fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
JSON Serialization Libraries Performance Tests
By: Israel Abramov
Tags: Performance Testing, Json, Backend, Serialization

BenchmarkDotNet

BenchmarkDotNet helps you to transform methods into benchmarks, track their performance, and share reproducible measurement experiments. It’s no harder than writing unit tests! Under the hood, it performs a lot of magic that guarantees reliable and precise results thanks to the perfolizer statistical engine. BenchmarkDotNet protects you from popular benchmarking mistakes and warns you if something is wrong with your benchmark design or obtained measurements. The results are presented in a user-friendly format that highlights all the important facts about your experiment.

Here is an example of code using BenchmarkDotNet:

Jil serialization class — BenchmarkDotNet usage

In the above attachment, there is a serialization dedicated class for the Jil serialization library. [Benchmark] attribute on top of a method is an indication for BenchmarkDotNet to perform an execution time test for the method. The benchmarked method will be triggered more than 50,000 times in order to perform statistical calculations.

It is important to isolate the actual serialization/deserialization action inside the benchmarked method so BenchmarkDotNet will measure the action itself, without any pre/post configuration noise.

In order to prepare the configuration prior to the BenchmarkDotNet run, [GlobalSetup] the attribute should be placed on top of a method that will be triggered right before the benchmarked methods.

It is possible to place [MemoryDiagnoser] attribute on top of a class in order to measure memory allocation for all benchmarked methods inside this class.

BenchmarkDotNet should be run against release code to ensure all optimizations are included.

At the end of its run, output will be displayed:

Jil serialization class — BenchmarkDotNet results

In the image above we can see the mean value that reveals execution time for Jil serialization action was 321.8 nanoseconds (10^-9). In addition, it provides another statistical results such as Error and Standard Deviation which are out of my scope, but it is definitely nice to have information.

At the far right column, you can see the allocated column that tells how much memory allocated per single operation (method execution): 576 B. In addition, it provides with garbage collector generations (0, 1, and 2) collections per 1000 operations, another nice-to-have information.
Modifying org.json to handle duplicate keys
By: Harshal Parekh
Tags: Programming, Java, Json

A JSONObject is an unordered collection of name/value pairs. Its external form is a string wrapped in curly braces with colons between the names and values, and commas between the values and names. The internal form is an object having get and opt methods for accessing the values by name, and put methods for adding or replacing values by name.

JSON Object Representation

A sample JSON Object looks something like this:

This article is written with the assumption that you are already familiar with JSON and org.json library in Java.

As per the documentation of JSON: An object structure is represented as a pair of curly brackets surrounding zero or more name/value pairs (or members). A name is a string. A single colon comes after each name, separating the name from the value. A single comma separates a value from a following name. The names within an object SHOULD be unique.

But, let’s get past this definition and assume that you have a string with duplicate keys and you have to parse that key into a JSONObject.

Sometimes you have an API response which is flawed and has duplicate keys. Instead of waiting for someone to fix the API, you can write a couple of classes to handle duplicate keys.

How can we parse a string into a JSONObject with duplicate keys?

Parse the string using wither regex or tokens, add each key-value pair to a hashmap, and in the end recreate your JSON document with the duplicates removed. In this case though I would only remove key-value pairs that are exactly the same. This is not an ideal solution.

Or

Download the source code for org.json.JSONObject , and make a slight modification to the code to automatically leave out duplicates. This is a bit dangerous though. Another option is to create a modified version that simply validates and modifies.

The below code allows you to create a JSONObject with a string containing duplicate keys. Exceptions are thrown only when you have two key-values that have the same key, but different values. This was because I think it would be a problem to choose at random which of the two should be assigned (e.g. the latter value?). Of course this can be changed to work as you wish (e.g. keep last value for multiple keys).

The code above only works for the keys at the first level of JSONObject. To extend the functionality to avoid duplicates in the inner objects as well, the code has to be modified as follows:

The above code can be used as:

This solves your problem of handling duplicate keys.

I hope you enjoyed the article! Find more in my profile. Visit my portfolio here: https://harshal.one.
Awesome server status message
By: Majed Bojan
Tags: API, Ruby on Rails, Json, Html Css

Most of us we do not care about server status when server is up or down, some of us even did not care about wrong routes messages like page not found 404. recently i worked in a project and i was responsible about server side, we are using rails api as back-end, i was facing server down issue in staging due of fetching huge data from third-party and the server was very small. i used to check the server every time i got response in late and if the server is down or not i was ending up with json response if the server is not down like

{"success":true,"message":"Amyal backend server is up","version":null,"env":"development"}

I decided to render awesome html page that make me happy when the server is up instead of rendering json response.

My app was totally rails api project so i created one controller that inherits from ActionController::Base

class PagesController < ActionController::Base; end

and rest of the controllers will inherit from ActionController::API

class ApplicationController < ActionController::API; end

app/controllers/pages_controller.rb

# frozen_string_literal: true class PagesController < ActionController::Base # This will return not founded router page rescue_from ActiveRecord::RecordNotFound do render :not_found end # Our server status action def status @build_revision = build_revision render :status end private # REVISION is a file generated in current folder in server by Capistrano

# which show the commit id of the current version of the application in current folder def build_revision return unless File.file?('REVISION') file = File.open('REVISION', 'r') data = file.read file.close data end end

and we added some html and css code in our view

app/views/pages/status.html.erb

<!doctype html> <html> <head> <title>Server Staus</title> <meta charset="utf-8" /> <meta name="robots" content="noindex" /> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0"> <style> body { text-align: center; padding: 150px; } h1 { font-size: 50px; } body { font: 20px Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #333; } article { display: block; text-align: left; width: 1050px; margin: 0 auto; } a { color: #dc8100; text-decoration: none; } a:hover { color: #333; text-decoration: none; } table { border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%; } th, td { text-align: left; padding: 8px; } tr:nth-child(even) {background-color: #f2f2f2;} th { background-color: #4CAF50; color: white; } </style> </head> <body> <article> <h1 style="color:Tomato;"><%=Rails.env.capitalize%> Server</h1> <div> <p style="color:DodgerBlue;">Amyal backend server is running, Enjoy with our api’s!</p> <div style="overflow-x:auto;"> <table> <tr> <th>Status</th> <th>Environment</th> <th>Message</th> <th>Version</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Running</td> <td><%=Rails.env.capitalize%></td> <td>Amyal backend server is up</td> <td><%=@build_revision%></td> </tr> </table> </div> <p style="color:MediumSeaGreen;">— Best regards: Back-end Team</p> </div> </article> </body> </html>

Now check localhost:3000 to see the result
Faster JSON APIs for your Ruby on Rails Application
By: Ahmed Aboelleef
Tags: API, Scalability, Ruby on Rails, Json

one of the famous options to build your next applications is Rails API that gives you very fast approach to build your minimum valuable product

when your app start making success and start scaling , you will find your API(s) become slower and slower

we have many parts to optimize , DataBase queries , ruby code used in services and controllers but one of the most hidden parts that can be performance bottleneck is the generated JSON from your API

let’s assume we are building a list of users and database queries are optimized and your ruby code is pretty fast but your end point is still a bit slow you can start enhance your API performance in generting JSON by following the coming steps

(1) generating JSON by using JSON#generate or JSON#dump

to render you objects into json we have many ways, here is 3 of them

use the normal json render method that call to_json method to the provided active record objects is abit slow

class UserController < ApplicationController

def index

users User.all

render json: users, status: :ok

end

end => 0.365

second option is to use JSON.generate method that assume that it’s first argument is a set of ruby hashes and NOT active record objects

class UserController < ApplicationController

def index

users User.all.map do |u|

{

id: u.id,

name: u.name,

email: u.email,

phone: u.phone,

age: u.age

}

end

render json: JSON.generate(users), status: :ok

end

end => 0.016

third option is to use JSON.dump method that assume that it’s first argument is a set of ruby hashes and NOT active record objects

class UserController < ApplicationController

def index

users User.all.map do |u|

{

id: u.id,

name: u.name,

email: u.email,

phone: u.phone,

age: u.age

}

end

render json: JSON.dump(users), status: :ok

end

end => 0.010

all the prevous sample against a set of 3000 record

(2) replace the default json parser for rails

the above gem can be used to replace the default json parser in rails

performance comparison can be found in end of readme just open the link and check it and it’s very fast

(3) render only the needed attributes for each model client .

for each model in your app , you can have more than one presenter or serializer

one presenter for list (index) page that has only few attributes

other for more details if we have preview presentation with more details

largest parser that has all the details and might have associations to the needed object

by this separation we have decoupled presentation layer in your growing Application and have smaller size to transfer over the network

here is a sample rails 6 project for multi presenter for each active rocord model
JSON extraction made simple
By: Analyst
Tags: Big Data, Data Science, Analytics, Data Preparation, Json

What you see in the above video is an example of a JSON structure being transformed into rows and columns and placed in a data pipeline. This is all done in under a minute, without writing any code. Some features worth mentioning:

Auto key-value detection

The Mammoth platform automatically detects the JSON schema and presents a point and click solution to flatten out the data.

Easy handling of nested values

If your first level of extraction results in a column with another JSON structure, we can keep applying the “Extract JSON” function. These tasks get added to the pipeline.

Automation

Mammoth provides automation by default. All your incoming JSON data automatically goes through the extraction pipeline. Extract your JSON data, perform various transformations to it and then send the prepared data out to your data warehouse.

Instant discovery and exploration

In the above video, you’ll notice we’re exploring and drilling down on the data we’ve extracted. This allows us to get an overview of the data and perform sanity checks. In the case of anomalies, we can take immediate action, as described below.

Additional transformational capabilities

There’s a good chance the extracted values aren’t in the perfect shape. Whether it is miscategorized or uncategorized data, spelling mistakes, or just simple filtering of rows, you can make the changes and add them to the data pipeline.

Automated Export

After shaping the data to your liking, send it out to a data warehouse using Mammoth’s various exporting capabilities. This export task gets added to the end of the data pipeline, so all your steps are completely automated.

The Mammoth Platform

We’re assuming JSON extraction is a small part in your data project. Mammoth provides all the tools you need for the rest of your journey, including data ingestion, warehousing, transformation and discovery. Check out all the features here.

For those who don’t know about Mammoth Analytics, it is a code-free data management platform. It provides powerful tools for the entire data journey, including data retrieval, consolidation, storage, cleanup, reshaping, analysis, insights, alerts and more. You can check it out at www.mammoth.io

We’ll be posting similar articles regularly. To stay up to date, follow us here. If you have additional questions, feel free to leave a comment here or reach out to us at hello @ mammoth.io
2 Examples of Projects that Leverage Java and JSON for Web Services
By: Kartik Patel
Tags: Offsore Software, Offshore Outsourcing, Java, Json

2 Examples of Projects that Leverage Java and JSON for Web Services Kartik Patel Apr 12·2 min read

Java has some amazingly simple tools to make a developer’s life easier. One such tool is the JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) open standard file format and data interchange format. It leverages standard text to store and transfer data objects and makes it significantly easier to build Web Services solutions. It can be leveraged in any language including Java, PHP, .NET, etc. It is easy to read and write and easy to parse and generate data and it is a popular data-interchange language for developers around the world. In this article, we look at two specific web services projects utilizing JSON to build the foundation for business solutions.

‘As the web services market grows, the popularity of JSON is likely to grow as well.’

The JSON foundation is build with universal data structures with built-in name and value pairs and an ordered list of values. Its text-based open standard data interchange uses C, C++, Java, Python, Perl and other familiar conventions so it is easy for developers to adopt and use. It is independent of JavaScript and can be used on a standalone basis with many programming environments and the availability of support for reading and generating JSON.

Here are two examples of web services applications using JSON:

Negotiation, Approval and Workflow App — This manufacturer of construction equipment and machinery wished to develop a portal and mobile app for its sales team to process sales requests, support billing activities and manage the approval process for workflow. The solution roadmap included roll-out to international locations with cloud-based app development for web and mobile solutions.

Dealer and Quote Management Portal — This cable solution and products business wished to improve its quote management system and effectively manage and track quotes and the process of approvals and associated activities with dealer management and workflow for its staff and dealers. The solution included cloud-based portal development for the web and implementation of business rules to comply with business requirements.

JSON is a simpleand flexible way to store data and provide an easy interchange for web services and it is suitable for use with PHP, Java, .NET and other languages. As the web services market grows, the popularity of JSON is likely to grow as well. With the rapid expansion of social media, content is ubiquitous and the foundational accessibility and performance of JSON is a crucial component of that performance and flexibility.

‘The JSON text-based open standard data interchange uses C, C++, Java, Python, Perl and other familiar conventions.’

Find out how a Java Development partner can help your business achieve its goals. Read our Case Studies for more information on the use of JSON in Web Services projects: Dealer & Quote Management, Negotiation, Approval & Workflow App.
How to convert Excel file data into a JSON object by using JavaScript
By: Jayanth Babu
Tags: Json, JavaScript, Excel

Photo by Drew Coffman on Unsplash

Initially, when I started working on this requirement, people suggested using any one of the backend libraries to read and convert the excel data into JSON objects. But it is difficult to send requests to the server every time. On the other hand, it was really easy to convert the excel file on the client into a JSON object by using pure JavaScript.

There is a JavaScript plugin XSLX that can be used to read excel files as binary strings and to convert them into JSON objects.

Plugins Required: xlsx.full.min.js

Installation

Include the CDN link in the head tag of an HTML file like this:

Now, in the HTML body tag, we need to write an input tag with the type as a file and need to restrict the user to select only files with the extension of .xls or .xlsx. Paste the below code into your HTML body tag.

Now we need to add event listeners for both input and button elements for handling change in input and button click events.

In JavaScript we can add the event listeners to elements like this:

We can read the data in the excel file by using a file reader as a binary string in JavaScript. Then we use XLSX which has a built-in facility of SheetJS to convert our binary string into a JSON object.

How to convert an excel file into a JSON object by using JavaScript

Now select the excel file and click on the convert button to display the JSON object in the browser. After that, we can use the JSON object for any manipulations and integrate the data into different UI layouts.

In Angular

Excel to JSON in Angular

JSON to excel in JavaScript

For your convenience, I am adding the code sandbox link live demo here

To export JSON data as excel look into this video

Click here for source code

Thanks for your time :)
Using Go’s json.RawMessage
By: Noam Tenne
Tags: How To, Golang, Go, Programming, Json

What’s a “raw message”?

We can think of the raw message as a piece of information that we decide to ignore at the moment. The information is still there but we choose to keep it in its raw form — a byte array.

The reason for it being a byte array is that short of machine code, the byte array is the purest form of data. Every piece of information can be viewed as an array of bytes. In the same manner, every JSON message is eventually serialized to an array of bytes. So if we can regard the whole JSON message as a byte array, we should be able to regard bits of JSON as a byte array.

That’s were json.RawMessage comes in.

If we look into the source of Go, and into the type of json.RawMessage, it’s literally a type alias for []byte:

Excerpt from Go source

So a raw message can represent a complete JSON document, but it can also represent any value or sub document of a JSON document.

When should I use json.RawMessage?

When you don’t know or when you don’t care.

Most JSON examples out there will demonstrate how to fully resolve the whole JSON document into a Go structure. Whether it’s a map, or a structure you’ve composed:

But if you don’t know or just don’t care what part of the document should look like, you don’t have to define it. Just use json.RawMessage as a place holder:
Query over Compressed CSV File on AWS S3
Tags: Csv, S3, JavaScript, AWS, Json

File size can get big on S3. I was writing an API to fetch data on S3 that matches condition in SQL query, and the error occurs saying the file size is too big to use selectObjectContent from S3 SDK.

One way of handling is to query over the compressed version of it.

First, let’s use GZIP to compress the file.

with gzip.GzipFile('data.gz', 'w') as cf:

cf.write(bytes(json.dumps(payload, default=str).encode('utf-8')))

# data is a list of json [{key: val]}, {key, val}, ...]



Then, upload file to S3.

s3.Bucket('bucket-name').upload_file('data.gz',

'file-path-on-s3/data.gz')

Now let’s run a SQL query over this GZIP file on S3, using the SDK provided by AWS S3. I was using SDK in javascript.

You may find the event stream is broken at incorrect position, so the data output is hard to parse. I use a handler function to concat the returned list of string, which kinda like several broken pieces of a json string, then split them at the ‘

’ which is the separator of records in the payload.

The output will look like a normal json object.
How to convert CSV to JSON in Python
Tags: Python, Csv, Convert, Json

The process of file format conversion Python is definitely no cake walk, especially for CSV to JSON. So how can we add this important functionality to a project while protecting our afternoon from being wasted on the task? Well, I have just the thing.

We start off by pip installing our API client:

pip install cloudmersive-convert-api-client

And with a simple function call for convert_data_csv_to_json, involving an API instance, we may proceed thus:

from __future__ import print_function import time import cloudmersive_convert_api_client from cloudmersive_convert_api_client.rest import ApiException from pprint import pprint # Configure API key authorization: Apikey configuration = cloudmersive_convert_api_client.Configuration() configuration.api_key['Apikey'] = 'YOUR_API_KEY' # Uncomment below to setup prefix (e.g. Bearer) for API key, if needed # configuration.api_key_prefix['Apikey'] = 'Bearer' # create an instance of the API class api_instance = cloudmersive_convert_api_client.ConvertDataApi(cloudmersive_convert_api_client.ApiClient(configuration)) input_file = '/path/to/file' # file | Input file to perform the operation on. column_names_from_first_row = true # bool | Optional; If true, the first row will be used as the labels for the columns; if false, columns will be named Column0, Column1, etc. Default is true. Set to false if you are not using column headings, or have an irregular column structure. (optional) try: # Convert CSV to JSON conversion api_response = api_instance.convert_data_csv_to_json(input_file, column_names_from_first_row=column_names_from_first_row) pprint(api_response) except ApiException as e: print("Exception when calling ConvertDataApi->convert_data_csv_to_json: %s

" % e)

And now all you need to do is specify your input file path. Once it has your request, the API will make the appropriate format conversions and then return your JSON file. Now that’s a cake walk!
Introducing JSON-Explorer, a free open-source web JSON visualizer
By: Maxence Dalmais
Tags: Open Source, Retrospectives, Agile, Github, Json

tl;dr: You can visit https://maxired.github.io/json-explorer/ and upload a JSON to explore and filter it. This is mainly useful for tabular data.

The landing screen of JSON-Explorer — import a file, see it

While working on Retrolution, I recently faced a situation where I wanted to provide a new web interface on top of data that I don’t own. For those interested in retrospectives meetings, I am speaking about the very famous Retromat. While the code of Retromat is available on Github, there is currently no license attached. Moreover, even if the project was open-source, the data is not available on the repository.

I very recently contacted Corinna Baldauf, Retromat founder, for permission to use the data. She basically refused me the right to use freely Retromat data, which I totally respect. This could be the end of the story but at the same time she that reassures me that “For your own personal use you can do whatever you want.”

For your own personal use you can do whatever you want.

Because my initial goal was to create a useful web interface and share it with people, I tried to find an alternative. One of them would be to manually recreate the data by myself, asking permission to differents authors and so on. Quite possible actually, but looks to me more like a tedious job than a quick win.

For legal reasons, I don’t want to host any data that I don’t own. But it is easy for everyone with limited computed skills to download a file, save it locally, and use it on another webpage.

Before going further, I decided to do a very quick research about currently available solutions that would to the job. Such tools probably exist, but I haven’t been able to find them. So I decided to build one. You can find it here and the sources on Github.

Because I want my tool to be useful for everyone, I made it so it works with any JSON, not just Retromat one.

For example, you can use the file https://data.senat.fr/data/senateurs/ODSEN_GENERAL.json found on the french government open data platform and discover that ‘Michel’ is the all-time most popular name for french Senator.

Or you can use https://retromat.org/activities.json?locale=en and filter Retromat activities ;-)

Everything is still pretty rough. I just spend for now a few hours on it, but please let me know it is useful or how can it be improved.
Medicating your Emotions
By: Rohan Mutalik
Tags: Mask, Medication

Why is it that people feel a need to hide their “bad” emotions — sadness, anger, pain? There is nothing wrong with feeling those emotions, yet our friends and other people we know are constantly medicating those emotions away, hoping that life will get better. Those emotions are there for a reason, and wishing them away with instant drugs won’t solve your problems. Instead of taking the pain away, feel the pain, and feel it strongly because it is there for a reason. We all have control over our lives to an extent, and these bad feelings are there to help us back on the right path. In fact, there have been many times where I have felt sad and hopeless, and pushed past the pain, and reached out to a few people who I had not talked to in years, because for some reason in my mind I could only talk to them when I was vulnerable; by reconnecting with those people, I was able to start building back the relationship we once had. You can always find a silver lining in every bad situation, but first you have to allow that bad situation to linger long enough for you to take action and do something about it. If we just medicate it away, we will never make those changes which are actually necessary to improving the quality of our lives.

P.S. Writer’s block + Stream of consciousness writing = Unstructured rambling :)

P.P.S. I’m not saying medication is not necessary; I’m saying it’s not necessary when it is used to hide or run away from something.
“Things we do for love”
By: Anjali Singh
Tags: Love, Ends, Masks

You are born for a reason, some find that reason, some just pretend their whole life.

pretender

Some people are pretender either they are too scared to face the truth or pursue their love. If they would have followed their love in the past it would have made a difference now. Hence wearing the mask is the best seclusion one can have from the external world. But, It never leaves your internal world at peace.

I decided not to be a pretender while finding that reason while looking for more love. Sometimes it’s ok if you don’t want to do what is expected of you.

So, love! Because things we do, the life we live, the path we choose, are all the outcome of love. Materialistic love, humanly loves, self love-almost half of us do for this. You keep yourself in continuation for the sake of someone or for the love of your comfort zone. Those things can be materialistic, human love and self-comforting themselves.

One has to find that love else you will be traveling the same path again and again. Always justifying yourself or pretending to be someone else which you aren’t since you ain’t clear in the head. Let go of the routines, let of the expectations, start wandering because

“Not all those who wander are lost.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien

Wanderers- Wandering does make you walk to the endless path while doing justified things. You are not lost but on the path of finding the real thing. I lived most of my life making choices always end up defining my love. It’s such a strong feeling, being able to justify for doing things. yes, i call myself wanderer least of all it makes me self aware.

Take the step ahead, search your element;

Be lost in that element, finding new you;

Let the new you free, feeling the love;

The love will show you the end, a happy end;
Innovation of the Day: R-PUR
By: Jareth Ashbrook
Tags: Masks, Trendwatching, Innovationoftheday, Environment, Hongkong

Innovation of the Day: R-PUR

Last month, France-based R-PUR, a startup producing high-end air pollution masks, opened an office in Hong Kong and announced plans to target consumers in China, Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan. The R-PUR Nano mask was featured at CES in January 2019. It consists of two parts: a replaceable filter that blocks particles as small as 0.05 micrometers — meaning the mask exceeds the European certification standard — and a reusable fabric mask. The mask links to an app that estimates when the filter should be replaced, and retails for USD 220.

A face mask for USD 220! But this innovation signals a powerful emerging trend when it comes to the Future of Wellbeing, especially in Asia:

Happiness is in the air. Yes, air pollution is an omnipresent threat to health and happiness globally. But it’s a particular life-and-death matter in Asia. Air pollution kills 4.7 million people in Asia each year, two-thirds of the global total (WHO). And of the world’s 100 most polluted cities, 99 are in Asia (AirVisual & Greenpeace). As awareness rises, air pollution will be THE defining wellbeing topic of 2020 (and into the next decade), just as ‘single-use’ was to sustainability in 2019.

Air quality, the new luxury. When it comes to air quality, the solution goes beyond selling masks. retailers, beauty brands, transport industry, everyone can play a part. Last year, Stella McCartney fitted out their flagship London store with nano-carbon filter technology that they say offers ‘the cleanest air in London’. So ask yourself: do consumers ever breathe air you are responsible for? What are you doing to help ensure that air doesn’t do them harm?

We’ve just published the Future of Wellbeing! Dive into the AIR TIME trend to see how other brands are responding to this pressing wellbeing needs.
Paradise is Falling Apart
By: Caspar Vega
Tags: Poetry, Masks, Self Improvement, Poem, Writing

Paradise is Falling Apart

I swear to God this mask was different when I got it

Shiny, glittering, and bright — that’s why I fucking bought it

Now it’s like a part of some Halloween ensemble

And if you pull the strap too hard, it’ll up and crumble

I remember that choosing it didn’t take much time

Can’t remember anyone else waiting in the line

I asked the clerk if I could owe him and he said: “If you must”

Had to wear it for a decade before the trick was bust

So strongly they gave advice that their foreheads glistened

Have you met me, motherfucker? Have I ever listened?

I’m not blind to the fact that I have a prince’s pride

That don’t mean my methods ain’t sometimes justified

You can prep for getting hit and spar in some ditch

Once the knuckles land, it’ll still hurt like a bitch

Present me with an outlet for my unique kind of power

No offer in existence I wouldn’t drop within the hour

The duality within us all has another layer

Secret character popping up — are you ready, player?

One face to rule them all, another one to find them

And now a third to finalize the tie and bind them

Always hated snakes, so fancied myself Perseus

With these new revelations, turns out that I’m Cerberus

We’ll create our own paradise before it’s time to go

And from the dust and dirt and ashes, gorgeous flowers grow
Thunder Mug Journal — Edition 3. A short summary of the latest news from…
Tags: Mask, Bitcoin, Optimusblue, Plenteum

A short summary of the latest news from the coins/projects OptimusBlue.com are involved in.

Plenteum (PLE)

Plenteum released LightPaper 2 on 31 of March 2019 containing more information about the Challenges, Difficulty Window Update, New PoW (Soft-shell), Network Protection and Dust Fund V2. The LightPaper also covers a few App Services and Use Cases.

The Network Protection part is a very interesting part that might cause some controversy. The idea behind it is solid and I personally is in full support of it since it will promote decentralization. The basic idea is that pools with more than 50% of the total network hash rate will have its blocks rejected by the network. In principle this is a great idea, unfortunately we are dealing with humans. Firstly they tend to flock together toward the top performing pools for a number of reasons, now you might have loyal miners mining away and suddenly a few more join that might push the pool beyond 50% total network hash. This increase will then affect ALL the miners, even the loyal ones and maybe even the pool as some miners might feel that they have wasted valuable hash. Great, so miners should know and understand not to put all the hash on one pool, unfortunately we are still dealing with humans from all over the continent with different languages, and so forth. So communication can also play a big role, these are just some of the potential issue I foresee. I do believe that the Plenteum Development team will put forward a solution that will benefit everyone and the project!

Plenteum LightPaper 2

MASK

Mask forked on block 180 000 to a new PoW and is now using CN Fast V2, same as Masari. The fork went well without any problems, unfortunately the OptimusBlue pool ran into a few issues during the changeover, fortunately this was also resolved and mining is back on track! Miners are requested to use the latest mining applications like XMR-Stak and use Algo “masari” (XMR-Stak). CN GUI Miner will also release an update soon to accommodate for the changes.

Final words….

Bitcoin jumped out of the blocks and it is looking really good. Does this mean Bitcoin is on a recovery path, no one is even sure what triggered this sudden rise, some even blamed an April Fools joke to trigger the spike? What I do know is that this value increase is definitely welcomed. What are your thoughts, do you think BTC is on a run to recover or will the increase be short-lived?

Thank you for taking the time to read the second edition of the Thunder Mug Journal and as always, all feedback are welcomed!
Thunder Mug Journal — Edition 4. A short summary of the latest news from…
Tags: Mox, Bitcoin, Masari, Plenteum, Mask

A short summary of the latest news from the coins/projects OptimusBlue.com are involved in.

CNGUIMiner

CNGUIMiner is a Graphical Mining Interface for Windows wrapped around a custom variant of the well-known XMR-Stak mining application. The aim of this application is to enable anyone, novice or veteran miners alike to easily mine crypto. The latest version also enable user to modify and tweak the more advanced CPU/GPU settings for mining optimization. Currently around 20 different coins can be mined via CNGUIMiner.

Plenteum (PLE)

Although things might seem a bit quiet on the Plenteum front, the development team is hard at work in the back-end. Currently most of the work are being done on the TestNet and that can be followed on the official GitHub account.

In other news, CNGUIMiner release a special Plenteum Mining Edition specifically focused only on Plenteum. This GUI Miner makes it very easy for anyone to mine Plenteum and this edition contains all the currently known Plenteum mining pools. Should any pools be missed or should they be removed then please get in contact with the CNGUIMiner team.

MoX

Big news on MoX!! They released a brand new website (https://getmox.org/) on the 8th of April 2019 and it also contains information about a collaboration between Mox & Torque dealing with 51% attacks and LightPaper3 dealing with the MoX Data Suite is also available. This is indeed very exciting news and it seems that MoX is starting to draw the right attention from miners and investors alike.

The current market does seem a bit unstable with the value of MoX a bit all over the place, it would be great to see a steady increase but this is crypto where very little are stable ;) This is however still a coin to keep your eyes on!

MASK

Everything seems to be a bit quiet with MASK since the fork. I know they are currently working on the GUI wallet and we hope to see it released soon. I would be great if MASK can get a bit more attention, currently not many mining pools or miners on the project. I trust that the MASK team have something up their sleeve to address this.

Masari (MSR)

Masari has also been fairly quiet, they did release an update recently where they give a low level explanation about SECOR mining, they also announced that they are working on a whitepaper detailing BlockTree due something in Q1. Other than that it would be great to see more miners on OptimusBlue Mining Pool (https://msr.optimusblue.com)

Final words …

BTC was on a roll but it fell back a bit, it is currently still above the $5000 value, this is still exciting and I am sure we all hope to see it gaining more value.

Thank you for taking the time to read this edition of the Thunder Mug Journal and as always, all feedback are welcomed!
Marshmello Costumes & Masks Are Now Yours for the Taking
By: Brandon Cintron
Tags: Marshmello, Masks, Halloween Costumes, Halloween, EDM

What up, #MELLOGANG?!

If you didn’t already know, Spirit Halloween is a HUGE fan of DJ/Producer Marshmello, and has had Joytime III on repeat ever since its release! Although he’s been making appearances seemingly almost everywhere recently, everyone still can’t seem to get enough of him!

Just this past year, Marshmello has traveled the globe performing his iconic DJ sets, crossed over into the virtual world of Fortnite™, and performed the first-ever in-game concert. Just recently, he even broke the record for most weeks consecutively number one on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic songs chart with his hit single Happier. Now that’s one heck of a year!

But the achievements don’t stop there! Because a good year needs to have a great ending, and Spirit Halloween knows just how to keep it mello!

So, to cap off the tremendous year that Marshmello is having and to continue to show some love and support for one of the world’s favorite artists, Spirit Halloween is proud to announce that Marshmello has made his way to shelves for their 2019 Marshmello Costumes and Accessories Collection! Now that’s something to rave about!

Listen up, Mellogang, because we’re about to tell you everything you need to know about this awesome collection so you can have the perfect Marshmello-themed Halloween! Grab your helmet, pick out your outfit, and let’s get mello!

Light-Up Marshmello Full Mask (IN STORES ONLY)

Some people will actually think you’re the real Marshmello once they see you rocking this official Light-Up Marshmello Mask (available in stores). This mask is replicated to look just like Marshmello’s signature helmet and even lights up different colors just like the real thing! Keep your identity hidden this Halloween all while repping your favorite DJ with this Light-Up Marshmello mask.

You won’t ever have to worry about being alone this Halloween when you decide to put on an official Mesh Marshmello Half Mask. This half mask is a quick and efficient way to transform you into a world-renowned DJ in seconds! You’ll be much happier once you get your hands on this mask!

Crank your Marshmello cosplay up a notch when you decide to go with this Kids Marshmello Costume for Halloween. This costume features everything you need to turn yourself into Marshmello including an official Marshmello half mask and a Marshmello sweatshirt. They’ll be no mistaking who you’re supposed to be when you dress in this outfit for Halloween!

So there you have it! Spirit Halloween is so excited to debut their first-ever 2019 Marshmello collection and can’t wait for the rest of the Mellogang to get their hands on it! With all that being said, always remember: Be positive. Be happy. Do good. And make sure to get your official Marshmello costumes and accessories right here at Spirit Halloween! Stay mello!
a Life Lesson
By: Roxanne Wan
Tags: Masks, Ads, China

Here are some thoughts after I wondered the internet for a half-hour with no Instagram, Facebook and WeChat. I added WeChat because it is very similar to Instagram and I use it A LOT in my Chinese community.

In the first couple of minutes, I lost my mind while holding my phone. I didn’t know where to start because Instagram and WeChat are usually the first two apps to open when I turn my phone on. Since I can’t use them, I began to ask myself what else I could do. I went to my email box then. I saw three unread emails from Bank of America, Sulwhasoo Online and Hollister, respectively. If I could use Instagram and WeChat, I wouldn’t click these ads. But I did because I didn’t know what else I could do. I clicked the Sulwhasoo Online, and I saw an appealing picture about a new facial mask. On the image, it said: NEW. Timetreasure Invigorating Sleeping Mask. I scrolled down the email, and I saw more attractive images about this product. Ok, that was when I raised my shopping desire. I clicked the website link. It took me to a different page that wrote UNLOCK 10% OFF YOUR ORDER. I closed it because I was only interested in the facial mask. After I clicked the icon of “Mask,” I went to a page where showed different kinds of the mask. I started looking at every single one of them so I can choose one for myself. Later on, I discovered there were videos about every product how they were made and how to use them. There were professional videos that have cool shots and beautiful colors. After watching a couple of videos, I, even more, wanted to buy a product from this company. So, I went to the review session where people give comments about the brand. That was not helpful because there were both bad and good reviews. “So, should I buy or not?”

I didn’t in the end because I closed the page by accident (thanks God!), and I was too lazy to go to the website again. Suddenly, I got a message from WeChat. I look at the time. 7:14! OMG, 20 minutes already past!

I still needed to wait for another 10 minutes. That was a terrible feeling. I wanted to know who texted me. “What if it’s something urgent?” I looked at the phone with a massive amount of anxiety. I started sliding the screen from left to right and right to left for minutes. Then, I changed to open and close apps on my phone one by one. Honestly, I didn’t even realize that I was doing that! Ok, 30 minutes past, finally!! I opened the WeChat immediately. It was my mom, she asked me how my school was. Instead of texted back, I called her. I never felt this good for talking to my mom.

Ok, here is the conclusion from this activity. I don’t think I would have ever done this if it was not an assignment from the class. But still, I am super glad I did it! One lesson from today — I need to pay extra attention to keep my wallet closed in the future.
Masks and faces in historical symbolism and in the modern Venetian Carnival
By: Marco Trevisan
Tags: Masks, Carnival, History, Venice

Since the sixteenth century, masked ‘types’ have acquired a complex set of symbologies and cultural behaviors in Venice, becoming a fundamental part of the image of the city and another symbol by which it is recognised (just like the gondola or winged lion). Their current use has turned them, instead, into various ‘costumes’.

A centre for the production of masks since the Middle Age, and home to private collections of this kind of item (evidently prematurely freed from their theatrical functions to become carnivalesque and assume a singular aesthetic value), masks in Venice have acquired a complex set of symbologies and cultural behaviors since the sixteenth century, becoming a fundamental part of the image of the city and a symbol of its recognition (just like the gondola or winged lion). It is therefore worthwhile overcoming the initial repulsion against this subject (due to its overuse in the promotion and publicization of Venice) so that it can be observed with greater attention, recognising its problematic sides and unshakability from clichés.

The original Venetian mask is the Bautta — its abstract form has constituted the traditional base onto which new forms of the mask have been designed in recent years, which are decorated to achieve an effect through the use of poor but luminescent materials, as well as the combination of heterogeneous elements built around a strictly neutral face.

These masks (which are now the most photographed during the Carnival and provide the most attractive business card for the city) have an absolute absence of characterization and fail to identify a mimetic function and identification which makes the true mask the subject of a tradition. This means that they can no longer be considered true masks, but rather costumes. The personality of the mask certainly fades behind the exciting experience of ‘abstractly’ wearing a mask, and another that interacts with a specific set of meanings is not resurrected in its place. Meanwhile, the anonymity and the disguise guaranteed by the costume elevates the transgressive and sexual functions connected to the ambiguity of the mask.
masks are good.
Tags: Masks, Real Life, Vaccines

This image is a (somewhat intentionally kitschy) graphic that I made for one of the CBR articles linked below, and I’m including it here because they replaced it with a(n equally kitschy) graphic of their own and I’m mad. Mine is more stylish. I guess they didn’t like my low-effort attempt at Sin City-style spot coloring. Shrug.

We spent almost all of last weekend out of the house, going to two movies (one each day), one bookstore, our local mall, and a restaurant. This was not born of social or capitalist need but rather the simple fact that our air conditioner only covers one room and it was hot as, to quote Magdalene “Queenie” Shaw, the Devil’s Bumhole or somefin. It was record-breaking hot in the PNW and we were dying.

Conveniently we’d planned to see F9 in a theater for weeks, and the alcohol theater where you can linger a bit at that. If I recall they did have pro-mask signage up, but it wasn’t mandatory. Drift partner and I were masked, because we got a Lyft there so we could get toasted (boozy milkshakes, which are truly ideal during such weather) and because we’re paranoid. We’re vaxxed, as I’ve said, and we’ve even been to a friend’s apartment to meet her puppy and gone unmasked in that controlled environment, but it still seems prudent

Full story here.
Biologists Mask Up to Protect Bats (Yes, Bats) From Covid-19
By: Digital Marketing
Tags: Protect, Bats, Covid-19, Mask, Biologists

Bat biologists like Dan Feller get excited every year for the summer field work season, a time to get out of the office and into the forest in search of their quarry — in this case, the 10 species that range throughout Maryland’s mountains and woodlands. Bats are most active in the summer, because it’s their breeding season, and its when their insect prey are most abundant. But this summer is a bit different. Instead of capturing bats with ultrathin nets or special traps (don’t worry, they don’t get hurt), Feller and many of his colleagues across the country are counting them remotely with acoustic devices that record their sonar calls. That’s because of the risk of humans transmitting the coronavirus to bats.It may sound strange, but bats now need protection from humans. Yes, it’s true that the SARS-CoV-2 virus that encircled the globe likely emerged from bats in China before jumping to another animal and then to people, a process called spillover. But people can also transmit viruses back to animals; that’s called spillback.In Maryland, researchers like Feller are taking precautions to prevent viral transmission in either direction. “We’re taking a conservative approach and we’re no longer handling them,” says Feller, who has been conducting annual bat surveys in Maryland since 1990. “We have reevaluated some of the research projects we had lined up. We’ve changed techniques for the year until we have additional information.”Feller