Incoming hard fork and new features with Nxt 1.7.4 Update now, please, particularly if you use the Nxt API !http://jnxt.org/countdown/?block=621000 
As you see above, Nxt version 1.7.4 is almost live:
In around 3 days time, Nxt will hit block 621,000 and a group of new features will be implemented via a hard fork.
This means that anyone running an older version than Nxt 1.7.4 after that block will be ignored by the main blockchain.
Here's the link to the update:
https://nxtforum.org/nrs-releases/nrs-v1-7-4/And, for API users, here's a lot of useful info, as the last API changes were all implemented in the 1.6.2 release:
https://nxtforum.org/nrs-releases/nrs-v1-6-2/Currently, around 75% of the Nxt network is running on 1.7.4, so the hard fork should go smoothly:
http://www.peerexplorer.com/ 
For ordinary users, the update will be no more complex than any other update,
but any projects that have not upgraded their API code base from the old 1.5.x branch will experience problems.
If anyone has any serious issues, the Nxt community has a helpdesk service available:
http://nxt.org/support/So much for the warnings and admonitions, here's the new features (part of the press release for 1.7.4):
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NXT 1.7.4 is going live soon!Over the last few months, the entire Nxt community has been working on what will be one of the most important Nxt updates in 2016:
Version 1.7.4 of the Nxt client software1.7.4 (known as NRS: NXT Reference Software).
(See:
https://nxtforum.org/nrs-releases/nrs-v1-7-4/ )
NRS 1.7.4 will bring a group of useful new features to the Nxt protocol and client, as well as a large number of smaller improvements, including more regular block times.
The first experimental TestNet versions of the NRS 1.7.x release were released at the end of November, with the stable MainNet version released at the end of 2015, this release is the culmination of around 6 months development and improvement on the core Nxt protocol, and has already been thoroughly tested in both production and test environments.
The new features that are included in NRS 1.7.4 will be activated at block 621,000, and from that moment on, the NRS 1.7.x branch will supercede all older versions of the Nxt software.
(See
http://jnxt.org/countdown/?block=621000 for a precise countdown).
As ever, the updated Nxt software is available for Windows, Linux and Mac systems, with code-signed installers available to guarantee user security and ease of installation.
Nxt has recently opened a helpdesk system, allowing users to receive direct and professional support from the Nxt community and developers, if needed.
(See:
http://nxt.org/support/ )
The Nxt community is very proud to present this update to our users, and we believe that this will confirm Nxt’s position as the most innovative, effective and efficient decentralised crypto-currency system. The new features will bring a range of new functionality to Nxt, allowing users to:
· Create multi-signature accounts for ultimate security, using
Account Control· Use the
CoinShuffle system to anonymise Nxt funds.
· Store, retrieve and publish files, documents, or arbitrary data on the Nxt blockchain using the
Data Cloud. In addition to the main new features, there are a number of incremental improvements designed to optimise the Nxt block generation/transaction confirmation algorithm,
and a small selection of secondary features/improvements.
New features in Nxt 1.7.4:(See:
https://nxtforum.org/nrs-releases/nrs-v1-7-4/ )
Account Control – native multi-user accounts
In the new 1.7.4 release it will be possible to set Nxt Accounts to “Phasing Only” mode.
Account Control builds on the earlier ‘Phasing ‘ feature of Nxt, which allows transactions from a Phased account to only be executed after they have been approved by a voting process, using the Nxt native Voting System in a manner similar to a multi-signature transaction.
Unlike a simple multi-sig system, this voting process within Account Control can include many different parameters, for instance votes can be set only allow certain Asset holders to vote on the transaction, or may only be for Accounts that hold a specific amount of NXT. More info on the NXT Voting System and on Phasing can be found here:
http://nxtwiki.org/wiki/Voting_Systemhttp://nxtwiki.org/wiki/Phasing And on the Account Control system itself:
http://nxtwiki.org/wiki/Account_Control What does this mean?This means it is now possible to set up accounts that are controlled by other accounts (or entities) in a system similar to basic multi-signature systems This allows account control to be decentralised, allows complex account approval structures or simply additional security. Account Control allows complex decisions to be made on disbursement of funds while still retaining all the advantages of the Nxt brainwallet system of account access.
For example: spending decisions for a business. Business operators can submit a request to transfer funds, and the decision to allow this transfer (or not) can be made by a group of people on the basis of a simple majority vote. This vote will be made transparently on the blockchain and everyone can see how each voter cast his or her vote. This is a very useful step forward for the development of distributed businesses on the NXT platform.
A simple means of adding an extra security layer to personal accounts using Account Control will be to set up a second account completely separate to a users main account, and have all transactions from the first controlled by the second. Using this approach, even if one of the two accounts are compromised, the funds will be safe.
Account Control works for any transaction on Phased Nxt accounts, such as Messaging, Asset Transactions etc.
Coin Shuffling – native NXT mixing service
Most people who are familiar with digital/crypto-currency will also be familiar with mixing services, which are a method of anonymising transactions by literally mixing funds from multiple accounts. There has been discussion about the implementation of Coin Shuffling in Bitcoin, but given the current situation within Bitcoin, it appears that the BTC core developers will never be able to implement this feature within the core.
This means that the only mixing services available up until now have been external services provided by a third party, not integrated into a genuinely decentralised solution. The problem with these services is that they represent a single point of failure: they are centralised, subject to attack and require a user to trust the operator of the mixing service. This is exactly the sort of issue that cryptocurrencies were created to address: eliminate single points of failure by decentralising them and removing the need to trust a single external party.
CoinShuffle does exactly this. The system is based on this paper by Tim Ruffing et al:
http://crypsys.mmci.uni-saarland.de/projects/CoinShuffle/ TR and his team intended this to be implemented in Bitcoin, their research has now been utilised in the creation of the Nxt CoinShuffle implementation
The implementation of CoinShufflethat NXT uses has been reviewed by Tim Ruffing himself:
https://nxtforum.org/core-development-discussion/coin-shuffling-code-review-by-tim-ruffing/What does this mean?This means that NXT is now the first cryptocurrency platform to natively incorporate a decentralised mixing/CoinShuffle service on its own blockchain, allowing users to choose to completely anonymise the source of funds held in NXT. As Nxt also allows the trading of a number other assets and currencies on its blockchain, Coin Shuffling could potentially be used as a means of anonymising many other currencies.
Data Cloud – Blockchain data management made easy.
It has been possible to use the Nxt blockchain for storage/transmission of small amounts of data for quite some time, with the Messaging and Tagged Data features allowing the upload of small data payloads to the blockchain. The Tagged Data system has now become the Data Cloud, adding a UI and multiple enhancements to the already existing Tagged Data functionality.
What does this mean?Nxt Data Cloud will allow decentralized, censorship-free and tamper-proof publication
and retrieval of small files, documents, or arbitrary data to the blockchain, with low costs/fees and options including automatic removal and encryption.
Other features/improvements in NRS 1.7.4 :Adjusted block generation algorithm – faster blocks
The NXT block creation algorithm has been optimised in this release with some modifications to base target adjustment algorithm.
In practice this means that there will be no more so called “Long blocks”, a frequent irritation for users.
The optimised algorithm will ensure that Nxt blocktimes are on average somewhat faster, and more regularly timed.
Singleton assets – Assets for unique items
NXT has always been at the forefront of Asset creation/trading platforms. With Singleton Assets it now becomes possible to release a new class of Asset:
Singleton Assets are an asset with a fixed quantity of 1.
This allows for the creation of Assets that can represent unique, non-fungible items, something that was not possible before.
Fees and tx size limit changes – building to scale
In the interest of scaling, fees for certain transactions will be changed to a dynamic scale.
This will be particularly applicable to data storage transactions, as Dynamic Fees will be proportional to the relative transaction size.
Account Properties - user definable tags for accounts
Account Properties will allow users to assign arbitrary name/value metadata to other user accounts.
This will allow, for example, a trader to tag trustworthy accounts with an approved rating, or to identify an account as being associated with a verified identity.
Conclusion:Nxt is still, even after 2 years, developing quickly and succeeding in its core aim of creating a stable platform for businesses, while adhering to the decentralised model of crypto-currency as a form of personal financial empowerment. NRS 1.7.4 is a major release for Nxt, and will be a very important milestone in its development, With these changes, Nxt is more ready than ever to bring financial freedom to individuals, to give businesses powerful tools to build on the Nxt blockchain and to carry on being the only genuinely decentralised solution to build blockchain services on.
Onwards and upwards..........
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Just need to express my thanks to all of the hard working guys (and occasionally girls) in the Nxt community and beyond, who have helped to make all of the above possible.
Thanks, Nxt, you've done an amazing job.
