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Are Acquisitions in the WordPress Space a Good or Bad Thing?

Last updated: October 01, 20212 Comments

This is an article that reflects on the high number of acquisitions we’ve seen happen in the past few years (2018-2021) within the WordPress space. There are basically a handful of companies behind all the big acquisitions, so there is no doubt that the product space is becoming more centralized, and these big companies now wield enormous power.

This article is an adaptation from a comment I left on the article on the WP Mayor blog entitled Is There a Future for Small WordPress Businesses?. Check that out as well.

Having moved out of WordPress myself (aside from being a normal user, running my own blogs on it) a few years ago, I can empathize with Pippin’s reasons for selling. It’s never easy to let go of a successful business, even if there is good money to be made in selling it, and I’m really happy for him. I remember when Pippin was just starting out in WordPress, and he’s been a massive positive influence on WordPress over many years, putting a lot of energy into not only building his products but also educating thousands through his articles on development and later his insights on running a WordPress business. He deserved every bit of success while running his businesses and the handsome payout one gets when selling a company of this scale.

I happened to write some of my thoughts on WordPress last year, so check out that article for my opinions, which remain relevant today.

While the streak of acquisitions we’ve been seeing in the WordPress space are to be expected, they are also a sign that the space has changed a lot over the almost two decades since WordPress’ inception. Particularly the last 5-10 years have seen accelerated growth. Leaving aside any emotional reactions one might have, I think it’s important for everyone involved with WordPress to be clear on what WordPress is nowadays and where it stands in the grand scheme of things.

For that, we need to start with an understanding of the web’s history and where WordPress fits in. WordPress caught the wave of the transition between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0.

Web 1.0 refers to the read-only, static, version of the internet, where there were relatively few sources of information and there were high barriers to publishing your own content and obtaining visibility. The web in those days was just an extension of traditional one-way media like TV and radio.

Web 2.0 changed everything, and it became known as the read-write web, meaning that now we could interact with things on the web and more importantly publish our own content. That’s where WordPress and other similar open-source projects came in. WordPress eventually came to dominate the open-source blogging and CMS market.

At that point in time, it was very cool to have your own website or blog, and people were relishing the prospect of being able to share their thoughts online. The revolution was huge, and we saw a big shift in information decentralization, moving from the big-money media to independent small publishers and individual bloggers. Knowing HTML and CSS as well as your way around domains and hosting was a badge of honor, this stuff was very cool back then.

Over the years, however, many of the ideals that WordPress and Web 2.0 stood for were lost by the wayside. Users started preferring the ease-of-use of centralized platforms like Facebook and Instagram, and web blogging itself went into a decline. Of course, WordPress moved beyond being just a blogging platform, and the addition of e-commerce capabilities made it a very nice all-rounder tool. However, it also lost its way for a few years (more on that in my blog post) before the big push for Gutenberg in a last-ditch attempt to stay relevant in the publishing space when faced with formidably polished publishing interfaces by Squarespace, Wix and other hosted platforms. Only time will tell whether this move was even successful, as the Gutenberg plugin is literally one of the most hated plugins I’ve ever seen, with an overwhelming number of 1-star reviews in the WP repository as of today.

In any case, I think that WordPress is by no means the web darling it once was. The spate of acquisitions we see happening definitely increase centralization and move away from one of the core ideals that the early WordPress community espoused – that of decentralization and power to the small guy. Let’s remember that WordPress enabled thousands of young web enthusiasts from all over the world to make a living online and even start their own web businesses selling themes, plugins or related services. In those early WordPress years, it was one of the only avenues for geographically or financially disadvantaged people to get out of the rut they were in. It was definitely a lifesaver for me and I will forever be grateful to WordPress as an open-source project and the wonderful people I met in this community.

Now, the big deal is that we are moving towards Web 3.0. It’s already happening, driven mainly by the invention of Bitcoin, which paved the way to more expansive blockchains like Ethereum that enable smart contracts, decentralized finance and even governance structures through DAOs.

In many ways, I feel the same about crypto and Web 3.0 as I did when WordPress and the shift to Web 2.0 happened. The focus is again on the principles of decentralization, permissionless access, censorship resistance, as well as the new ideas of monetization and privacy.

For the technically-inclined, here’s a nice overview of Web 3.0 architecture. If you haven’t yet dabbled with Web 3.0 apps and want to know more, it’s a great read. It requires quite a paradigm shift and from a development standpoint, I feel that it’s a bigger leap to make compared to the one we made from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 and I don’t think many people in WordPress are taking notice. WordPress is a tool built by and for millennials, but the new generations are used to different ways of publishing online. Within the WordPress space, meanwhile, we just obsess about the market share that magically grows year after year, but I don’t think that metric is that relevant anymore. WordPress is no longer a sexy and revolutionary tool as it once was, and that’s the more important fact to keep in mind.

Zooming back into the WordPress space, I do believe that these acquisitions are not great news for product owners in general. In this particular case, there are the specific hazards that Carl Hancock and Mark mention. This is one reason why I feel that the WordPress space has grown a lot but at the same time remained very immature in certain areas. The lack of an official plugin store (app store) has driven almost all premium plugin developers to use either EDD or Freemius. These two businesses in turn become excellent acquisition targets, and if you’re worried about the EDD acquisition, wait till Freemius gets acquired. The latter is a hosted service, so they hold all the important data and metrics on their end, and they’d be visible to any company that acquires them. The founders of Freemius are friends of mine, and again, they provided a sorely needed product in the WordPress space, and worked extremely hard at making it a success, but this big danger remains in the case of an eventual acquisition, which in my opinion is only a question of time.

Now, whether you like it or not, the future of WordPress involves many more acquisitions and centralization. With the big players getting bigger, it is undoubtedly harder for the traditional single web enthusiast or developer to develop a product that generates meaningful income. This is not something new, however, it’s already been the case for several years. There will be success stories, but they will be fewer and further between.

The first decision you need to take, in my opinion, is whether you want to be in the WordPress space at all. As I mentioned, personally I find Web 3.0 much closer to my ideals and so I’m devoting my time there. You could also be building apps for Shopify or other platforms, or building a SAAS. I don’t see any special advantages in building a WordPress business over some of the alternatives I mention. It used to feature a lower barrier of entry technically and financially speaking, but I don’t think this is the case anymore.

If you still love WordPress and feel strongly that you want to build products for WP, then perhaps it’s time to focus more on building businesses that are “built to sell”, as Pippin himself mentioned in his announcement post. You might want to think twice about building a competitor to EDD, Yoast SEO, AffiliateWP, and other major plugins, because it’s extremely hard for you to compete. Instead, you might want to focus on businesses that the big companies in the space will find interesting as an acquisition target. That will provide you with a potential big payday as well as a very probably job with a successful company should you accept that proposition.

I hope this was helpful, as always I like to be honest about things with no bad intentions. I am really curious to see what’s in store for WordPress in the years to come, and as a user I hope it remains a major player as a publishing tool, not only in the much-touted market share, but in actual functionality and ease-of-use. Who knows, maybe WordPress also somehow crosses over to Web 3.0 as well.

Filed under: Tech

Making Money in the Second Wave

Last updated: August 22, 2023Leave a Comment

Over the years I’ve come to realize that my best investments happen during the second wave of the product or industry lifecycle.

The idea is loosely based on the Gartner Hype Cycle curve, the No products found. concept, the Hero’s Journey and the theory of Diffusion of Innovations. Let’s take an abbreviated at these models that have inspired my strategy.

This style of investing is also driven by the fact that by nature I love being somewhat of a contrarian, and am quite unlikely to invest in something when it’s in hype mode and everybody is getting in on it.

Two roads diverged in a wood and I – I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference. — Robert Frost

So let’s take a closer look at the concepts and models that have (mostly at a subconscious level – I rarely feel I’m being very methodical with my strategies) been framing my investment decisions over the past few years.

Gartner Hype Cycle

The Gartner Hype Cycle aims to visualize the typical path that most new technologies go true until they reach mass adoption.

In the Gartner Hype Cycle, we find 5 main stages for a new technology:

  1. Emergence: “The Technology Trigger”
  2. Excessive enthusiasm: “The Peak of Inflated Expectations”
  3. Excessive disappointment: “The Trough of Disillusionment”
  4. Gradual adoption: “The Slope of Enlightenment”
  5. Mainstream adoption: “The Plateau of Productivity”

I’m most interested in the 3rd and 4th phases. Let’s see how they’re defined by Gartner:

  • Trough of Disillusionment: Interest wanes as experiments and implementations fail to deliver. Producers of the technology shake out or fail. Investments continue only if the surviving providers improve their products to the satisfaction of early adopters.
  • Slope of Enlightenment: More instances of how the technology can benefit the enterprise start to crystallize and become more widely understood. Second- and third-generation products appear from technology providers. More enterprises fund pilots; conservative companies remain cautious.

Now let’s take Bitcoin as an example. Perhaps it is a bad example as the whole cycle has not yet played out, but it’s the best example I have right now. After the 2017-2018 peak that crypto went through, there was a bit drop in both asset prices as well as media coverage and public opinion. Clearly we hit the “trough of disillusionment” at that point. In the meantime, nothing changed for the builders in the Bitcoin space, and that was an amazing time to get interested in the technology and educate yourself as well as get invested.

Investing in Amazon after the dot com bubble is another example of second-wave investing in the trough of disillusionment.

Hero’s Journey

This monomyth is not typically used in relation to new technology lifecycles, however, I think it also fits in quite well, especially as I consider my own personal journey with new technologies.

Humans react to great story-telling because we are programmed to respond to an elemental story arc. The Book of Jonah, The Odyssey, Rocky or Star Wars: the details don’t matter because although the contexts are different, the story is the same. They appeal to the masses because of our deep desire to progress from the mundane, fight through challenges and then achieve a great victory.

Taking Bitcoin again as my example, it started its “call to adventure” as a result of the financial crisis of 2007-2008. It then went through its own challenges and temptations, with the scaling wars that lasted a couple of years, as well as the Abyss of 2020 (huge drop in price) and the rebirth and fast adoption by both public corporations, institutional funds and even countries.

The Chasm

The “crossing the chasm” model is based on the theory of diffusion of innovations. This is a theory that seeks to explain how, why, and at what rate new ideas and technology spread. It was Everett Rogers, a professor of communication studies, who popularized the theory in his book “Diffusion of Innovations”. He argues that diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated over time among the participants in a social system.

In most product adoption curves, there’s a point that can make or break the success of the product. It’s called the chasm. It’s the point between the early adopter stage and the early majority stage.

As the chart above represents, crossing the chasm means breaking into the mainstream market.

Again, with Bitcoin, I believe that as of 2023 we are just beyond the chasm, or possibly on the way to crossing it the final part of it. I’ve long held the belief that in order for Bitcoin to be successful, it would need to be properly regulated and also adopted by big institutions and possibly even countries.

Over the past few years, we’ve simultaneously seen governments and regulators all around the world take strong and detailed positions on the crypto space, as well as huge investments by public companies and even countries (El Salvador is the first).


Having looked at those models and theories, I will come back to my simplified way of describing when I’m most likely to be interested in investing in a product or technology.

Let’s take a look at the first wave first and why I’m rarely that early.

The First Wave

In the very early stages the stakeholders and investors tend to be a mix of the following:

  • builders of the technology
  • rich people with money to burn on new things (e.g. venture capital and angels)
  • those who happen to be in the right place at the right time, or have friends deeply immersed in the technology

If you don’t possess one or more of those characteristics it is very hard to get in on something very early. Chances are you won’t even know the product or niche exists until the first wave has already passed. If you do happen to catch an early glimpse at the new technology, I feel that it will be an extremely time-intensive process to decide whether to invest at that stage, and even then, it would be a very risky investment.

Therefore, at the first stage, the risk-reward-work ratio is not worthwhile for me. To take an example with the internet, this first wave would be the 90s decade. Typical big risks, even though the technology would be wonderful, include:

  • not gathering enough traction, or being too early to market
  • regulation risks
  • scams
  • ridiculous valuations

Many products never make it beyond the first wave and there is a very real risk of your investment going to zero. Think ICOs in 2017, and Kozmo.com, Garden.com, Pets.com, Flooz.com, Webvan.com during the Dot Com boom and bust years.

Typically, during the first wave, a subset of people become immensely rich in very short periods, and they make the

The Second Wave

Almost every new product or technology that gathers enough traction to become well-known then experiences a period of hype, and it is usually during this period (typically earlier rather than later since I read a lot) that my interest is piqued. However, rather than rushing in to invest along with the rest, I tend to go deep and isolate myself from the news and hype to truly understand the tech, the main players and ideas behind the technology.

By the time I have developed a decent understanding, the hype is usually gone, prices have plummeted and the technology is bordering scam or trash status in popular opinion. On the other hand, because I would have invested a lot of time into the subject, provided that I was convinced about the future of the technology, I would be pretty bullish myself.

That means that when there is the next growth phase (growth is much slower and almost imperceptible at first), I am able to go all in and take a sizeable position that looks like madness to most others who didn’t do their homework properly.

While some technologies or products fit this idea perfectly, others share similar properties but are not that easy to explain. For example, I feel that I entered the WordPress space back in 2006 at an excellent time. Rather than the product itself having been through an early hype cycle, however, it was the overall theme of self-publishing, blogs and website creation that had gone through it.

WordPress was the phoenix that emerged from the flames produced by the downfall of highly centralized products like Movable Type and the closed-source CMS solutions of the time. I had been creating websites and blogging for a few years already and I remember there being a peak of excitement about the “power to the people” idea of giving a voice to anyone to create a space online and publish their thoughts, closely followed by a deep sense of frustration with the expensive or inadequate tools available at the time.

When WordPress came along it ticked all the boxes for me and I immediately left everything I was doing at the time to focus on building things within that space, which proved to be a winning move over time.

What’s your take on the above? Let me know in the comments section below.

Filed under: Business

Notes about the Pandemic and the Future

Last updated: March 15, 20228 Comments

Much has been written about the pandemic and I don’t want to litter the web further with my own opinions.

Clearly, the rise and spread of the virus have been a terrible blow for humanity. There have been some who profited wildly from the changes, but overall we are undoubtedly worse off from the effects of COVID.

On the other hand, the pandemic has made things that were somewhat clear and made them blatantly so, while also accelerating trends that had been building up for many years in the background.

We Are Being Brainwashed and Manipulated

The one thing that definitely stands out to me is the fact that governments and media companies have extreme power of manipulation, and the vast majority of the population acts with a herd mentality, blindly following others and their own governments’ mandates. To think independently and critically is almost demonized.

The rise of pandemic lockdowns will go down in history as one of the worst examples of global oppression caused by states to their own citizens. Never before have the day-to-day lives of so much of humanity been so radically upended. And, outside of wartime, never before has there been such a widespread and extreme rollback of human freedom.

The extreme fear instilled by governments is shameful. Sadly, the majority of citizens went into full panic mode instead of doing some thinking first, but I’ve learned that this is typical human behavior.

The fact that Twitter parody accounts sometimes make you wonder if they are actually being serious is proof enough of how idiotic behavior has become.

My wife and I were just discussing via text what our household guest policy will be. We agreed that to enter our house you must have two negative covid tests in the last 24 hours, one pcr and one rapid antigen (for reliability). I'd encourage you to discuss your covid guest plans

— Dr Terry McDouglas (@drterrymcd) September 30, 2021

There are hundreds of such examples. For example, it’s beyond me why anyone would think a mask is of any use when walking alone in the countryside, or even while driving in a closed car.

I grew up with an inherent disdain for imposed authorities of all forms. Perhaps it was due to the way my parents brought me up, the fact that I was an avid reader from an early age, or the reality that I never quite fit in within school and felt misunderstood and coerced into behaving the way the authorities wanted me to behave, even though deep down I knew it wasn’t the best thing for me.

As an adult, I learned more about how the world really works and refined my thinkings and beliefs, and I understood what level of brainwashing takes place on a daily basis through political party propaganda, religions, and company advertising, and how effective they are at manipulating our behavior.

However, never before 2020 has it been clearer to me who is on each side of the fence. This alone is a brilliant silver lining to this whole shitshow that has been the COVID pandemic so far.

Here are some partial notes for me, my family, and anyone else on the same wavelength to keep in mind going forward. This is by no means an exhaustive list of conclusions, and I might come back to this post and flesh it out further in the coming months.

[Read more…]

Filed under: Thoughts & Experiences

Adding a Hardware Remote Control to Lego PoweredUP Control+ Sets

Last updated: December 02, 2023Leave a Comment

lego buggy

I love building stuff with my son, and one of our latest projects (admittedly more apt for me than for him as he’s too young to be building these kits), was the Lego buggy 42124. This is a great kit that is fun to build but it is let down by the fact that it is controlled using a smartphone. I don’t like using smartphone remote controls and I definitely don’t want my son looking at a screen at a young age, so I set out to figure out a way to use a hardware remote control.

Turns out it’s quite easy to do. I used Pybricks to add custom code to the Lego hub, then ordered a Lego remote to pair with the buggy.

The code I used can be found below. I set the left red button to “ludicrous mode” which enables the buggy to function at full speed. Otherwise, I set it to run at 50% speed since my son is too young to control it at max speed, especially indoors. This way we can both use it and have some fun while using the appropriate speeds.

Lego Buggy (42124)

from pybricks.pupdevices import Motor, Remote
from pybricks.parameters import Port, Direction, Stop, Button
from pybricks.hubs import TechnicHub
from pybricks.tools import wait

# Initialize the motors.
steer = Motor(Port.B)
front = Motor(Port.A, Direction.COUNTERCLOCKWISE)

# Connect to the remote.
remote = Remote()

# Initialize the hub.
hub = TechnicHub()

# Read the current settings
old_kp, old_ki, old_kd, _, _ = steer.control.pid()

# Set new values
steer.control.pid(kp=old_kp*4, kd=old_kd*0.4)

# Find the steering endpoint on the left and right.
# The middle is in between.
left_end = steer.run_until_stalled(-200, then=Stop.HOLD)
right_end = steer.run_until_stalled(200, then=Stop.HOLD)

# We are now at the right. Reset this angle to be half the difference.
# That puts zero in the middle.
steer.reset_angle((right_end - left_end)/2)
steer.run_target(speed=200, target_angle=0, wait=False)

# Set steering angle for the buggy
steer_angle = (((right_end - left_end)/2)-5)
print('steer angle:',steer_angle)

# Now we can start driving!
while True:
    # Check which buttons are pressed.
    pressed = remote.buttons.pressed()

    # Choose the steer angle based on the right controls.
    if Button.LEFT_PLUS in pressed:
        steer.run_target(1400, -steer_angle, Stop.HOLD, False)
    elif Button.LEFT_MINUS in pressed:
        steer.run_target(1400, steer_angle, Stop.HOLD, False)
    else:
        steer.track_target(0)

    # Top speed controls
    top_speed = 50
    if Button.LEFT in pressed:
        top_speed = 100         

    # Choose the drive speed based on the left controls.
    drive_speed = 0
    if Button.RIGHT_PLUS in pressed:
        drive_speed += top_speed
    if Button.RIGHT_MINUS in pressed:
        drive_speed -= top_speed
    if Button.RIGHT in pressed:
        print('Battery voltage:',(hub.battery.voltage())/1000,"V")
        wait(100)          

    # Apply the selected speed.
    front.dc(drive_speed)

    # Wait.
    wait(10)

Lego Top Gear Rally Car (42109)

I also bought the Lego Top Gear Rally Car (42109) and used similar code with a second remote I bought. Now we can race the cars against each other. I can adjust the speed of each through code to adapt it to our different abilities.

Here’s the code I used on this car. I added some things like changing the remote light buttons and naming the remote so that the car would connect to a specific remote out of the two I have, and thus avoid confusion. I also correspondingly changed the hub’s light color.

from pybricks.pupdevices import Motor, Remote
from pybricks.parameters import Port, Direction, Stop, Button, Color
from pybricks.hubs import TechnicHub
from pybricks.tools import wait

# Initialize the motors.
steer = Motor(Port.B)
front = Motor(Port.D, Direction.COUNTERCLOCKWISE)

# Connect to the remote and set the light on the remote
remote = Remote('topgear', timeout=None)
remote.light.on(Color.RED)

# Print the current name of the remote.
print(remote.name())

# Choose a new name.
remote.name('topgear')

# Initialize the hub.
hub = TechnicHub()
hub.light.on(Color.RED)

# Read the current settings
old_kp, old_ki, old_kd, _, _ = steer.control.pid()

# Set new values
steer.control.pid(kp=old_kp*4, kd=old_kd*0.4)

# Set initial top speed value
top_speed = 100

# Find the steering endpoint on the left and right.
# The middle is in between.
left_end = steer.run_until_stalled(-200, then=Stop.HOLD)
right_end = steer.run_until_stalled(200, then=Stop.HOLD)

# We are now at the right. Reset this angle to be half the difference.
# That puts zero in the middle.
steer.reset_angle((right_end - left_end)/2)
steer.run_target(speed=200, target_angle=0, wait=False)

# Set steering angle for the buggy
steer_angle = (((right_end - left_end)/2)-5)

# Now we can start driving!
while True:
    # Check which buttons are pressed.
    pressed = remote.buttons.pressed()

    # Choose the steer angle based on the right controls.
    if Button.LEFT_PLUS in pressed:
        steer.run_target(1400, -steer_angle, Stop.HOLD, False)
    elif Button.LEFT_MINUS in pressed:
        steer.run_target(1400, steer_angle, Stop.HOLD, False)
    else:
        steer.track_target(0)

    # Top speed controls
    if Button.LEFT in pressed:
        top_speed = 75
    if Button.RIGHT in pressed:
        top_speed = 100   
    if ((Button.RIGHT in pressed) and (Button.LEFT in pressed)):
        top_speed = 40 

    # Choose the drive speed based on the left controls.
    drive_speed = 0
    if Button.RIGHT_PLUS in pressed:
        drive_speed -= top_speed
    if Button.RIGHT_MINUS in pressed:
        drive_speed += top_speed

    # Print battery voltage    
    if Button.RIGHT in pressed:
        print('Battery voltage:',(hub.battery.voltage())/1000,"V")
        wait(100)           

    # Apply the selected speed.
    front.dc(drive_speed)

    # Wait.
    wait(10)

Lego Go Kart (42109 variant)

from pybricks.pupdevices import Motor, Remote
from pybricks.parameters import Port, Direction, Stop, Button, Color
from pybricks.hubs import TechnicHub
from pybricks.tools import wait

# Initialize the motors.
steer = Motor(Port.B)
front = Motor(Port.D, Direction.COUNTERCLOCKWISE)

# Connect to the remote and set the light on the remote
remote = Remote('topgear', timeout=None)
remote.light.on(Color.GREEN)

# Print the current name of the remote.
print(remote.name())

# Choose a new name.
remote.name('kart')

# Initialize the hub.
hub = TechnicHub()
hub.light.on(Color.GREEN)

# Read the current settings
old_kp, old_ki, old_kd, _, _ = steer.control.pid()

# Set new values
steer.control.pid(kp=old_kp*4, kd=old_kd*0.4)

# Set initial top speed value
top_speed = 100

# Find the steering endpoint on the left and right.
# The middle is in between.
left_end = steer.run_until_stalled(-200, then=Stop.HOLD)
right_end = steer.run_until_stalled(200, then=Stop.HOLD)

# We are now at the right. Reset this angle to be half the difference.
# That puts zero in the middle.
steer.reset_angle((right_end - left_end)/2)
steer.run_target(speed=200, target_angle=0, wait=False)

# Set steering angle for the buggy
steer_angle = (((right_end - left_end)/2)-5)

# Now we can start driving!
while True:
    # Check which buttons are pressed.
    pressed = remote.buttons.pressed()

    # Choose the steer angle based on the right controls.
    if Button.LEFT_PLUS in pressed:
        steer.run_target(1400, -steer_angle, Stop.HOLD, False)
    elif Button.LEFT_MINUS in pressed:
        steer.run_target(1400, steer_angle, Stop.HOLD, False)
    else:
        steer.track_target(0)

    # Top speed controls
    if Button.LEFT in pressed:
        top_speed = 75
    if Button.RIGHT in pressed:
        top_speed = 100   
    if ((Button.RIGHT in pressed) and (Button.LEFT in pressed)):
        top_speed = 40 

    # Choose the drive speed based on the left controls.
    drive_speed = 0
    if Button.RIGHT_PLUS in pressed:
        drive_speed -= top_speed
    if Button.RIGHT_MINUS in pressed:
        drive_speed += top_speed

    # Print battery voltage    
    if Button.RIGHT in pressed:
        print('Battery voltage:',(hub.battery.voltage())/1000,"V")
        wait(100)           

    # Apply the selected speed.
    front.dc(drive_speed)

    # Wait.
    wait(10)

Lego 4×4 Extreme Off-Roader (42099)

from pybricks.pupdevices import Motor, Remote
from pybricks.parameters import Port, Direction, Stop, Button
from pybricks.tools import wait

# Initialize the motors.
steer = Motor(Port.C)
front = Motor(Port.A, Direction.COUNTERCLOCKWISE)
rear = Motor(Port.B, Direction.COUNTERCLOCKWISE)

# Lower the acceleration so the car starts and stops realistically.
front.control.limits(acceleration=1000)
rear.control.limits(acceleration=1000)

# Connect to the remote.
remote = Remote()

# Find the steering endpoint on the left and right.
# The middle is in between.
left_end = steer.run_until_stalled(-200, then=Stop.HOLD)
right_end = steer.run_until_stalled(200, then=Stop.HOLD)

# We are now at the right. Reset this angle to be half the difference.
# That puts zero in the middle.
steer.reset_angle((right_end - left_end) / 2)
steer.run_target(speed=200, target_angle=0, wait=False)

# Now we can start driving!
while True:
    # Check which buttons are pressed.
    pressed = remote.buttons.pressed()

    # Choose the steer angle based on the left controls.
    steer_angle = 0
    if Button.LEFT_PLUS in pressed:
        steer_angle -= 75
    if Button.LEFT_MINUS in pressed:
        steer_angle += 75

    # Steer to the selected angle.
    steer.run_target(500, steer_angle, wait=False)

    # Choose the drive speed based on the right controls.
    drive_speed = 0
    if Button.RIGHT_PLUS in pressed:
        drive_speed += 1000
    if Button.RIGHT_MINUS in pressed:
        drive_speed -= 1000

    # Apply the selected speed.
    front.run(drive_speed)
    rear.run(drive_speed)

    # Wait.
    wait(10)

Troubleshooting

If you’re having issues getting the code to work, you can try both editors:

  • beta.pybricks.com
  • code.pybricks.com

You can also use this code to verify that a connection is being successfully made by your controller with the hub:

from pybricks.hubs import TechnicHub
from pybricks.pupdevices import Remote
from pybricks.parameters import Button, Color
from pybricks.tools import wait

hub = TechnicHub()

# Make the light red while we connect.
hub.light.on(Color.RED)

# Connect to the remote.
my_remote = Remote() 

# Make the light green when we are connected.
hub.light.on(Color.GREEN)

while True:
    # For any button press, make the light magenta.
    # Otherwise make it yellow.
    if my_remote.buttons.pressed():
        hub.light.on(Color.MAGENTA)
    else:
        hub.light.on(Color.YELLOW)
    wait(10)

Lego 42124 Trike Variant

from pybricks.pupdevices import Motor, Remote
from pybricks.parameters import Port, Direction, Stop, Button
from pybricks.hubs import TechnicHub
from pybricks.tools import wait

# Initialize the motors.
steer = Motor(Port.B)
front = Motor(Port.A, Direction.COUNTERCLOCKWISE)

# Connect to the remote.
remote = Remote()

# Initialize the hub.
hub = TechnicHub()

# Read the current settings
old_kp, old_ki, old_kd, _, _ = steer.control.pid()

# Set new values
steer.control.pid(kp=old_kp*0.5, kd=old_kd*1)

# Find the steering endpoint on the left and right.
# The middle is in between.
left_end = steer.run_until_stalled(-200, then=Stop.HOLD)
right_end = steer.run_until_stalled(200, then=Stop.HOLD)

print('left end:',left_end)
print('right end:', right_end)

# We are now at the right. Reset this angle to be half the difference.
# That puts zero in the middle.
steer.reset_angle((right_end - left_end)/2)
steer.run_target(speed=100, target_angle=0, wait=False)

# Set steering angle for the buggy
steer_angle = (((right_end - left_end)/2)-20)
print('steer angle:',steer_angle)

# Now we can start driving!
while True:
    # Check which buttons are pressed.
    pressed = remote.buttons.pressed()

    # Choose the steer angle based on the right controls.
    if Button.LEFT_PLUS in pressed:
        steer.run_target(400, -steer_angle, Stop.HOLD, False)
    elif Button.LEFT_MINUS in pressed:
        steer.run_target(400, steer_angle, Stop.HOLD, False)
    else:
        current_angle = steer.angle()
        deadband = 3  # Define a deadband range of +/- 3 degrees
        if current_angle > deadband:
            steer.track_target(0)
        elif current_angle < -deadband:
            steer.track_target(0)
        else:
            steer.stop()

    # Top speed controls
    top_speed = 50
    if Button.LEFT in pressed:
        top_speed = 100         

    # Choose the drive speed based on the left controls.
    drive_speed = 0
    if Button.RIGHT_PLUS in pressed:
        drive_speed += top_speed
    if Button.RIGHT_MINUS in pressed:
        drive_speed -= top_speed
    if Button.RIGHT in pressed:
        print('Battery voltage:',(hub.battery.voltage())/1000,"V")
        wait(100)          

    # Apply the selected speed.
    front.dc(drive_speed)

    # Wait.
    wait(10)

Lego 51515 Robot Inventor

You can also use the same principles to connect to the Lego 51515 Robot Inventor hub. There are many things you can build with that kit, but below you can find the general framework for connecting the Lego remote to the 51515 hub:

from pybricks.hubs import InventorHub
from pybricks.pupdevices import Remote
from pybricks.parameters import Button
from pybricks.tools import wait

# Initialize the hub and the remote
hub = InventorHub()
remote = Remote()

while True:
    # Check if a button on the remote is pressed
    pressed = remote.buttons.pressed()

    if Button.LEFT in pressed:
        # Code for when the left button is pressed
        pass
    elif Button.RIGHT in pressed:
        # Code for when the right button is pressed
        pass
    
    # Delay to avoid rapid polling
    wait(10)

Using a PS4 Controller via BrickController2

BrickController2 is an app that lets you control LEGO creations with game controllers. To use a PS4 controller with BrickController2, follow these steps:

  1. Pair the PS4 Controller with Your Device:a. Put the PS4 controller in pairing mode by holding down the “Share” and “PS” buttons at the same time until the light bar starts flashing.b. On your device (whether it’s an Android or iOS), open the Bluetooth settings.

    c. Look for the PS4 controller in the list of available devices. It might show up as “Wireless Controller” or something similar.

    d. Tap on the PS4 controller’s name in the list to pair it with your device. You might be prompted to confirm the pairing.

  2. Open BrickController2:a. Make sure you’ve set up your LEGO devices in the app.b. In the “Controllers” section, you should see the PS4 controller listed if it’s connected. If not, try disconnecting and reconnecting the PS4 controller via Bluetooth.
  3. Assign Controls:a. Once the PS4 controller is recognized in BrickController2, you can start assigning its buttons to control specific functions of your LEGO creation. This can include movement directions, rotations, or other actions.
  4. Play and Control:Once you’ve set up the controls, you can use your PS4 controller to play with and control your LEGO models. Ensure the LEGO devices and the controller are both connected and in range for optimal performance.

Further Reading

  • Brickset – reviews of Lego sets
  • Rebrickable – alternate builds
    • GoPro mod
  • MOCHub – “my own creation”
  • RacingBrick on Youtube – fantastic Lego builds channel

Filed under: Tech

Max Crowdfund Review – A Global Real Estate Investing Platform

Published: July 04, 20213 Comments

max crowdfund review

Invest in real estate the easy way

When considering investing in real estate, the first thought that might come to mind is that it is going to be a long and expensive process. However, in today’s digital-savvy world, it has never been easier to invest in properties effortlessly.

These days, there are several new and innovative ways that will allow you to put money into this investment class. In this review, I will introduce you to one such option – a real estate crowdfunding platform Max Crowdfund.

Max Crowdfund is a global marketplace for real estate investors and property developers. However, unlike typical crowdfunding sites you might come across, this platform achieves this goal through tokenization.

In my review of Max Crowdfund, you will be able to learn more about this platform and find out for yourself whether it will make a good addition to your investment portfolio.

Max Crowdfund – A Quick Overview

Max Crowdfund is the product of an established real estate company, Max Property Group. Since early 2016, this firm has been involved in several projects across the Netherlands, Germany, and the United Kingdom by setting up multiple property investment funds.

By 2017, the group developed its first global property solution, Dominium. However, although the platform was quite successful with over 70,000 users, it had to be reevaluated due to trademark issues that occurred in 2018. The result is Max Crowdfund – a much-advanced rebranded version that gives you access to alternative investment spaces.

This platform integrates blockchain technology to streamline real estate crowdfunding on a global level. In a nutshell, Max Crowdfund facilitates lower entry points for cross-border real estate investment – without compromising on regulatory compliance.

how does max crowdfund work

The main issue the platform is trying to tackle is the lack of transparency in real estate dealings – which is one of the main aspects that concerns many investors in this arena. By using blockchain technology, Max Crowdfund aims to improve the landscape of real estate investments.

Max Crowdfund deploys digital ledger technology which in turn – will record all transactions made with an unchangeable cryptographic signature called a hash. The platform has also partnered with FIBREE (Foundation for International Blockchain and Real Estate Expertise) to ensure that all your investments will be accurately represented on the blockchain protocol.

According to Max Crowdfund, the platform has already raised a total of €2,776,600 and has generated an average annual return of 7.95%. More importantly, there have been no defaults until now.

Max Crowdfund – How to Start Investing?

As I mentioned earlier, the main consideration associated with real estate investments is the huge capital requirement. However, with Max Crowdfund – you can start investing in properties from as little as €100. The platform strives to make the real estate investment space fully transparent and accessible to everyone.

Most importantly, all investment opportunities available on Max Crowdfund are completely vetted by an experienced real estate team. This will eliminate the need for you to do any of the legwork required to find safe and secure ways to invest your capital.

As an investor, here is how you can start investing on Max Crowdfund.

Max-Crowdfund-account

Step 1: Create your Free Account

As with any other fintech platform, you can start by creating an account on Max Crowdfund by providing your email address. After confirming your email, you need to set a password.

Step 2: Verify your Account

In order to verify your account on Max Crowdfund, you will be required to complete two important steps.

1. KYC Verification

As Max Crowdfund is a funding platform, you will be required to complete a KYC (Know Your Customer) process. Since this is automated, you can add your address, upload your ID, and submit a picture of you holding the identity document.

2. Bank Account Verification

Once your KYC information has been approved, the final verification step is to add your bank account. You will also need to make a transfer – which can be of any amount from one cent to the escrow account of the platform. When Max Crowdfund receives your transfer, you can proceed to make an investment.

Note: If you need to add another layer of security, you can verify your mobile number or add a Google authenticator account at a later date.

Step 3: Find Investment Opportunities

Max Crowdfund displays all investment opportunities available with detailed information.

Every investment option will include details such as:

  • Full details of the company
  • Ultimate beneficial owners
  • Investment plan
  • Collateral
  • Assessment of any involved risks
  • Loan terms

Any returns you receive from your investments will be paid directly into your account. The term of these investment opportunities typically varies between six months and five years. There are also fixed interest rates between 3% and 12% per annum. However, this will depend on the risk class of the particular project.

As you can see, Max Crowdfund offers a transparent view of all the information you need. When you see an opportunity you would like to pursue; you can decide how much you wish to invest.

Step 3: Deposit Funds

At this stage, you can start depositing funds into your Max Crowdfund account. There are multiple payment methods that you can use to fund your account. However, it is imperative to know that – currently, Max Crowdfund accepts only euros for investing.

The platform might soon begin to accept other currencies – including crypto tokens. But for now, you can only pay in euros. When the funds have been received, your balance will be automatically updated.

Step 4: Start Investing

With a sufficient balance in your account, you can select an investment to back. After you have confirmed, the specified amount will be reserved from your account balance. Max Crowdfund gives you a window of 24 hours to change your investment amount or cancel it. This will not incur any additional charges.

After this cooling period, it will not be possible to make changes or cancel your investment. You can, however, make another deposit into the same scheme.

max crowdfund review 2021

Note: The maximum investment is limited to €80,000 per individual investor and €160,000 for joint accounts. Company accounts and qualified investors have no limits.

Step 5: Earn Returns

When the investment has been finalized, the money will be transferred to the fundraiser, and their interest payment obligations will commence. Depending on your chosen investment, you will receive interest payments monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, annually, or at the end of the term.

Step 6: Withdraw or Reinvest

Any payments and interest from your investments will be added to your account balance, which you can then withdraw to your verified bank account. If the payment sits in your account for more than 60 days – it will be automatically transferred.

As you can see, investing in real estate with Max Crowdfund is fairly straightforward. However, remember that investment decisions will ultimately be yours, and so you should do your due diligence before parting with any capital.

Max Crowdfund – How to Raise Funds?

If you are looking to raise money for a real-estate project, the process might be more complicated. This is primarily because you will have to go through multiple stages of verification to be eligible for a loan.

You can follow the steps I have outlined below to get started.

Step 1: Create and Verify Your Account

Setting up your user account is the same as that I have explained above. Apart from providing your basic information, you will also verify your identity by completing the KYC process.

Step 2: Verify Your Company

If you want to raise funds on Max Crowdfund, aside from a verified personal account – you will also need a verified company account. Once you have a verified personal account, you can add your company from your profile on the Max Crowdfund dashboard. The platform will approve your company after performing a credit check.

When you have completed the Know Your Company process, you will need to link your firm’s bank account to your profile by making a transfer. This last step will complete the process of your account verification as a fundraiser.

Step 3: Submit Your Project

When you are ready, you can click on ‘Raise Funds’ on the platform to get started with your application. This will involve you filling out a form that describes your real estate project details as well as your loan requirements. Once you have submitted the application, the Max Crowdfund team will get back to you within 24 hours.

Note: This initial review will cost you €250 plus VAT – which will be charged to your company account. So make sure that you have sufficient funds available before applying for a loan.

Step 4: Fundraiser Approval

Upon receiving confirmation for a loan application, the platform will then proceed to evaluate your underlying asset and your ability to make repayments. If approved, Max Crowdfund will publish your fundraiser.

Step 5: Loan Subscription and Release of Funds

When you have received the full subscription for the loan amount, you will have to sign the loan agreement, and the funds will be released to you. Your loan will have a set minimum amount.

Even if your application does not receive a full subscription, your application will still be considered successful if your minimum loan amount has been attained.  If not, the Investment Committee might decide to extend your application period one more time.

If the minimum is not met within that time, your application will be canceled, and any investment acquired will be returned to the respective investors.

Step 6: Make Repayments to Investors

As per the loan agreement, you will have to make repayments to the platform’s escrow account, which will be further distributed to the investors.

If you are unable to meet the repayments, you should reach out to Max Crowdfund so that the platform can devise a strategy to revise the loan conditions to come up with the best solution for all parties involved. Early repayment of the loan is also possible, but only if you are making full payment.

MPGS

When going through the Max Crowdfund website, you will undoubtedly come across MPGS – which are Max Property Group Share Certificates provided by the Max Property Group. Investing in MPGS will allow you to own a share in the company – given that you are qualified to invest.

However, it is crucial to understand that this investment vehicle is not affiliated with Max Crowdfund. Instead, the assets are issued by the Max Property Group, the parent company of the platform.

The only reason I am mentioning this here is so that you do not make investments assuming that MPGS is directly backed by Max Crowdfund itself. If you are considering this, you will need to do your own research about the real estate company and its financial standing first.

MPG Tokens

Max Property Group has also launched an MPG digital token which was released in February 2019. You can buy this token from cryptocurrency exchanges or directly by contacting the MPG group. Investors and fundraisers can use this token to pay for transaction fees and other charges on the Max Crowdfund platform.

Max Crowdfund Fees

As with any other online fintech platform, you will be liable to pay a fee to avail of the services of Max Crowdfund.

The charges can be classified into two – for investors and fundraisers.

Fees For Investors

  • Subscription fee for bonds – From 0% to 2% of the total invested amount.
  • Monthly administration fee – 0.1%
  • Administration fee incidental payment (example – for profit share) – 0.5%

Note: All investor fees are inclusive VAT.

Fees For Fundraisers

  • Application fee – €250
  • Publication contracting fee – €750
  • Success fee – 2.5%
  • Monthly administration fee – 0.06%
  • Administration fee incidental payment (profit share) – 0.5%
  • Loan restructuring – 0.5%
  • Early repayment – 0.5%
  • Late payments- Starting fee of €500

Note: All fundraiser fees are exclusive of VAT

Max Crowdfund Safety and Security

Max Crowdfund’s take on transparency extends to its compliance as well. The platform is registered with AFM in the Netherlands and has received an ‘exemption’ from them for “mediating in repayable funds.” However, it is also clearly stated Max Crowdfund is not under the strict and continuous supervision of the AFM.

Nevertheless, the platform regularly consults with the financial authority in question and also submits reports. In addition – as I have mentioned throughout the review, the platform thoroughly investigates each fundraising project in order to submit it for the consideration of investors.

max crowdfund projects

If you need to know more about the risk assessment process, Max Crowdfund also has a dedicated section on its website. You can see how the platform calculates the solvability, profitability, LTV, marketability, and other risk factors involved with each project.

Max Crowdfund Customer Service

Max Crowdfund provides users with animated video tutorials on how to start investing and how to raise funds. Additionally, you will also find all the relevant information in the Help Centre. In case you need further assistance, you can reach out to the team through their contact form, email, or phone.

Max Crowdfund – The Verdict

Max Crowdfund has opened the doors for global investors to fund real estate projects without having to go through the cumbersome process of obtaining a long-term mortgage. Registered with financial authorities in the Netherlands, the platform comes across as a credible financial solution to explore this alternative marketplace.

Moreover, the blockchain integration makes the platform more transparent and trustworthy. With all that said, when making investments – there are several considerations to make. The good news is that Max Crowdfund provides you with all the necessary documentation you will need to make an informed decision.

However, it is up to you to decide whether or not the real estate markets offered by the platform align with your portfolio. On the flip side – at a minimum investment of just €100, this allows you to diversify in a risk-averse manner.

Invest in real estate the easy way

Filed under: Money, Real estate

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