Ark Community Digest Ep. 2— Ryan “Yellow_Rubber_Jacket”

Today we have the second article of our segment section “Ark Community Digest” where each Sunday we will be talking to an Ark community member and getting to know a little bit about them and what made them join the Ark community! Today we will be talking to Ryan whom you may know as Yellow_Rubber_Jacket in the Ark Slack. We’ve asked a series of questions to which Ryan has given some answers!

What Made You Join The Ark Community?
At this point saying “the wallet got me interested in ARK” is almost cliche, but it’s the truth. It was the first wallet I used that was intuitive and well designed with the UX in mind. Keeping the end user in mind sounds like a no-brainer…but it’s a rare tool that can balance form and function, and I think that speaks volumes about the ARK team and their proficiency.

What Got You Into Cryptocurrencies In The First Place?
I started mining BTC in 2012 (or was it 2013?) after hearing Andreas Antonopolous on a podcast. The idea of blockchain is what really piqued my interest, but unfortunately I never found a solid community to talk about it with. I felt everyone I “met” on forums were all anarchist idiots with delusions of grandeur and a borderline childish fear of “THEM”, and anyone I tried to engage in my personal life just laughed it off as a silly fad. I can’t tell you how many times I had to hear the comparison of BTC to Beanie Babies. After a while, it got demoralizing and I lost interest. I sold my BTC and forgot about the crypto world for a while.

When BTC started making the news in early 2017 I decided to dive back in and see what was going on. I stumbled on ARK (I forget how) and I was immediately intrigued. ARK was the first altcoin I bought, and I haven’t looked back since.

What’s Your Background & What Are Your Hobbies?
I grew up on a farm in NY, but farming didn’t appeal to me, so I went to school to study film. I’ve been an editor and director for most of my career and I absolutely love the work. Editing is my passion, it is one of the most creative aspects of film making and it is also one of the least understood. I equate it to being a chef….someone dumps a load of ingredients on your table, and says “here, make me something delicious.” That’s kind of like editing. There are hundreds of decisions you can make that will completely alter the outcome and experience for the audience.

Growing up on a farm primed me to be an outdoorsy type. I live in an area with beautiful mountains all around, so I enjoy hiking, kayaking, rock climbing…that kind of stuff. My other passions are reading and of course film. I really enjoy non fiction, and some of the modern intellectuals like Steven Pinker, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, David Deutsch…I could read all day if I had the luxury.

What’s your Ambition For The Future
To be able to read all day? Haha, well I have a 1.5 year old daughter, so it may be cheesy, but my main goal in life is to make sure that she is happy. Professionally I would like to be able to pursue more passion projects, and as I become more comfortable in my career I am finding more and more time to do so. Working as a freelancer is a hustle, but it can also allow you the time to focus on your own projects instead of other people’s…and as I grow as an artist I am continuously trying to find new ideas to express and new ways to express them.

If You Could Think Of One Thing You’d Like To See For Ark, What Would It Be?
A new white paper? Where’s the troll bounce emoji :)

In all seriousness though, I do think ARK needs to focus their message somehow. This is an issue that gets brought up time and time again, and I’m sure the team is sick of hearing it…but at some point, if everyone (or most everyone) out there is confused, you have to think they can’t all be wrong.

ARK is an ambitious project to say the least. It’s not just about interoperability, or just about a solid/scalable/easy to use platform etc. It’s many things all wrapped into one, that make it unique and visionary. So finding a way to communicate all of the intersecting pieces, and how they will ultimately form like Voltron (sorry couldn’t resist) is extremely important.

Who Is The Person You Look Up To The Most?
It would have to be a tie between my Father and Grandfather. They are both the hardest working people I know, and they really instilled me with a strong work ethic. They are both very old school, stoic characters…strong silent types, and that has had a big effect on the way I live my life.

Who Is Your Favourite Ark Community Member & Why?
Tough question! I think this insufferable bear market has really brought out the best in the ARK community. There are a lot of great people doing amazing things, but I guess if I’m forced to pick I’d choose Marc of ARKTippr fame. He’s active and vocal in the community, intent on using the tech to build cool stuff, and he seems like he’s got his head screwed on straight.

Where Do You See The Price Of Ark This Time Next Year?
Hopefully higher than right now!! It’s been tough to watch the price tumble. But if I’m being 100% honest, I just want it to be over $3.00…which means I’m breaking even.

You Can Have Your Dream Company Implement Ark’s Tech, Who Would It Be?
Another tough question…and one I don’t have an answer for. What I would like to see, and what I hope will happen, is that companies will think up new and exciting ways to use blockchain tech, and ARK will be a solid “go to” for start ups to build on.

If you think about the internet in the early 90’s….no one could have predicted just how ubiquitous it would become. It was still a game only open to highly skilled programmers and visionaries. What makes the internet so useful is that you don’t have to “know” how it really works to take advantage of it. Any idiot can build a website with a fully functioning shopping cart these days….something that would have taken an enormous amount of skill and work only a decade ago. I think ARK will bring that same ease of use to the blockchain world, and it will be that ease coupled with functionality that will drive innovation and ultimately adoption.

What Movie Quote Do You Think Could Be Used To Describe Crypto?
“They’ve done studies, you know. 60% of the time, it works every time.”
Brian Fantana, ANCHORMAN

Thanks to Ryan for joining us for this episode of our Ark Community Digest and if you like the article please make sure to share it. Make sure to like our twitter to get the word out about the Golden Horde and stay tuned for next Sunday’s guest!