About Cindy M. Holder

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Ripple, Ripples, and Rippling

Ripple, Ripples, and Rippling

The Company

Ripple is created by the Ripple company and uses ripples or XRP as its native cryptocurrency. It dates back to 2012. when it was first founded and established. Its purpose is to be a system for payment protocols, currency exchange, or as a remittance network. To put it simply it is a real-time gross settlement system or RTGS.

By using the idea of blockchain the Ripple Company is able to provide people with an exciting innovation in the scope of global transactions. It was proven to be a cost-effective, highly functional, and a reliable system with many users.

Advantages

RippleIts main features include time-efficiency and safety. It is a fast, nearly free and secure way for financial transactions on a global scale. For the last couple of years, on the market, the ripple has remained in the top 5 as far as currencies go. It is a very popular and much-used network which both individuals and organizations earnestly use.

Though reminiscent of the bitcoin, this is a different type of cryptocurrency. It is owned privately thus cannot be verified by any outsider. It also supports tokens as currency. It revolves around the idea of an open and shared database which uses consensus as a basis for payments, exchanges, distribution, and other financial protocols.

Supporters

Some institutions which support the Ripple Company include internet service providers, UniCredit bank, Santander, and even the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It is even said that from the perspective of a settlement infrastructure of any standard bank, the ripples are far more developed and advantageous as a cryptocurrency than, for example, the bitcoin.

The Ripple Company has offices worldwide, in locations such as New York and London. What is more, even India and Luxembourg have Ripple offices. Their clientele is global as are their services.

Users and ripples

Many banks use the Ripple protocol and allow their customers to use it. It can be easily done just by incorporating the Ripple protocol into, for example, the bank’s system. The requirement for this is pretty basic. You’ll need a regular financial institution and system on one end, and so-called ‘market makers’ on the other end. This is the condition for any transaction to occur. The two sides have to have a need for the transaction and the transaction needs to be efficient. The first end of the transaction is the one that holds funds and issues balances for their customers. While the other part can be, for example, hedge funds or any basis for trading currencies.Ripple

The two currencies available are XRP or Ripple’s native currency or fiat currencies. They allow users to make payments in both directions by cryptographically signing transactions. Everything the user needs to do is which other users they can trust and with what amount. The system works by finding the path of trust from one user to the other by linking them through other trustees. This is a unique mechanism dubbed “rippling”. It is an extraordinary way of establishing financial relationships and securing your payment protocols in an innovative manner.

Facts You Didn’t Know About Newspapers And Magazines

Facts You Didn’t Know About Newspapers And Magazines

Through the Ages

When did the newspaper come to be? This model of informing people is older than you think. The idea of the modern newspaper has been present for over six centuries and the idea of public news has been here since Ancient times.

The perNewspapers and Magazinesiodical was established in the second half of the 17th century. Many unauthorized publications were at hand then as they are now. Also in the late 17th century, the States had their first newspaper printed and published in Boston. An amazing indicator of the flourishing of this industry is the fact that by the 18th century there were over forty regularly printed and published periodicals in the United States.

During the industrial revolution, there were significant changes in this industry. In the mid-19th century there was an enormous increase in newspaper printing. In a matter of just a few decades, the number of printed publications had become four times bigger in numbers.

Novelties

The price of the newspaper varied from age to age. Since the readership expanded it was only fair to lower some prices and make it affordable for every social group.

New elements were introduced to the form as well. Things like banner-styled headlines and comics were eventually introduced to the standard newspaper. The sports section was also not always a common part of a newspaper, it was included later.

Magazines as a Surprise

Internet VS Magazines

Newspapers And MagazinesPeople might not be familiar with some mind-blowing statistics about magazine readers. For example, did you know that more Americans read magazines than surf the internet? This clearly indicates that magazines are doing something right for their customers. Whether it’s the appealing glossy pages or the fun and carefree content magazines have got us hooked. Magazines are by far the most popular form of printed media.

Influence

Magazines are far more influential than you would have guessed. Studies have shown that people are more likely to buy a product which is advertised in a magazine than if they saw an ad on TV. What is more, people tend to follow medical advice from magazines more than from any other form of media – TV, radio, even the internet. They just seem more reliable to people when it comes to health issues and fitness advice.

Celebrating Diversity


Magazines are appealing to a wide array of social groups. They nurture a knack for a diverse population and cover many different interests which people react to.

The Rocky Path

Publishing has come a long way. It started off with the invention of paper in ancient China. Paper is the crucial product without which written words would not have been popularized. The next major invention is, of course, the printing press. The machine was invented by Gutenberg in from the 15th century and is a great contributor to the publishing industry.

Newspapers and Books

Newspapers and magazines are published by certain standards. There are usual sizes and forms in which they will be published but the rule doesn’t apply to books. Books can be published in many shapes and sizes.

What Is There to Know About Ethereum?

What Is There to Know About Ethereum?

Ethereum is a highly efficient decentralized platform. It runs smart contracts. Smart contracts are applications which run as programmed without any potential for downtime, fraud, third-party interference or censorship. The project was developed in 2014. It was established by the non-profit Ethereum Fondation whose head office is located in Switzerland. It goes without saying that the system is praised globally.

The Blockchain

The applications are built within a blockchain system. The blockchain network is a large and mighty global system or infrastructure which has developed recently. The main function of this system is to make value mobile and represent ownership in an efficient and new way.

The Clientele

Users are open to develop markets, store registries, move funds accordingly, and be provided with many more options in the future. All of the features are all the more efficient since they omit the middleman and exclude this otherwise additional risk.

More Than a System

In the Ethereum blockchain, you have miners which work to gain Ether. This token fuels the network and is thus more than a tradeable and standard cryptocurrency. It can be used by application developers to pay for transaction services and fees within the Ethereum network.

There is the idea of Ethereum Wallet which is used as a pathway to the Ethereum blockchain. With this application, you can hold and save ether and other cryptocurrencies which are built on Ethereum. You can also use it to write, use or deploy your smart contracts.

The Currencies

Ether uses blockchain technology on a daily basis, as do several hundred other applications. Blockchain technology is used by many applications outside for more than just the purposes of commanding digital currencies. This is a large and powerful electronic system which can be used for building applications. Currency is just one form of usage of this very broad idea.

Bitcoin VS Ethereum

EtheriumNowadays, to build a blockchain application does not include an intricate knowledge of coding and programming, nor does it require special skills in math or cryptography. The purposes and resource have changed thus there will be certain differences in capabilities among blockchain networks.

The purpose of this currency is not to mine for it, unlike the bitcoin. Though both Bitcoin and Ethereum are considered public blockchain networks there are some conspicuous differences. Apart from being acquired in a different manner, they serve different purposes. While Bitcoin offers a peer to peer electronic payments and the Bitcoin blockchain tracks ownership of bitcoins, the Ethereum clockchain is focused more on running the programming code for any decentralized application.

The Future

Before some applications could not have even be fathomed. Examples such as voting electronically, recording your property and assets digitally, even basic trading was not imagined to be done in such a manner. The technological innovations available to us today are meant to be fast and efficient. Ethereum is an open software platform which makes all of this possible and functional. It provides developers with everything they might need to build decentralized applications.

Cryptocurrencies In The Modern World

Cryptocurrencies In The Modern World

The Media

The media’s main function is to provide society with information in a timely manner. To omit the technological innovation which is the cryptocurrency would be to fail at their primary occupation. Thus cryptocurrencies have inevitably become part of our mainstream way of life. In almost any form of media, some information about cryptocurrencies can be found.

Social Media

The world of social media has a significant role in our everyday lives. Cryptocurrencies have inevitably been pitched in the media but in different lights. Since they are a modern sensation the media has had a unique interest in them. Most social networks helped spread the idea of the upcoming new currency for online transactions. Networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are all examples of this happening. The media helped boost the popularity of the cryptocurrencies thus more and more people got involved.

Boycottbtc

What is interesting is the recent ban on posts about cryptocurrencies on Facebook. This network chose to no longer serve as a platform for promoting such ventures and ideas as coins, tokens and other cryptocurrencies. Facebook did not take a formal and public stance on the idea of cryptocurrencies. The social media network did this in order to disassociate themselves from possible scams and scandals that other individuals may manipulate and misuse. They didn’t want their users to suffer for this so the intention is to primarily keep them safe.

Online Life

Nevertheless, any form of online currencies cannot exist out of the scope of the internet. The Bitcoin idea was promoted and pitched on forums and made way for building a community which supported the idea. The use of these currencies translates into ‘real life’ thus has to be taken seriously offline as well.

The Flow of Information

CryptocurrenciesIt is beneficial to keep everyone up to date on ongoing changes regarding cryptocurrencies. That way any possible issues which we come across can be dealt with immediately and collectively.

When you make investments you have to keep yourself posted. You would want to know if something has gone terribly wrong and you need to save what you have before the investment goes down the drain. This is a simple issue in which media helps us by keeping us informed. You would want to keep an eye on your virtual investments as much as you would follow the stock market if you were investing.

Information in the media plays a significant role in establishing the stance we are going to take on the idea of cryptocurrencies. We get the pricing and value of certain currencies and can follow up on their position and ranking in regards to other currencies.

Problems

Also, some currencies can be popularized by advertising. This is some uncertain business. On the one hand, you have the media as your main informer but then again you know that advertising plays a key role in the media. To discern what to believe it is best to keep yourself up to date from different sources of information.

The Newspaper Today

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The Newspaper Today

Newspapers are a form of media which is commonly found in almost every household. It has reshaped through the centuries while adapting to new technological and stylistic trends, and to the needs of the readership.

One of the main features of today’s society is consumerism. So it comes as no surprise that a wide array of different newspapers have appeared on the market yet the distribution of newspapers has continued to grow.

Changes

NewspaperEverything has evolved. Writers have become more versatile, more educated, and very well informed. Content has expanded to exciting new fields. Even design has developed to a great extent. This industry is still developing and adapting.

The style and content of the newspaper have changed significantly because the function of the newspaper expanded. It became more than stating the facts. Context and journalism have become key at the beginning of the 20th century. Today design and niche are the crucial points in journalism.

Twentieth Century

Only in the previous century has the newspaper business become occupied with new methods of informing. Innovations such as photographs, columns, reviews have become the focus of informing. Even interviews have taken a new shape and questions posed change from decade to decade.

Technology allows for the printed word to be gathered and distributed very swiftly which in turn makes it more efficient and productive as an industry.

Problems

In the 20th century, the newspaper business had its downfalls. For example, it was badly influenced by the war and press restrictions. Some president held control over the printed word. What is more, political affairs such as the Cold War also had its influence on the free press.

The newspaper had its fair share of competitors. With the invention of the radio and television newspapers had to fight hard to preserve their spot in the media. With the birth of the internet, new challenges emerged.newspaper

Though in the beginning computers were used to take newspaper design to a new level, it is its new competitor. The World Wide Web has changed our lives completely and with it our interests and source of information. Main media today is mostly online. The internet holds the upper hand in being practical and affordable.

The influence of the modern technological age can be seen in the fact that almost every newspaper has a version available online. Online publications keep a consistent profit and nowadays are more relevant than the physical copies.

Form and Content

People have slowly been accustomed to new forms of informing and thus have become very impatient with reading. Many would rather watch the news than read about it. What is more, they get demotivated if an article has several pages.

Most people are more apt to look at charts and lists than read an entire article. Anything which is not time-consuming will catch their attention.

Relevant Topics

Standard newspapers dedicate sections to certain topics which concern us every day. These topics are economic and financial news, business issues, news concerning health and fitness, innovations in technology, and international news.

The Evolution Of Publishing

The Evolution Of Publishing

We live in an age where devices are extensions of our bodies. We cannot function without them. This puts us in a position where we are dependent on them. This inevitably develops industries for such devices. Thus designers and inventors create new ideas which will benefit users and offer appealing novelties to make our lives easier.

Publishing and Technology

This area of the industry has irreversibly been affected by the invention of the World Wide Web. Today most people read on their Kindles, iPhones or laptops and have more books on their devices than in their homes. This is an ecologically friendly advancement since the use of natural resources has been reduced. On the other hand, it has economically been proven to benefit the industry since publishing is done on demand. It is both profitable and time-saving.

Consumer and Product

All products have to go through the ‘consumer filter’. So inevitably have to ask ourselves: How does this affect the publishing industry?

Consumers changed their preference according to recent technological developments and who can blame them? Reading from a Kindle which can hold a library with over 10 000 books is far more efficient than actually going out and getting 10 000 books. You would need to invest a lot of money into storing and obtaining that kind of collection. Not to mention how time-consuming it would be. People will opt for having it all in one place in no time and this is understandable.

What Do Consumers Want?

PublishStudies have shown that people tend to find it more enjoyable to read from physical copies of books. They deem them more serious and more important than, for example, EBooks. Interestingly enough, they also feel better about themselves. We live in the modern age where appearance means more than reality. People love the appeal they get when they have a real book in their hands regardless of what is actually the content of the book. It doesn’t even matter who the writer is. The image which is portrayed is the only thing that counts.

There is also the idea of thinking that somebody invested in this copy to get published – meaning it has to be worth reading. A lot of psychological issues are involved when discerning a consumer’s train of thought.  One will have to admit that it is not far-fetched that we even caught ourselves judging a person by the contents of their bookshelf.

Cover VS Content

We have to raise questions: How will they judge this book by these covers?

This notion has influenced the world of publishing immensely. No longer is the content foregrounded but the appeal of the product. Newspapers, books, magazines are bearers of information. But their primary function has been altered. By bringing design into the equation the publishing game has been irreversibly changed. The scope of design has thus been expanded and it seems that content has fallen to second place.

Content has become more oriented to popular culture than ever before. Publications mostly have to do with entertainment and celebrities.

What Is Blockchain Exactly?

What Is Blockchain Exactly?

This is a system which primary concern is handling cryptocurrencies such as bitcoins and ether. Blockchain is a leading force in the world of technology and technological developments. It is an innovative system and an exciting invention. It represents the software platform for registering digital assets and goes hand in hand with the new forms payment that the digital age has brought us. This will improve the system of financial transactions worldwide. It can make everyday life far more practical and contemporary.

Main Features

Functional

The system is deemed as open, cost-effective, easy to access and time-saving. This represents a new approach to financial transactions and expands the meaning of banking. The growing industry makes room for innovations such as this one since it globally connects people and allows efficient transactions without intermediary involvement. This saves time and money. It is also a very reliable system which is available to everyone.

Reliable

Think of this as a personal online accountant which traces your assets and follows your financial transactions closely and precisely. The system allows everyone to follow their property online. It is designed so that it cannot be altered. No modification is permitted. The information you find in the singular so-called ‘blocks’ cannot be changed retroactively. The data the ‘block’ contains along with a time-stamp will permanently stay unchanged.

Efficient

What is more, within the system the payment process is reduced to a minimum. People will immediately allow people to focus on different things. When you need to make financial transaction this is time-consuming, costly, and often unreliable. The blockchain system simplifies the process and makes it as functional as possible.

Open

The Blockchain is a publicly distributed ledger. This means that it is open to everyone. It provides everyone with information since there are no authoritative figures. There is no central control and there is no set hierarchy. Nobody is withholding the record. This information is publicly distributed. It aims to make records easy to see.

Blockchain

On the other hand, inside the scope of a banking system, you are on one end completely oblivious to the entire process.  The bank is the intermediary which takes a fair amount of your time and charges you for it.

Innovations

Blockchain offers interesting options not only for financial transactions but for other branches of the industry too. Think about how this technological advantage can make a difference in publishing. Every publication will be sold more easily and cost-effectively. It will save time and can even be eco-friendly if used correctly. Issues would be made on demand and thus materials would be used economically.

It can also alter the way information is registered generally. Think about how this system can affect voting. It would make it impossible to alter results. We all are very well acquainted with the fact that this has been the case many times. The features of the Blockchain make it very easy to shape it according to our needs. Imagine the accuracy we could attain by using this system for medical or dental records.

What Do We Actually Know About Magazines?

What Do We Actually Know About Magazines?

Magazines have historically existed in a variety of forms. Initially, they were not printed at a regular pace or for specific dates. In other words, they were not periodicals. They were more similar to today’s notion of a pamphlet. The pamphlet was, in fact, a precursor of the modern magazine.

Subject Matters

The idea which prevails is concerned with subjects which periodicals were featuring. They were always concerned with specific topics and similarly to today had a preconceived target audience. What will get issued depends on what is needed. Publications inevitably relied on what the readership was interested in.

This has not changed in the modern times. Magazines have always covered a wide array of interests and continue to do so. They are a worldwide frenzy which is read by all ages and social groups.

Tradition

This widely spread style of the written word has not always come in such a form. A couple of centuries ago you could only find essays in magazines or periodicals. Though they were exemplary pieces of work which were concerned with political and social matters they are far from what the magazine is today. Though these serious topics remain indispensable today, in those times they were represented differently. Nevertheless, many still deal with intellectual issues such as archaeology, economy or philosophy.

What remained are magazines concerned with narrowed down subjects. Subjects dabbling in a specific line of work or academic area are very common today.

Today

Reading was nurtured as a rare privilege only restricted social groups were able to obtain. Yet it has been popularized and made widely accessible to the masses. Only citizens from a higher class were literate and had the means to obtain reading material.

Popular VS High Culture

MagazineWith the change in the audience came innovations. Thus the content has changed as well as the entire notion of magazines. Casting a wider net of topics, targeting new specific audiences, and changing the cost of magazines has shaped this branch of the industry through centuries.

In modern times it looks different. Today magazines as we know them are oriented towards entertainment or popular culture, and family issues more than anything.

There are religious periodicals, magazines specially made for women, sports magazines, even magazines for children. As a society, we have expanded our interests. In regard to that we have developed forms of entertainment and media we inevitably need in our day to day life.

Advertising

What is more, magazines are a very useful platform for advertising. Think about the number of pages and the space that ads take up in an average magazine. This advertising arrangement allows for the magazine to be self-sufficient and gain profit easily. This happens because of the mutual benefits both the magazine and the ad companies gain.

Growing Interest

From the invention of the printing press to the internet era, the printed word has taken many forms. One of the most exciting and varying of these forms remains the magazine. Therefore it comes as no surprise that the magazine readership has significantly increased over the years.

The Bitcoin Today

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The Bitcoin Today

Bitcoin is a growing sensation everyone wants to be a part of. This fresh idea is a system which comes with its own currency. Bitcoin is a payment system and bitcoins are the cryptocurrency used within the system. Bitcoin was invented by an unknown group of people and is not owned by anyone. Anyone can use it and everyone ‘plays’ by the same rules. There is no head company which is in control of everything. It is fair to say that this is a non-restrictive system.

It works as a payment system on a global scale. The currency is earned through the so-called ‘mining’ process. First, you mine the bitcoins and then you can exchange them for other currencies or products.

Main Characteristics


It is famous for being the first example of a decentralized digital currency. When we say decentralized we mean that it works outside of the jurisdiction of a bank or any sort of administrator. It works on a peer-to-peer network and this way completely omits the middleman. Financial transactions are done directly between users. This has been seen as very practical and cost-effective way to transact. No one can stop or restrict your transactions. It is a global market sending bitcoins back and forth without any constraints. No bank or government is included.

Safety First

This freedom is a double-edged sword. Since you do not have any supervision and there are no available authorities, you have nobody to file a complaint to. In regards to this, the only rule you need to follow is to only work with people who are trustworthy.

Everything is recorded in the blockchain which is a publicly distributed ledger. This means that it cannot remain anonymous. Anybody can trace your actions and find out your identity inside the system. There are different approaches to hiding your identity. There are even companies which offer a variety of tools to help you conceal yourself in the Bitcoin world. If you need your privacy you will surely be able to obtain it. It will not be an easy task but it is sometimes better to secure yourself early on.

New Wave Banking

btcFor a lot of people, the Bitcoin system seems like a new approach to banking. This efficient payment network seems to be getting a lot of attention and praise for being so forward-thinking and innovative. It leaves out the middleman and leaves the transactions to the users. This breaks the banking tradition and poses the inevitable question: Is this the future?

Arguably there is a belief that this is just at rending sensation which will disappear as easily as it arrived. However many innovations were met which such skepticism at the early stages of their development. Bitcoin can be the future simply because it is already the present. People are making payments with bitcoins regularly. Those who don’t own any are buying them eagerly. Everyday transactions are being made via Bitcoin and this cryptocurrency has become a leading success. Bitcoin has proven that monetary value can successfully be transferred online and more importantly without any authoritative control.

Publishing As An Industry

Publishing As An Industry

Publishing has become a growing industry which develops more and more every day. It used to be a restrictive field but today it is more available than ever. With the birth of the internet and with growing technological advantages it cannot cease to evolve.

Publishing is done regularly on almost an hourly basis. Historically it was connected to physical copies made of standard materials such as paper. Today it is far more complex and different from what publishing used to look like.

Today

PublishingGoogle and Amazon alone have had an enormous impact on the availability of published works. Nowadays you can have your choice of eBooks, online newspaper subscriptions, and magazines, blogs, videos etc. All of these will provide you with the news you are looking for. Standard newspapers, as we know them, are gradually becoming redundant and are slowly approaching extinction. People are simply getting used to reading from a Kindle, Ipad, phone or laptop.

These new approaches are considered a time-saving strategy and a cost-effective take on reading. Publishing and printing are both done on demand. This means that the economic aspect of the industry is met. Redundant printing and publishing are altogether avoided. Also, there are huge amounts saved just on storage.

There is also the idea of green publishing which has been developed in the last couple of decades. Basically, it reduces the negative effect we have on the environment by, for example, making less physical publications. Paper is not used, and printing is postponed because of the ‘on demand’ policy.

Newspapers

Publishing has still mostly to do with newspapers. Accordingly, it comes as no surprise that this part of the industry will be the first to flourish. Most newspapers today are sold to people who subscribe to them or they are distributed through retail newsstands and given out for free as a means of advertising.

Periodicals


The notion of periodical publishing has to do with issuing a new edition at a given time. There is a certain schedule which needs to be followed. Though very similar to the way newspapers and magazines work, this branch of publishing was often perceived as an altogether separate part of this industry.

Books

Book publishing takes up a large chunk of the media industry. There has always been a craving for popular fiction which has been successfully nourished for centuries. In some earlier ages, books were a luxury available to a privileged few. Luckily for us, this has changed and reading books has never been more accessible than today.

Books are usually published by smaller publishers, and less frequently by large publishing houses. The smaller companies tend to specialize in a certain area of writing and thus secure their place in the market. What is more, many writers create their own small publishing companies in order to feature their own work. It is very entertaining to think about the ways in which this branch of publishing has developed.