
Get Started with Blockchain Using the New AWS Blockchain Templates - chatmasta
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/get-started-with-blockchain-using-the-new-aws-blockchain-templates/
======
geraldbauer
FYI: To get started with Blockchains from Scratch (Zero) coding / building
your own in thirty lines of Ruby, Python, Go, JavaScript, ... I collect
starter articles and free code samples at the Awesome Blockchains page @
[https://github.com/openblockchains/awesome-
blockchains](https://github.com/openblockchains/awesome-blockchains)

------
notyourday
Based on my observation we are reaching PeakBlockChain(tm):

1\. Half of the posts in my LinkedIn use words block chain - they are not
coming from usual P&D crowd. I'm seeing _lawyers_ post "Where are all the
#ladies of #blockchain. So inspired by #blockchain diversity efforts!"

2\. I cannot go to a restaurant/bar/cafe/coffee shop in NYC without hearing
someone next to me talking about blockchain and awesome stuff they are going
to do to be riiiich riiich rich on #blockchain. Yesterday, I overheard two
Mormon kids on a mission talk about blockchain over lunch.

3\. IBM's ads are all about blockchain.

4\. And now Amazon is jumping into Blockchain-in-a-box

~~~
jackpeterfletch
5\. Despite being 3 years old a compelling use case for smart-contracts has
yet to emerge, nor has any use for blockchain become common place except as a
clandestine currency.

~~~
geraldbauer
CryptoKitties (Yes, cute little cartoon cats) that you can trade, auction,
gift, breed and more with contract services on Ethereum might be the fun, fun,
fun and compelling use case you're looking for, see
[https://github.com/cryptocopycats/awesome-
cryptokitties/tree...](https://github.com/cryptocopycats/awesome-
cryptokitties/tree/master/contracts)

~~~
Relys
I sincerely hope I detect sarcasm. Reminds me of tulips. _takes shot for
cryptocurrency bingo_ How's that beanie baby investment working out for
everyone? ;p

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viraptor
I'm really confused by this post. It seems to me like: a) the worst place to
mine anything is in a general purpose cloud with resource sharing out of your
control and b) burning as many resources of a specific type as available is
(I'd expect) the worst kind of customer behaviour for AWS since
underutilization and overprovisioning is free money. So why does this official
post exist?

~~~
lt
This doesn't have anything to do with mining. It's about templates to
provision your own private/permissioned blockchain network.

~~~
viraptor
> The template supports Ethereum mining, the EthStats and EthExplorer status
> pages, ...

Literally the first use case mentioned.

------
buildbuildbuild
Has anyone here benefited from deploying a private Ethereum network?

I'm struggling to brainstorm practical use cases for my projects, other than
perhaps for smart contract confidentiality reasons. It feels like the cost of
maintaining more infrastructure and the potential waste of computing resources
through mining outweigh any benefits but I am likely missing some great use
cases.

~~~
DIVx0
Yes, my company is using Quorum to build a permissioned blockchain amongst
industry parties to exchange data for various value-add purposes.

We have done a lot of analysis and can see large benefits of using Ethereum
based private network in this way.

[https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucejapsen/2018/04/02/unitedhe...](https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucejapsen/2018/04/02/unitedhealths-
optum-and-humana-in-blockchain-deal-to-improve-doctor-
directories/#1b007eeb3998)

~~~
simias
People keep coming back with this use case but it always baffles me. Certainly
you need to have some amount of trust in these parties not to falsify data? If
so, why do you need a Blockchain instead of basically anything else that would
be cheaper and simpler?

I hoped to find answers in this Forbes articles but all I get are vague claims
like:

>The use of blockchain technology will hopefully avoid the all too common
problem that occurs when a claim comes through from the provider and it
mismatches with the information the insurance company has in its provider
directory.

>CMS found 52% of Medicare Advantage plan provider “directory locations had at
least one inaccuracy.”

How will the blockchain magically make sure that everybody updates all
information? And if people suddenly somehow make sure to publish and update
the info then why can't they do the same thing with boring old technology?

>“With increasing state and federal requirements relating to provider data
maintenance and quality, tackling the high cost and redundancy in this space
is a logical starting point"

Backups and redundancy existed before the Blockchain, also I'm sure nobody
wants to publish private user data publicly for all to see so it's not like
random users around the world are going to mirror your database.

So you end up with a "Blockchain" where only trusted people can access and
contribute. What's the advantage over spinning up a PostgreSQL intance? I mean
when you read the Quorum wiki[1] it reads more like a database setup guide
than spinning a bitcoin node:

>The P2P layer has been modified to only allow connections to/from
permissioned nodes.

And just like that the entire point of the Blockchain vanishes.

>‘Proof of work’ consensus algorithm has been replaced with ‘QuorumChain’
consensus, a vote-based consensus mechanism.

Surely I hope that medicare providers obey to some top-down rules to operate,
not a consensus on a Blockchain. And given that all nodes are whitelisted
anyway I'm not sure why such a voting is even required.

It's pretty crazy to me that when I read articles like this one on Forbes or
the Quorum website I see pages after pages of hype and praise and yet so far
nobody is capable of giving me one simple use case demonstrating the practical
usefulness of the technology outside of cryptocurrencies.

The more I read about it the more I become convinced that the only real
feature of the Blockchain is being a magic word that makes suits throw money
at you. Maybe I'm just too dumb to understand it.

[1]
[https://github.com/jpmorganchase/quorum/wiki](https://github.com/jpmorganchase/quorum/wiki)

~~~
DIVx0
The press release is vague for the same reason why I can't directly answer
some of your questions/challenges.

However, the fact that we're using a permissioned network does not
automatically say that trust is absolutely granted. In this case it is more of
a wall for a rather large and weird garden and at this stage of development it
is helpful to know at least who is walking around in the garden. What they are
up to is a different matter.

Also, the press release mentions the problem of many provider directories
existing and not every directory contains the same information. Provider data
is a tent pole in the American healthcare industry and it is used in just
about every area of it, from claims processing to personal health record
management.

You ask why not just have a central database for it? Well, the answer is
simply "why do you think there are so many directories already?" The field is
littered with directories that aimed to be "The single master directory for
everyone!" There is a large amount of "not invented here syndrome" and an
equal amount of "we have 20 years of data models that wont fit your commercial
directory." So every large payer ends up building their own and then spends a
lot of time and effort maintaining the data in it. Other consumers/producers
of provider data may also maintain their own directories or subscribe to a
commercial product.

The network we constructed is not simply yet another provider master database
but-on-a-blockchain. It goes beyond that and really does use key features of
what most consider to be a blockchain's major benefits.

I apologize for not being able to share details of what I consider to be
really neat stuff but more news is on the horizon.

~~~
bmm6o
> _You ask why not just have a central database for it? Well, the answer is
> simply "why do you think there are so many directories already?" The field
> is littered with directories that aimed to be "The single master directory
> for everyone!"_

How does a block chain solve this better than any other solution? You still
have to get all of the participants to adopt it, and that's an organizational
problem that doesn't seem to me to be any easier than with any other solution.

------
dkobran
Also on HN today: “Amazon was just granted a patent for tracking Bitcoin
transactions and selling the data to the government”

[https://www.techspot.com/news/74246-amazon-granted-patent-
tr...](https://www.techspot.com/news/74246-amazon-granted-patent-tracking-
bitcoin-transactions-selling-data.html)

~~~
dkobran
Cool, just got downvoted a bunch. The Amazon mafia takeover of HN is ruining
this community.

~~~
buildbuildbuild
Love your company. Don’t get paranoid. Keep it up :)

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s2g
This has to be peak blockchain hype right?

Make it easy to use and let people discover that it’s just not really needed
for the cat majority of applications.

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purephase
That article lead is one of the oddest/funniest I've ever seen.

~~~
jeffbarr
I wrote it, and great to hear! Did it make sense in the context of multiple
uses for blockchain?

~~~
purephase
Sorry Jeff, just noticed this comment!

Yes, absolutely. I liked it a lot as it added whimsy to a subject that could
easily be written in a much drier style.

Appreciate it!

