Every niche, topic, or interest on the web consists of a place to spend time with friends, or hang out so to speak. Whether that's sports, gaming, cooking, knitting, or digital assets, it's important to meet with other enthusiasts for the purpose of swapping ideas, collaborating on a project, and tossing questions out to the crowd.

Almost every industry out there has some form of meeting place that accomplishes this goal. Locations will vary depending on the industry, and a quick search will help you find it. For example, if you are interested in the sport, Tennis, then you would put the word Tennis or Tennis Group into the search bar.

Oftentimes what you will discover first is a helpful resource called an online forum. As you are likely aware, online forums provide a place to communicate with other members on a variety of different topics that are related to a single niche or interest.

Grant for the Web is a $100 million fund to help support open innovations in web monetization. An important aspect of this fund, or initiative, is the online forum that is available to interested parties for the purpose of sharing and collaborating with other content creators.

Dozens of members have already introduced themselves inside of the Introduction thread. From there, others can respond with a welcome message to each member as they arrive. Many interesting questions have arisen as well that the GftW team has stepped in to answer.

Once you sign up for the forum, you can immediately create your personal profile decked out with your photo and name. You can change your preferences at any time such as email notifications and account or profile information.

Existing categories to engage with inside the forum itself include The Grant, Ideas and Collaboration, Technology, Events, and Resources. Grant for the Web is gearing up to accept proposals for funding beginning in Q1 of 2020.

Members are welcome to start a new topic if they don’t see the same one already published. Once a topic is published, existing members can view it, like it, and respond to it with helpful feedback. If you notice a question and you have a relevant answer, feel free to provide your insight.

Coil, Mozilla, and CreativeCommons have come together as a joint collaboration to change the way creators get paid online. Stay in the know and prepare for the ramp-up of Grant for the Web as they begin kicking things into high gear.

Stop by the forum and say hello! Myself and the GftW team can't wait to meet you and help answer specific questions you may have.

Feel free to enter the forum here.

Netflix. Hulu. Prime Video. Each of these are TV and movie streaming services that you likely subscribe to on a monthly basis. We have become an on-demand society that no longer watches commercials as even Hulu has the option to upgrade to their “commercial-free” package (which is quite amazing if you ask my wife and I).

We are all familiar with streaming content on our televisions, our computers, and our mobile devices. We even stream music using apps such as Pandora and Spotify which I personally use on a daily basis. Don't forget apps such as Audible that allow you to listen to books you've purchased on Amazon.

It's funny to think that just a short time ago, I was popping CD's into my Chevy dashboard for my favorite tunes and Blu-Ray's into my Blu-Ray player to watch a flick from the Drug Mart new releases section. I no longer have a desire to do those things because they are now considered “inconvenient”.

With all of the streaming happening today, it is turning older technology into obsolete relics of the past that end up collecting dust in a closet somewhere or being placed in a garage sale for strangers to buy for pennies on the dollar. Unless you are my parents who have kept their VHS players plugged in underneath their TVs.

Just as the older media systems are being phased out, website monetization models are also being placed in a similar predicament. The current model revolves around ads being placed in areas where it is considered intrusive to the consumer. Ad blocker plugins are being installed to stop this from happening, giving the consumer more control over their viewing experience.

Paywalls have been a popular means to monetize websites via a plethora of subscription services that slowly eat away at the beloved bank account. Below are a few examples of popular websites with paywalls:

1. The New York Times
2. Financial Times
3. Medium
4. The Guardian
5. The Wall Street Journal

Even though there isn't necessarily much wrong with paywalls, the problem comes in when people have to juggle 5-10 different services at a time just to read their favorite articles while sipping their hot coffee or tea in the mornings. The headache is becoming almost as bad as a lack of caffeine come 2:00 in the afternoon.

What is the next evolution in digital streaming?

All in all, existing website monetization models are flawed, rendering both the creator and consumer experience “meh” at best. The team at Coil recognized this and took action to solve the problem by combining both the Web Monetization API and Interledger Protocol into one product, Coil.

Coil is a content creation platform that enables creators to earn revenue NOT from intrusive advertisements, but for when Coil subscribers view a specific creator's content. The creator will then earn a STREAMING payment instantly as the viewer is consuming their content.

I could end the article right there because that is enough to make any creator jump up and down rigorously on their beds. But there is more... not only can creators earn using Coil.com, they can also web monetize their own website using a single meta tag.

But wait, there's more! As of the time of this article, you can monetize your YouTube and Twitch channels by adding them to the Settings area of your Coil profile. Then, when a WM subscriber watches your videos, you get paid via micropayments utilizing Interledger.

The preferred payment medium that Coil uses to pay creators is called XRP, a digital asset created specifically for high speed and transaction volume. An ILP payment pointer sends the funds to the XRPTipBot account for storage or withdrawal. Creators can also opt to be paid in fiat currency if they desire.

So, what is the next evolution in streaming? It can be wrapped up in one word. Payments. And not only are payments being streamed to creators' accounts, but they don't have to go through a 3rd party intermediary or wait for long periods before payout. Do you think that creators from all over the web will want to migrate over to a model like this? I think the answer is obvious.

Feel free to take a look at the Grant for the Web initiative headed up by Coil, Mozilla, and CreativeCommons. Grant for the Web is a $100M fund dedicated to furthering the adoption of the Web Monetization standard that pays creators instantly and efficiently while giving the consumer a clean, ad-free experience.

Welcome to the future. Welcome to the internet that fixes the broken monetization model that exists today. You have the opportunity right now to experience the web in a new light. Tell your friends and family that Coil is here and it isn't going away.

The Coil Blogging Club has been actively participating in the official blogging challenge since Monday, September 16th. To view challenge details, read up here on this post. The last day of the challenge falls on Wednesday, October 16th.

Participants have less than 2 weeks to finish submitting their daily blogs. It has been an enjoyable experience to not only participate in the challenge, but to see other Coil creators step up to the plate with fantastic articles.

In order to qualify to win 1 of 3 prizes at the end of the challenge, participants must have followed the rules exactly as they are laid out. 1 blog post per day for 30 consecutive days, as well as sharing each post on social media. The purpose of the challenge is to help Coil creators stay motivated and on-track throughout their individual blogging ventures.

An additional resource for Coil bloggers is the Coil Blogging Club on Telegram. The club meets daily to support and encourage one another both inside the challenge and outside when it is completed. A resource like this is priceless and builds a strong sense of community around a common goal.

Here are a handful of recent entries that have come through so far from talented CBC members during the 30-day challenge. Feel free to look through each blog and click the follow button if you like their work.

_________________________________________________________

You Are Who You Are

by Sandra Scala @theminduntangled

My Surroundings!

by PatriciaC. @PatriciaC

Space Explorers. #2 The Principle Field

by Stefano Baldassari @CriptoltaTrade

XRP in 10 Numbers Part 1

by Docteur CX @docteurcryptoxrp

Do Travel! – Trip To Morocco – A Diary, Day 5

by Srdan Vocanec @Bauhauswerk

Divination Process For Alchemists Of

Whatever It Is You Do

by Mancel Lindsey @mancel

A Cool Twist of Fate

by Seth Stanley @sethstanley

A Dirge for Fallen Giants

by MacroPolo @macropolo

_________________________________________________________

Did you miss out on the 30-Day Coil Blogging Challenge? Yes and no. If you are new to Coil, you can still start the challenge now and cross the finish line on the 16th, you just won't qualify to win a prize.

Additional challenges will arise in the near future so start blogging now to get warmed up. Also, feel free to reach out to myself on Twitter @_kenmelendez for more information about joining the Coil Blogging Club.

In today's article, I'd like to take a step back from mentioning technology (even though a lot of big announcements came in from Xpring which I'll cover soon). I'm 34 years young, and I often reflect on life as I'm driving or spending time out in nature.

As I spend moments alone with my thoughts and with Christ, things begin to come into perspective. I begin appreciating certain things in my life that I take for granted such as air, water, clothing, shelter, and even relationships. I also begin thinking about the purpose of life and the meanings behind each encounter with others.

The longer I live and the more situations I experience, the more I begin to wonder what life's core properties are. What is it exactly that causes one to live a life of complete and utter fulfillment? Is there some sort of secret that only certain people know about?

I look back over my 34 years on this planet and the circumstances I've had the privilege of experiencing. Sometimes my thoughts bring me back to Christmas time when I would look through the Kids R Us Big Toy Books and circle each item that I wanted (mostly video games). The point is... it was about ME. Christmas was about receiving what I wanted.

I used to make these detailed Christmas lists on yellow notepads, listing everything I wanted in super neat handwriting. They would even include a legend with a star system to rate which items I wanted more than others.

As a kid / young adult, getting bombarded with commercials about the latest fad like the Tamagotchi or the Razor Scooter was considered quite normal. I remember getting caught up in the Austin Powers movies, then desiring an electronic watch in the store that spoke the lines from Doctor Evil, Number 2, and Frau Farbissina.

Fast forward to today, and we as a society of grown-ups are still being bombarded with advertisements to get the latest and greatest gadget in an attempt to “keep up with the Joneses”. The problem with that is... the Joneses will always be one step ahead, rendering our attempts to catch up utterly useless.

Not to mention, there are people each year on Black Friday here in the States that literally die from being trampled in the stores by the crowds of shoppers anxiously making their way to the “in” toy or fashion accessory. It's quite ridiculous and disturbing.

The Turning Point

Last month I was exposed to a film, a documentary if you will, on Netflix called Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things. Now, I had heard about minimalism before, but I didn't pay much attention to it. It wasn't until watching this documentary that my eyes were truly opened.

Honestly, it reminded me of what I already knew was true, but had forgotten about long ago. I knew that I didn't need “stuff” to be happy. I knew that physical objects couldn't satisfy the deep longing in my soul for significance and purpose. But, after watching this film, it literally shifted my perspective.

Any time a person or an experience causes a shift in my perspective, I pay attention. Not only do I pay attention, but I highly appreciate the people responsible. If you haven't watched Minimalism on Netflix, stop reading and go watch it because it's powerful. Many people in life are stressed out because they have to manage so many items day in and day out.

My wife and I recently held a garage sale and got rid of A TON OF STUFF that we weren't using. All of a sudden, we both felt a weight lifted off our shoulders. You see, prior to this happening, my wife was stressed out because she constantly saw piles of “stuff” everywhere around the house.

A strong line that I takeaway from the film is this...

Love people, and use things. Because the opposite never works.

New things we purchase can only bring us a temporary dopamine rush at best. They don't fulfill the deep longing in our souls for significance, for truth, for purpose. It is my belief that only Christ can bring that into our lives through an intimate relationship with Him.

Life is more about relationships than it is things. Don't get me wrong, I have things... like the computer I'm using to blog, or the phone that I use to check Twitter, or the car I use to drive here or there. The difference is, I know my life would still be complete without them.

I know deep down, that if all of those things were taken away from me, I would still find happiness and fulfillment in my life. Am I still going to get a Lambo when XRP moons?... Of course! (Lol). Who knows, I may still HODL, but you get my drift.

With all that being said, a life of minimalism may or may not be for you. To me, minimalism means living in a way that prioritizes the important things in life versus the not so important things. I still like using different items, only keeping that which adds value to my life. If it causes me stress or I don't use it, I get rid of it.

So again, what is it exactly that causes one to live a life of complete and utter fulfillment? Is there some sort of secret that only certain people know about? Well, it's not a secret as much as it is a lesser known ideal. Living a life with less will actually bring you more in the end.

I'm relatively new to the minimalistic lifestyle so I have a lot to learn still. The biggest thing for me is that my perspective shifted, and I now have a new outlook that is making my journey less stressful and more rewarding at the same time. I am forever grateful. Thank you for reading.

September was an impressive month for Coil.com and for the Coil Blogging Club (CBC). The biggest news that I personally witnessed was the Grant for the Web announcement. Coil, Mozilla, and CreativeCommons are joining forces, cultivating an environment of open innovations in Web Monetization.

It's exciting to be involved in a movement that has so much potential for growth. One of the reasons the Coil Blogging Club was created was to promote the use of Coil.com and the Web Monetization standard that is working to replace the old sponsored ads and data theft models.

What is the Power Creators Award?

The Power Creators Award is a recognition award for 1 specific member of the Coil Blogging Club. Each month a CBC member will be recognized with the Power Creators Award that they can print out, frame, and hang on their wall (not a requirement).

The PCA is given to a member who exemplifies the following:

1. Dedication to consistent Coil publishing
2. Skillful proficiency in writing / video creation
3. Valiant thought and effort placed inside each post
4. Utilizes the Coil “subscriber-only” feature
5. Longs to drive the Coil ecosystem forward

Power creators are those who value the content creation process and realize the importance of sharing their mind and passions with the world. A power creator enjoys what they do and allows that joy to shine through in the work that they publish.

September 2019 goes to:

cue dramatic drum roll please...

... ... ... ...

... ... ... ...

... ... ... ...

... ... ... ...

*Steven Sands* @vengefulseven

Congratulations, Steven. It is an honor to present to you the September 2019 Power Creators Award:

Steven has been active on Coil since it opened back in May of this year. When he heard about the Coil Blogging Club in September, he was on-board within moments and began engaging with other members. He is kind, courteous, and always willing to lend a hand.

Steven has a knack for writing and it shows in his work. He's a family man dedicated to consistently providing rich content, as well as story contests for fellow Coil bloggers to partake in and win neat prizes. Steven shares details about his life and closely connects with his readers.

*Congratulations again Steven* for earning the Power Creators Award for September 2019. On behalf of the Coil Blogging Club, we are pleased you decided to participate in the club and produce quality content for the entire Coil community to enjoy.

Ripple has a long-standing history of acquiring companies to further their vision for the IoV (Internet of Value). In each case, the merger is mutually beneficial to both parties involved. Each company and its employees receive value from the other to push the boundaries of future possibilities.

Let’s take for example the most recent acquisition of Icelandic crypto trading firm Algrim and its team of engineers. The announcement was made earlier today in a tweet by Ripple’s official Twitter account.

The above “acqui-hire” as Ripple refers to it, will cause substantial advancements in terms of their product, xRapid, which utilizes the 3-second digital asset, XRP for cross-border settlements. Algrim has a top-notch engineering team that specializes in trading and exchanges which lends perfectly to Ripple's vision of on-demand liquidity.

Earlier this year, Ripple partnered up with MoneyGram, the 2nd largest remittance company in the world, to help lower costs while increasing transaction speeds. Tomorrow marks the emergence of Q4, the time frame MoneyGram is expected to “ramp-up” xRapid utilization.

It's important to take notice of the trends when it comes to judging the authenticity or value of Ripple and/or XRP. In other words, take a hard look at the talent and the companies that Ripple is attracting to help achieve the overall mission. Every move is strategic and carefully planned out to benefit the entire payments ecosystem.

In the case of the recent Algrim acquisition, or acqui-hire so to speak, both companies share in the same vision which is creating mass awareness and adoption of blockchain technology which coincides with digital assets such as XRP.

If any company in today's economy is going to succeed long-term, they have to both locate and on-board teams that possess:

1. Years of hands-on experience

2. Deep knowledge in their respective fields

3. Exact same or similar vision for the future

Algrim's engineering team has all of the above traits, which makes them a great match to work side-by-side with existing Ripple employees across the world. Algrim has more than 10 years of experience building and sustaining different trading platforms utilizing multiple markets.

We are big believers in XRP and the XRP Ledger, and eager to help build the future of payments at Ripple.

**-Algrim CEO Dadi Armannsson
**Source

Ripple is expanding, and not slowly either. With Algrim engineers now on-board, it's like pouring gasoline on the fire that was already burning with global momentum. Right now Ripple has over 200 financial institutions who have raised their hand to integrate RippleNet into their existing payment systems.

The company is on a mission utilizing healthy acquisitions which add value to the overall vision of moving the IoV forward. Global finance is in a transition phase, and Ripple is the locomotive driving it to a more-improved destination.

Algrim is not the first, nor is it the last company to join the Ripple ranks. To put it mildly, acquisitions will be forming by the droves as XRP Ledger technology morphs into the global payment standard and the team needs to expand into new corridors. Keep your seat-belt fastened, the ride is far from over.

The Coil Blogging Club is now officially 2 weeks old! Many members are finding enjoyment, encouragement, and fulfillment as they journey alongside other passionate Coilers. It is a rewarding experience to see this group mature and evolve over time.

Even though it’s only been 14 days, it feels like much longer because of the friendships that have formed and the uplifting vibes that serve as the foundation for the vision and mission of the club.

This edition of CBC Member Highlights is going to showcase 2 members who have demonstrated regular participation in the club while at the same time provided genuine support to the rest of the group.

Not only that, but these members blog on a regular basis which is an important aspect of CBC involvement. We encourage publishing to Coil.com to help grow the platform and also to help improve our individual blogging skill sets.

Patricia C. @PatriciaC

What can I say about Patricia besides speaking well of her character. She is kind, well-mannered, thoughtful, and respectful. Whenever someone in the CBC is talking, Patricia pays attention and replies with helpful comments.

I really like how dedicated she is to the XRP community and to promoting the community choice awards event taking place in November. Patricia also shares videos and photos of her cats that are quite entertaining.

Thank you Patricia for all your hard work, as well as for your commitment to the CBC and the XRP community. Feel free to follow Patricia’s blog here on Coil.

Next up...

Stefano Baldassari @CriptoItaTrade

Stefano is someone who I can always count on to see active in the group, especially first thing in the morning. For him though it’s lunch time since he is Italian and there’s quite a time zone difference.

In terms of blogging, Stefano publishes posts mostly regarding cryptocurrency statistics which seem to be a passion of his. It’s great to have a “numbers guy” in the club who is positive and uplifting.

Thank you Stefano for your participation in the CBC and for the research you provide in an easy to digest manner. We enjoy having you around. Follow Stefano’s blog on Coil here.

-—

And there we have it, folks! 2 members of the Coil Blogging Club whom are highly appreciated and deserve to be acknowledged. If you didn't make the cut for this edition, keep participating and encouraging inside the CBC...your turn will come.

Do you have someone in the CBC you would like to nominate for a future Member Highlights Edition? Or, do you know a Coil blogger who is not a member yet who would gain benefit from joining the club?

Reach out to my handle on Twitter @kendmelendez to share your thoughts.

Upon starting to compose this article, the word Interledger was underlined in red. If any indicator is needed to understand how early we are in this space, there it is. Don't believe me? Type it into your Word processor or Coil post page to see for yourself.

What exactly is ILP, or interledger protocol? It is just as the name implies. It is a protocol, or set of rules and procedures, that connects ledgers of all shapes and sizes, in order to move value seamlessly from the sender to the receiver.

Interledger is blockchain and network agnostic, meaning that it doesn't matter what type of asset you want to send because the recipient will receive it in the value form they desire. The creation of this protocol is going to help the vision of the Internet of Value progress more rapidly.

Interledger first began at Ripple, but development is not being carried out by them. Instead, the baton was passed to the Interledger WC3 Community Group who now head up the project. Co-inventors and developers, Evan Schwartz and Stefan Thomas, authored the Interledger whitepaper.

Take a look at the following ILP Overview by Stefan Thomas then continue reading:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaqWdL25caU

Interledger is a game changer to say the least. In the overview, Stefan explains how the world will not all agree on a single ledger to rule them all. Hence therein lies the Interledger solution which connects the thousands of ledgers to prevent friction, aka walled gardens in the payments world.

Interledger is the protocol for streaming payments across currencies and ledgers. The Interledger community as mentioned above, also has made improvements over time to the Web Monetization standard making use simpler and easier to implement.

As with any relatively new technology, it takes time to both develop and mature, not to mention reach new audiences. Interledger opens up a myriad of opportunities and is not tied down to a single network, bank, or payment method. This is one of the main reasons I believe ILP will be heavily adopted over the next few years.

For Coil subscribers, take a more in-depth look at Interledger and hear a talk from co-inventor Evan Schwartz.

It has been a pleasure administering the Coil Blogging Club over the past couple of weeks. Bloggers from all walks of life are coming together as one cohesive unit. We are a passionate community of Coilers who do what we love and love what we do.

With that being said, there are still bloggers out there who don't know who we are or what we do. This article aims at shedding some light on those topics to get a better understanding of the CBC and how it is making an impact.

We're scattered around the globe

The CBC is a group of committed and driven bloggers from literally across the world. We have members who are from Michigan, Maryland, Ohio, the UK, France, and Portugal among others. At this point, none of us seem to be next door neighbors.

The Coil community is quite diverse which is part of what makes it so great. Users are contributing to the Web Monetized blogging ecosystem from all corners of the globe which helps to bring mass adoption to this emerging technology.

We share our personal thoughts and struggles

The CBC is a place to come and share the ups and downs in our lives. Let's face it, life is not all sunshine and rainbows. Many gloomy, rainy days exist and we shouldn't hold thoughts back during those times either. Holding emotions inside will only cause them to bottle up and cause damage the longer you hold onto them.

Photo by Dariusz Sankowski on Unsplash

Since the CBC is that safe space for creators to share, members feel compelled to share personal thoughts and stories that either are of concern or that they just need to get off their chest. Being as we all have diverse backgrounds, members will often chime in with helpful advice since they too have been through similar struggles or successes.

We like to joke and have fun

Upon establishing the CBC, it was of utmost importance for support and encouragement to be #1 on the list. In addition, cultivating an environment of full of laughter and playfulness would ideally help to foster creativity and a sense of fulfillment.

Life can oftentimes become too serious and weighted which can cause some to burnout. The CBC changes that atmosphere into a place that is fun, light, and entertaining all at the same time. In other words, it is like taking in a breath of fresh air (well, not exactly the same, but you get the idea).

Share in an additional fact about the CBC by becoming a Coil subscriber today.

About 10 days ago, Grant for the Web officially released their initiative to empower bloggers, developers, site owners, and creatives of all kinds, to participate in an emerging, web API standard called Web Monetization.

Web Monetization allows creators to get paid in real-time as subscribers are viewing content, whether they're utilizing Coil.com or another website to publish their work.

As soon as Grant for the Web was released, I immediately jumped on-board to take a look. I signed up for the email newsletter and also for the online forum where members can set up a profile, discuss related topics, and ask questions within the thread-based ecosystem.

If you happened to miss the initial announcement, please refer to this article written by Coil Founder and CEO Stefan Thomas. Also, to stay up-to-date on news related to Grant for the Web, follow them here on Twitter.

grantfortheweb.org

What does all this mean? Why is Coil, Mozilla, and CreativeCommons putting their heads together? Why is 100 million dollars being pumped into this initiative and what problem is it going to solve?

The web as we know it today is ridden with intrusive advertisements, privacy breaches, and walled gardens. Viewers need to subscribe to countless service providers to view content behind paywalls.

Grant for the Web is aimed at boosting the use of web monetization through open standards and protocols to benefit both creators and viewers alike. Creators can spend time focusing on their content, and supporters can access all locked content with a single subscription, no headaches involved.

To put this into a practical sense, Grant for the Web is going to be opening up proposals to creators and project teams beginning in Q1 of 2020 with the primary goal of making Web Monetization the global standard.

grantfortheweb.org

With that said, what does the future hold for creators such as game developers, bloggers, software developers, photographers, musicians, writers, journalists, filmmakers, podcasters, and web developers?

The future is bright. There is a light at the end of the tunnel for creators of all shapes and sizes. With the funding being released soon from Grant for the Web, it will unleash a tidal wave of individuals and teams that can all utilize and promote web monetization on a whole new level.

Hundreds, even thousands of individuals, working together to move the web standard towards mass adoption with thousands of dollars worth of fuel in the tank. Grant for the Web is going to play a key role in successfully ramping up the Internet of Value.

*Subscribe to Coil to view my closing thoughts...