Complete Blurt FAQ
A community-written, frontend-neutral FAQ about the Blurt blockchain ecosystem. Interface labels may differ by frontend, but the blockchain rules remain the same.
Table of Contents
What is a Blurt “frontend”?
A frontend is a website or app that lets you read and publish content on the Blurt blockchain. Your posts and votes are recorded on-chain, while different frontends can display them in different ways.
How does Blurt work at a high level?
When you post, comment, or vote, your frontend broadcasts a blockchain transaction. The network records it in blocks produced by witnesses. Rewards are distributed from an on-chain reward pool based on stake-weighted voting.
How is this different from classic social media?
On Blurt you control your account keys. Content and balances are not owned by a single company, and rewards are distributed by blockchain rules and community voting rather than a central platform.
Can someone delete my posts?
Blockchains are designed as permanent records. A post can be edited, and frontends can hide/filter content based on their own policies, but the underlying on-chain history generally remains accessible.
Does it cost anything to post, comment, vote, or transfer?
Blurt uses small on-chain fees to discourage spam. These fees are paid from your liquid BLURT balance, so keep a small liquid buffer if you want to interact frequently.
Can I change my username?
Usually not. On-chain usernames are persistent identifiers and typically cannot be renamed.
Can I delete or deactivate my account?
Blockchain accounts are meant to be permanent. A frontend might hide a profile, but the on-chain account and history generally remain available via blockchain tools.
Do I need to verify my identity?
No. Blurt is typically pseudonymous. Some third-party services or communities may have their own rules, but the blockchain itself does not require identity verification.
How do I vote on a post or comment?
Use the vote/upvote control on your frontend. Many frontends also let you set vote weight. Your influence depends on BP (stake) and your current voting mana.
What do feeds like Home, New, Hot, Trending mean?
These are frontend views and sorting methods. “New” is usually newest posts, while “Hot/Trending” are algorithmic mixes that factor in votes, engagement, and post age. Exact behavior varies by frontend.
Where can I see my rewards?
Check your wallet history and the pending payout shown on your posts. Some frontends also provide a dedicated rewards/claim section.
What is Savings?
Savings is a balance type that typically requires a withdrawal delay (commonly a few days). The delay adds an extra safety layer if your active key is compromised.
What about notifications?
Notifications depend on the frontend. Some provide them, others don’t, and features can change over time.
NSFW settings?
Most frontends offer controls to hide or blur NSFW-tagged posts. If your content is adult in nature, use the nsfw tag responsibly.
What can I post on Blurt?
Articles, photo posts, tutorials, art, opinions, project logs, and more. On-chain content is permanent, while frontends may apply their own moderation policies.
What are tags and why do they matter?
Tags help categorize content and improve discovery. Use tags that actually match your post. Avoid irrelevant tag stuffing.
How many tags should I use?
Most interfaces limit the number of tags. Use a small set of relevant tags rather than many weak or unrelated tags.
How do I add images?
Typically you upload an image (or host it elsewhere) and embed it using Markdown. Some frontends include an uploader and insert the Markdown for you.
How do I embed videos?
Many frontends allow embedding via links (e.g., YouTube) and sometimes limited HTML. Support varies between interfaces.
Why is the “Post” button disabled/greyed out?
Common reasons: missing title/body/tags, not logged in, posting fee cannot be paid due to low liquid BLURT, or frontend validation rules (like minimum text length).
Can I choose how rewards are paid out?
Some frontends offer payout options, such as receiving more as stake (BP) or declining payout. Exact options depend on the interface you use.
Where do new tokens come from?
The protocol mints new tokens following its inflation rules and routes them into different buckets (reward pool, witnesses, proposals, and other allocations).
What is the reward pool?
A daily on-chain pool used to pay authors and curators. Vote influence is stake-weighted, and payouts depend on votes and timing inside the payout window.
How is a post’s payout split?
Typically a portion goes to the author and a portion to curators (people who voted). Curator rewards are often paid as stake (BP), while the author payout may be split between liquid and stake depending on payout settings.
Why do “pending payouts” change?
Pending values are estimates until payout. Additional votes, vote removals, and reward-pool dynamics can change the displayed number.
When do payouts happen?
Posts usually pay out after the payout window (commonly around 7 days). Some frontends show a countdown on each post.
How fast are transfers?
Transfers are usually confirmed within seconds, as the chain produces blocks on a short interval.
What is voting mana?
Mana is your voting energy. Each vote consumes mana, and it regenerates over time. Very low mana means your votes have little effect until it refills.
Can I vote with less than 100%?
Most frontends let you choose vote weight. Smaller votes help manage mana and spread support across more posts.
Why doesn’t my vote change a post’s displayed earnings?
If your vote is small, the UI may round the displayed change to zero. The vote still exists on-chain and can be seen in detailed post/vote views.
How do I increase my influence?
Influence mainly comes from BP (staked BLURT). BP grows over time through powering up and earning rewards, including curation rewards.
What is considered spam or abuse?
Examples include repetitive low-effort comments, irrelevant promotional links, vote begging, tag spamming, scams, harassment, or posting NSFW without proper tagging.
What counts as plagiarism?
Copying text or images without permission or without proper attribution. If you quote, keep it short, mark it clearly as a quote, and credit the source.
Can I use images from the internet?
Assume “no” unless you have permission or a clear license allowing reuse. Prefer your own photos or properly licensed (e.g., CC0/stock) material.
How is abuse handled?
Content is permanent on-chain, but frontends can hide/filter content. The community can also downvote and reduce rewards on content seen as abusive.
What is a blockchain?
A blockchain is a shared ledger maintained by many nodes. Transactions are grouped into blocks and linked together to form a verifiable history.
What is the Blurt blockchain?
It’s the network that stores accounts, balances, posts, votes, and reward logic. Websites are just interfaces to that network.
Can I mine BLURT?
No. Blurt does not use proof-of-work mining.
Can I view raw on-chain data?
Yes. Block explorers and API tools can show transactions and post/vote details beyond what a frontend displays.
How can I keep my account secure?
Save your master password/owner credentials offline. Use the least-privileged key for each action. Never paste your owner key into websites. If you suspect compromise, rotate keys immediately.
Why is the master password so long?
It is designed to be strong and resistant to guessing. In many systems it can derive multiple private keys with different permissions.
What are Posting, Active, Owner, and Memo keys?
Posting is for posting and voting. Active is for funds and governance actions (transfers, power up/down, witness voting). Owner is the highest authority used for key changes and recovery. Memo is used for memo encryption where supported.
What if I lost my keys?
Losing owner/master access can mean losing the account permanently. That’s why offline backups matter. If you still have owner access, you can update compromised keys.
Is Blurt open source?
Core components are open source, which makes it possible to build frontends, bots, explorers, and other tools on top of the blockchain.
Where do developers start?
Typical starting points are official repositories, community documentation, and RPC/API endpoints exposed by public nodes.
What is a command-line wallet (cli_wallet)?
A power-user tool to interact with the blockchain directly. It’s useful for automation, scripting, and advanced operations not always exposed in web UIs.
What do witnesses do?
Witnesses run infrastructure that produces blocks and keeps the network stable. They often also contribute to tools, documentation, and upgrades.
How do I vote for witnesses?
Most frontends have a witness voting page. Voting usually requires Active authority. You can vote for multiple witnesses and adjust your votes later.
How many witness votes do I have?
Many Blurt interfaces support up to 30 witness votes.
What is a witness proxy?
A proxy lets you delegate your witness votes to a trusted person. This is useful if you don’t want to research witnesses yourself but still want to participate in governance.
Where can I get help if my question isn’t answered here?
Community channels (often Discord), experienced users, and help posts are usually the fastest route. When asking for help, mention which frontend you use and what you already tried.