First week of sn and here are some things I learned. I noticed myself spending more and more time on stasher.news lately, as this is one of the most refreshing sites I have found, and I would like to share what I have learned after hanging around for a while - sharing is caring.
Starting with The BasicsStarting with The Basics
How to create and safeguard the accountHow to create and safeguard the account
It is as simple as using an e-mail address or simply by creating a backup phrase to register, and I linked my account to both e-mail and a backup phrase in case something happens to either of them, just need to make sure I do not lose this account.
Freedom comes from self-responsibility, even in small things like this.
How to start postingHow to start posting
After registration, ensuring you saved a copy of your backup seed somewhere safe, you will see this message.
https://stasher.news/uploads/185
Yes, time to connect a wallet, ideally a new freshly generated one. So go ahead and complete this important step, register your wallet by inserting primary monero address (mainnet) and its private view key to start sending tips to posts and comments you like. Tips are 100% peer-to-peer, they go straight to your wallet. Use mainnet for this site.
You can derive these keys from any Monero wallet below. I personally use the official one from getMonero.org
https://stasher.news/uploads/186
How to start postingHow to start posting
Your first post is generally your bio, take some time to think of a good bio. And be aware here there are quite some toxic Moneros who can smell BS miles away! Imagine your first post is like the first impression when you make new friends. And choose the user ID you like, something easy to remember, like how you prefer your friend around here to call you. I chose @artemis, do you like it?
How to post contentHow to post content
There are generally two options: sharing links or your thoughts; Ensure you check out the hidden options are posting a poll, bounty or job.
https://stasher.news/uploads/187
1. Sending interesting links
Posting links is encouraged, as it's a news site. But sharing scammy links or creating noise would be flagged. However, sharing links to your content or unpopular gems is great. Adding a description together with the link helps stasher have an idea of what the link is about, and moreover, it helps with SEO.
2. Writing as proof of work
Writing original and useful content might be one of the best proofs of work since the internet is full of junk. sn uses markdown format for long-form posts. Maybe it would be a bit confusing for anyone unfamiliar with it. I recommend using a markdown editor, so you do not need to bother with the formats but focus on the writing only. I use a markdown writing tool called Typora, clean, minimalist and with live preview available.
Some extra thinking: I noticed myself occasionally searching on sn before hitting any search engine. Is this what the web of trust means? Once I found something related to my search, I would click on the profile to have a look, too.
-. Is this stasher a bot?
-. How much did the post stashed
-. Quality of history posts&comments from the same stasher
As sn is still in its baby stage, I think it might end up being more than that, as this is the first time I can focus on writing and providing value to others without dealing with many annoying middlemen or things like running a paid group or selling subscriptions, but focusing on creating itself, which is pure joy for me!
Also, one more personal observation: most links' lifespan is generally 24 hours here. If you are a content creator, you might want to get some traffic and picos on whenever you post, but side note: personally I wouldn't risk clicking any links from a random person if his/ her profile is EMPTY and has 0 history, especially when there are 0 comments. It is fine to post links once you have earned your trust.
However, I prefer to do one extra step by copy and paste from markdown to sn instead of just sharing a link, not only to create a better reading experience for fellow stashers but also to make it easier for later discovery. (wink wink ;)
How to share photosHow to share photos
You can directly drag & drop into the stasher text editor or user external media hosts.
https://stasher.news/uploads/182
There are two tools that I tried and worked:
| 1. Postimages. | 2. Pasteboard |
| How to use it? Easy breezy, just directly upload. | How to use it? Upload - go to the image - right click "open image in a new tab" - get the magic link. |
Here is our cat model: https://i.postimg.cc/BbrqXYx0/cat-02.jpg  | Here is our cat model: https://www.pasteboard.co/TPi6w336xuNE.jpg  |
(Note: If you upload the same photo or something similar, this tool will flag it by showing: Image deleted due to content policy violation)
By comparison, the pasteboard seems to keep better image quality, but feel free to suggest even better tools in the comments below.
Some hidden featuresSome hidden features
- Subscribe
This one is really good if you want to follow/stalk someone, but it could be overwhelming, like the notifications dot would always be there; subscribing to 1-2 interesting brains you enjoy is good.
https://stasher.news/uploads/188
BoostBoost
Boosting your own post in order to gain more visibility, the minimum amount is 0.001 XMR. Simply click the double arrow up on the left. Boosts are exactly like tips from other stashers: they help rank the item higher based on the amount. The bigger the amount, the more the post will stay up in the LIT frontpage. Consider that 30% of boost funds the weekly curator rewards, and 70% supports the ~turfs the post is published with.
https://stasher.news/uploads/183
Bookmark contentBookmark content
Simply click the three dots near the title in any great content you like and choose bookmark. Will be saved in your https://stasher.news/username/bookmarks, and btw, you can choose to make it public or private in your /settings page.
https://stasher.news/uploads/184
Hide your badgesHide your badges
This is a trick if you want to remain in the shallow: go to setting > privacy > hide my badges, and you can also hide many things there. I did an experiment on hiding my badges for one day, clearly fewer interactions. I guess the badges kind of show some POW in a sense.
There are still many hidden or new features to be discovered and, of course, much great content!
Levelling Up the FunLevelling Up the Fun
How to stash tipsHow to stash tips
I guess this is the most asked question when browsing history. But it all comes down to offering value to others, which is exactly what money was for in the first place, as a medium for value exchange!
Value comes in different forms. It can be from posting fun memes, sharing useful information, asking good questions or offering solutions to people's questions, and the best strategy is always sharing your first-hand experiences, aka skin in the game. If you know something or have done something, share it; if you don't, it is better to say, "I don't know."
How to send (customer) tipsHow to send (customer) tips
Tipping is fun, and to be honest, 0.001, 0.002 XRM is not much in a real-life sense, but comparing with the value you receive from others is like a steal, and not to mention it takes a long time to write a good post. From my understanding, tips are more of a token of appreciation and encourage more stashers to share valuable information.
And with a fun side acting as a way of building relationships; for example, if I like someone's content, I naturally pay more attention to him or her, and my time and attention are the most precious things I have. Tipping is my way of saying thank you.
Content determines the base value and relationships are multipliers
Wow, you might be wondering, so how to tip? Simply clicking the bolt icon ⚡️ would zap the default amount that you set, and here are the two options for sending customer tips:
1. Long-pressing and then choose from there.
For example, I set my default tipping to 0.0001 XRM; if I find something I like, I click multiple times, or I long-press the arrow and choose a different amount that I feel like tipping. The random tips are also fun, as it allow to set a min and a max amount for random tips.
https://stasher.news/uploads/189
2. Use referral links
sn allows you to earn some XRM if you bring people in. A humble 10% of a stasher's rewards in perpetuity if they sign up from your referral links. All links you create, including your profile, are already implicit referral links. Just share it around, and let's grow this community.
Another way to ensure a referral is by appending /r/youNym, to any sn link to make it a ref link for you.
You will find a confirmed referrals count in your personal /referrals page.
As below so above... and beyond, I imagine
In short, the more stashers around here, the more value is being shared, more tips, and consequently more fun. Here is my personal input, but I'd recommend everyone go read the FAQ and Guide, as you can discover more hidden fun there.
Lastly, I quite like the idea that everyone starts from zero in the Monero world; it doesn't matter how many picos you hold or how well-established you are in the fiat world: trust needs to be earned, value needs to be proved.
In here, you can't just do a lot of empty talks like in the fiat world, and this is the way!