatched this presentation to get more of an understanding (it was nearly beer o’clock at the time and attentions were wandering). Definitely a person worth listening to with some interesting ideas. If a few people above work together effectively it will have an exponential effect on all that’s produced. 

@risingstargame by Jux 

Admittedly, I haven’t got into the whole gaming aspect of Hive, nor have I played this particular game. I’m aware of it and of several people who play regularly and seem to enjoy it.

The point is what this represents; whether that’s as a developer or as an end user. People can create and play games (or whatever else the mind can conjure up) as they would anyway, it’s just that this takes place on blockchain (in this case Hive) with the benefits that brings. 

I particularly liked Jux’s passion and enthusiasm for the game and his work and vision in general. One of the best delivered of all the talks based on that fact alone. The start was a bit of fun with @steevc busking and being chased off the stage. Clearly an in-joke which made more sense to those in the know!

There are many plans and development going on and I may have to take a look and get involved myself. There’s only so much time we can all devote to each project, but if there’s an interest there, why not dive in. 

As I say, those last 3 talks epitomise what’s happening on chain and were a great way to wrap up the ‘official’ proceedings. 

Well, not quite… time for some tunes!

After a short break and people still milling around (bar was open now, go figure), Mr @tdctunes started doing his thing. I managed to miss a lot of it as I was deep in conversation but did catch some in between.

I’ve just rewatched the YouTube vid to get some of the flavour and he did a sterling job and it would have been good to have paid it my full attention at the time. Alas, things had begun to get haphazard (with the crowd, not tdctunes who was on point) but provided some great backing tracks to our chit-chats. And next time I'll send in a little audio!

There was also the JukeBells going on. This was an ongoing vote through the day of what songs would be played by carillonneur Gideon Bodden. He was playing said tunes on his percussion instrument and the sweet sounds rang out from the tower as we chatted among ourselves for an hour or so. Many of us had gone outside at this point and would nip in to top up our drinks. 

What of the evening entertainment?

There were 2 choices (well, you could also do your own thing). Considering this was indeed the Saturday and a drink was in order, then option 1 was #BeerSaturday led by @detlev who of course gave a talk on this topic yesterday.

Option 2 for all the gamblors was a game of poker. Being that I’m not much of a gambler, good at poker or have the inclination… coupled with the virtues of the alternative option, led me down the beer route (Saturday or otherwise). 

We went to two bars that were organised where we had tables booked and a jolly old crew joined over the course of the night. A fair few from the start then it built from there with people coming and going. 

Some others took some pics and gave good descriptions, but not so much me. I will say I had a delightful time in the first bar, especially chatting with @karinxxl, @revisesociology and others sat in the vicinity. There were some good discussions and we were at that sweet spot of alcohol consumed and the point in the evening. 

All for me ;)

'Pintner' in crime @revisesociology (his pic)

Watch out for these 2 Dutchies! @karinxxl and @soyrosa deep in conversation at boules the previous night. Pic by @bil.prag

At the second bar I got to know a few others a bit more who I had only passed the time with previously. The Portuguese contingent of @pardinus and @xrayman keeping me honest and ensuring I drink after a toast, thus ensuring a sex life of some sort over the coming 7 years. 

And let’s not forget the delightful @soyrosa who despite her need for a tease loves us Brits!

A couple of those later beers really kicked in (you think? 7+% you’re likely to feel something on top of the rest) and I was a little tired so thought it a good time to slope off. Part of me considered a return somewhere but I got some fresh food and then continued back to my hostel. I also managed to soak both my feet in a puddle en route I seem to recall. Ah, precious memories.

It had been a busy few days and we still had the grand finale tomorrow. With the bonus of not having to get up early in the morning and have a completely clear day till 5pm. But what to do? Let’s find out in the last instalment (I think), and wrap this whole thing up…

Adam
@adambarratt

Related:
- What is HiveFest (+ Hive)?
- Part 1: Going Dutch
- Part 2: Arrival in Amsterdam 
- Part 3: Bring on the Beers
- Part 4: Beets, Boats & Boules
- Part 6: Hangin' at De Hoop
- Lisbon 2017

Images my own, credited or linked to source (special thanks to @bil.prag & @rubencress) 

Videos from the HiveFest YouTube channel (full streams for day 1 and day 2 available)

More from me @ AdamBarratt.com & FortressFree.com!

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