So I'd like to further elaborate on my idea of Qora as a services-oriented platform, and discuss in-depth how the project I am proposing might benefit any potential 3rd-party developer looking to create value-added applications or services for Qora while acquiring a steady stream of income in the same process.
Traditionally, Cryptocurrency development is funded via two major sources -- bounties or donations, and the developers often play the role of a "developer-investor" (meaning - they make money when their investment rises in value). To me, this is definitely NOT the answer and not the way developers should be treated.
Remember this -- Developers need to make a living.
They are human beings too, and it's impossible for them to make a career out of doing Cryptocurrency-related work if the income is not steady enough for him to provide for his family. And that's the reason why a lot of projects fail and simply cannot sustain themselves - their developers simply cannot afford to work full-time on the project and putting all their energy into taking the projects further.
My proposal is very simple - we need to empower our Crypto developers so they can create income-generating businesses on top of cryptocurrency or make a career out of doing Cryptocurrency work. If we treat our developers well - they will in turn create services that will benefit our users greatly. By giving developers the option, they will be able to fully dedicate their time to the project and bring more value to the coin. That's why I believe a fee based services-oriented platform is the solution that makes the most sense.
Originally, I was thinking of developing a small launcher application for Qora for my own personal use. It will list all the services I've created for Qora, and if anyone uses it, I will get paid in the process.
This is how it works - an end-user will select the service he wishes to use from the drop-down list, then when he clicks the "launch service" button, a pre-determined fee is paid to me (the money is transferred from the user's wallet to my address behind the scene).
That was the idea behind "Qora Services Explorer"'s inception. I was thinking of ways for me to capitalize on my work as a Qora developer. Now we're having more developers on our team, and I've become even more ambitious.
I realized we can actually scale the idea up and create a full-fledged "Qora App Store" or "Qora Services Store." It utilizes the SaaS concept, in which a developer will be paid on a per-use basis. So here is one scenario and example -- Let's say a developer creates a very popular service for Qora "Dark-Trade," every time the user want to use the service, a "fee" is paid to the developer (per-use basis).
And in order to use the service, the end user must also buy more Qora (which brings more value to the network as well)!
Okay, I know the idea is not exactly revolutionary, but I feel this is a goal we should pursue from the very start. Because if this service-oriented platform really takes off and becomes a reality, I believe we will be seeing an army of developers for Qora. I believe that if we give developers the option of being able to make money from their work, more developers will flock to Qora and create services for our end users. Also, imagine this scenario: Developers will be able to port their Android or iOS projects to Qora and create "Dark-version" of their programs. "App" is a billion dollars industry, and I feel it only makes sense if we get a slice of the pie.
A potential "Qora Services Store" project will likely consist of the following elements:
1.
Service ID Registration Service (Part of Developer's Portal at
http://developer.qora.org): This will be a web app hosted at the Developer's portal which
ONLY assigns a Qora Service ID to a developer AFTER an application has been received and approved by the Core development team, and the web app will also list all the Service IDs that are currently occupied and in use. I believe this is the approach that will make the most sense, because it will eliminate any "Service IDs" waste, and it is also the best way to enforce policies regulating Service Port use (it really doesn't make any sense to let anyone claims any ID range randomly, doesn't it?). Also, a procedure must be developed for a potential developer to submit his ID Request and to apply to become an official Qora Application Developer. The Core Team must do the filtering and screening before a service is allowed to use a particular "port" and get listed in the Services Store.
In addition, I believe that we can levy an "developer's account fee" for the marketing effort.
2.
Qora Service Development Framework: Basically, this is just a set of wrapper classes and libraries that make features like Arbitrary Transaction simple to the developers.
3.
Qora Services Explorer/Services Store frontend: This is the integrated Wallet frontend or the launcher platform where all the 3rd-party applications will be listed. It's likely that the Qora Wallet will need to be overhauled.
4.
Store backend (payment service): A list of developers' Qora Wallet addresses must be kept in a database and match to the application ID assigned. A developer will receive payment IMMEDIATELY when a user pays to use a particular service. (So unlike Amazon, Android, or iOS stores, a developer will get paid immediately, not on a monthly basis).
