How To Create Custom Token on Solana Blockchain without Coding - Part 1

13 December, 2022 | Servers | 113 seen

It has been already several years since I have been originally thinking of launching a custom crypto token.

For most of the time, I was thinking about issuing smart contracts on the Ethereum network. Probably a high price for minting on the ETH network and the additional learning curve kept me back most of the time and I never actually proceeded with my idea.

Back in spring 2022 again I returned to the idea of issuing custom tokens, for Batumi Real estate crypto investment, I even launched a pre-sale token, but at the end attracted anchor investor who was more interested to make this deal in a more classical, FIAT way, now we are coinvesting in Tbilisi with cash, see: Ecocity Samgori, Tbilisi

Im still looking to put this real estate on blochchanin, but besides real estate I also trade options with crypto on deribit platform and I thought that I could issue a "crypto fund" token, for attracting investment for covered call trades.

With past several month beeing involved in Solana trading, I learnt more and more about this coin and network, and decided to try Solana network over Etherum (lower price and seems easier to implement). So I…

Raising $10,000 capital for issuing Covered Call Crypto Fund (Solana blockchain)

12 December, 2022 | Crypto | 52 seen

I'm raising $10,000 for the covered call crypto fund.

For the past several years I've been trading and investing in crypto with mixed success. I've made my gains and taken my losses.  Covered Calls with crypto have been one of the hardest to learn -and I'm still learning.

Over the years I've realized - making money in a growing market isn't hard - preserving and growing in a bear market is much harder. But possible.

Hedging with futures makes it possible. At some point, it can get tricky, but with the right mindset and some expertise, it can be achieved.

Despite, the time has proved that dollar cost averaging investing is one of the best investment approaches when investing with crypto (and most of the other kinds of assets), I have decided to proceed with an idea that has been in my head for the past few years - launching a crypto fund, where myself will be the biggest investor for some time at least. 

Issue a token, with 10,000 coins, each coin worth $1. From the dollar acquired buy Ethereum and sell covered calls on each position. Additionally hedging each position…

How to Install Drupal 9 with Nginx, PHP-FPM 8.1, MySQL, phpMyAdmin on Ubuntu 22.04 - Linode Guide

9 December, 2022 | Servers | 446 seen

In this article, you will learn how to set up a webserver for serving Drupal websites running with Nginx, PHP-FPM 8.1, MySQL, and phpMyAdmin on Ubuntu 22.04

For the following tutorial, I used very much the information from my previous guide with Ubuntu 18.04, but I decided to rewrite it for Ubuntu 22.04 version as it is shipped with php8.1 version and will work with Drupal 9 (most probably with previous versions too)

Prerequisites

• Ubuntu 22.04 
• Root privileges.

You can get a cheap VPS starting just $5/mo from Linode. That's what I did - bought a new nanode from Linode

Literally, in a couple of seconds, the new server was up and running - that's what I love about sticking with Linode for years

Follow the basic security guide, see: Securing Your Server

I will use Terminal from MAC to access  over SSH (Windows users could use Putty)

Create the user, replacing example_user with your desired username. You’ll then be asked to assign the user a password:

Add the user to the sudo …

November 2022 Blog Traffic And Income Report 21,650 Users / $ 398.52

7 December, 2022 | Blogging | 65 seen

Welcome to the #1 renewed blog traffic and income reports covering blog traffic and earnings/expenses for November 2022.

It has been already 7 years since my latest blog traffic and income report. As I enjoyed them back in 2014-2015, and because both the blog traffic and income have decreased significantly in the past year - I decided to renew these reports to get a better understanding of what's happening behind the scenes as they help me track my success or failures and hopefully can generate some ideas for you as well.

Past November comes with a small but important - 3.96% traffic growth if compared to October, and resulted in 21,651 unique users visiting my blog.

But if compared YoY to November 2021 that is a -38.64% traffic drop. Back in the Summer of 2021, I did a major blog upgrade, upgrading it from Drupal 7 to Drupal 9 (as Drupal 7 become more and more obsolete) I believe the traffic drop is related to the blog upgrade as not all went smoothly like I had lost pictures, gmap module support and also AMP. I have managed semi-manually recover gmap…

Top 15 Gaming and Creator Laptops with Intel Core i9 2023

5 December, 2022 | Laptop Reviews | 48 seen

Intel Core i9 processor-powered laptops have already established their authority among gaming laptops, now gaining momentum among creators.

Without much hesitation, I will say that I9 is going to rock in 2023 too.

Intel Core i9-powered laptops come with a price attached. You should be willing to spend about $1,500-$4,000 in 2023

In this article, I have listed the top 15 gaming/creator laptops with Intel Core i9 processors. 11th, 12th, and 13th version available. 

A quick note: This article contains affiliate links to Amazon.com, by clicking on links on this page and by making a purchase on the Amazon site, I might earn an affiliate income from that. The prices for laptop computers listed on this page are retrieved using Amazon Product Advertising API and are updated daily. For actual prices please refer to the product page on Amazon.

Compete at the highest level of Windows 11 gaming with the ROG Strix SCAR 15 gaming…

How To Gain Access to Linode over Finnix SSH in Rescue Mode

1 December, 2022 | Servers | 252 seen

In this article, I will keep some notes on how I accessed an "inaccessible" Linode over SSH using Rescue mode.

Brief background: More than 10 years ago (in 2012) I did set up a virtual server for XTRF translation management software, back then I choose freshly released Debian 6 (which reached its end of Life back in February 2016).  

Back in the day, XTRF was not a big name, and most of the help support was done over some simple MS Word documents. I followed the tutorial and set and forget the server for years to come. 
 

At the end of 2018, the server just stopped working - after several unsuccessful attempts to reanimate it I just gave up, as the newer and better versions of XTRF were released. We decided to continue with the newer version, and keep the old version in the backups, just in case someday we will need something out of it. 

How To Install XTRF 8 on Ubuntu 18.04

Fast forward to the end of 2022 - and this day came - I was looking for ways how to minimize our monthly payment on Linode and noticed we have a few unactive instances for whom we are paying money, which we could not.…

Shaori Reservoir

29 November, 2022 | Lakes | 25 seen

Shaori Reservoir is an artificial lake located in the region of Racha, Georgia  - some 170 km northwest of the capital Tbilisi.

I first visited it in mid-October 2022, during our first trip to Racha

The Shaori reservoir stretches from the southwest to the northeast, its length is 7.1 kilometers, the greatest width is 2.7 kilometers.

The greatest depth is 14.5 meters, the average depth is 9.8 meters, the area is 9.2 km². The volume of water is 90.6 million m³. It is fed by tributaries and precipitation that falls on its surface (1500 mm per year). 

The banks of the reservoir are mostly low and steep, in some places they are flat.

I can see some great tourism potential here. 

Sikvaruli Waterfall in Racha

25 November, 2022 | Tourism objects | 36 seen

The Sikvaruli waterfall (Waterfall of love) is located in Racha, near the town of Ambrolauri, Georgia

The waterfall flows on the mossy rocky massive and creates marvelous sight. Waterflow is located across the Rioni River.

We discovered this place by a chance - when our Rachan driver Levan, showed this place as one of the top sights around Ambrolauri.

Indeed the waterfall is quite impressive and looks double interesting because of the many colors around it - greed, red, blue. But it also depends on the season of the year. Fall is especially popular among Racha photographers.

The road literally ends at the waterfall, so you cannot pass it.

Spend some time at the waterfall before exploring other parts of Racha.

Won Another Online Auction - Plot of Land in Saldus (EUR 4.82/m2)

24 November, 2022 | Real Estate | 19 seen

On November 24, 2022, I helped to win an online auction for a real estate property in Saldus, Latvia

This auction was held online at the E-izsoles platform. And unlike most of the other bids, this was one of the easiest bids, We were just two bidders, the second bidder had entered the bid a few days earlier and probably forgot to bid today, as my bid was just the second highest.

In the past I've bought already one apartment using this platform, see: Today I bought my first flat on an online auction site

In total, we agreed to pay EUR 3,250 for a 668 sqm plot of land in Saldus. Distance to Riga is about 120km, Laidi 48km, Vilgāle 64km, and Jēči another 120km.   

With this buy, we are having four properties in Latvia, all of which are located in the Kurzeme region. Back this summer we bought a little nice Summer house in Jēči (Liepāja)

Among Bolt couriers, bagels and overturned bowls of chips, I won a bid on a plot of land in Saldus. Purchase amount 4.86 EUR/m2 - cheaper than in the mountains of Georgia (most probably),  but it seems much easier to realize. The free market says -  that the price could be 4.5 - 9…

How to buy Straddle Options on Crypto (Ethereum & Bitcoin)

23 November, 2022 | | 84 seen

Lately, I have been trading 1 DTE options with Ethereum on the Deribit platform. In the past, I have traded quite a lot of Bitcoin and Solana coins (until the November 2022 Crypto Crash)

Unlike stock options, trading crypto options might get more complicated, a lot more complicated and I wouldn't actually recommend them if you are a novice. My biggest learning curve so far has been the fact that crypto options are settled in crypto itself.

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links to the deribit.com options trading website, by clicking on links on this page and by making an investment on deribit.com, I might earn affiliate income at no cost to you.

I'm not a financial advisor and I don't give you any advice, I'm just sharing my own experience. Investments in stocks, funds, bonds, or cryptos are risk investments and you could lose some or all of your money. Do your due diligence before investing in any kind of asset. 

Anyhow, after a losing trade with a call ratio bacskpread I was looking for a "revenge" trade (something you should always avoid at all cost) and thought - what If instead of selling…

Sakhluka Rachashi, Cozy Cabin in Racha / Agara

22 November, 2022 | Hotel reviews | 26 seen

Sakhluka Rachashi cabin house is located in Agara in the Racha region of Georgia.

We booked this place on Airbnb for about a 2-night stay in mid-October 2022, during our Racha trip. In total, we paid about $300 for our stay here.

As this time we were traveling without a car, we arrived here from Sadmeli Winery near Ambroulauri, after a short trip around Racha, by a driver I hired in Ambrolauri. 

We had a little nice cabin house, with two bedrooms, fake, but fun, little fireplace, nice garden, and best of it - garden oven. We grilled some fish and potatoes there.

I felt bit nostalgig, but also inspired for our canceled garden oven, see: Building a foundation for a garden oven - Part 1

Our stay here, was quite cozy, but bit cold. There was no TV, and the fake fireplace didn't warm us, as expected. We got heating grom AC and garden oven.

The chalet features 2 bedrooms, a kitchen with a fridge and a minibar, a washing machine and 1 bathroom with a hairdryer. Towels and bed linen are provided.

We enjoyed a lot our stay here. We found a local shop nearby to buy some goodies. Also found some ideas…

Top 20 Best Selling DELL Laptops in 2023

21 November, 2022 | Laptop Reviews | 24 seen

Dell is known as a reliable business laptop brand, pioneering the latest tech, touchscreen, FULL HD, and high-bandwidth RAM.

Nowadays Dell builds not only laptops for business use, but also gaming laptops, Chromebooks, and of course simpler but still powerful everyday-use machines.

In this article, I've listed Dell laptop models (both traditional and Chromebooks) which are among the top 20 sellers / most popular laptops on Amazon.com in 2023.

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links to Amazon.com, by clicking on links on this page and by making a purchase on the Amazon site, I will earn an affiliate income at no cost to you. Prices for laptops listed on this page are retrieved using Amazon Product Advertising API and is updated daily. For actual prices please refer to the product page on Amazon.

• 12GB high-bandwidth RAM to smoothly run multiple applications and browser tabs all at once; 256GB…

Securing first under construction real estate investment in Tbilisi - Planning to SELL as NFT

17 November, 2022 | Real Estate | 18 seen

On November 17, 2022, together with a partner from Canada, we secured our first co-investment in Georgia - a 47m2 apartment under construction in Tbilisi. Looking to put it on blockchain next. Exploring NFT.

Long story short, back in April 2022, while vacationing in Batumi, I come up with an idea - investing in booming Batumi real estate by attracting crypto investments. Original idea was to issue a crypto token, raise the funds, purchase the apartment under construction and sell it for profit once it is done.

A few months latter, Uday, co-investor from Canada contacted me, showing keen interest in this project, but in a more classical FIAT investment approach. I agreed.

Scouting Batumi real estate for the second time, at the end of September 2022 I was left a bit disappointed, the price seemed too high, and the apartments seemed too small... I started to explore what are our options in Tbilisi and was left surprised to find, there are apartments for sale for about $500 per square meter.

I contacted a few real estate developers in Tbilisi and narrowed down our potential investment to Eco City Samgori project in Tbilisi.

See, how I went…

Nikortsminda Cathedral

15 November, 2022 | Churches and Monasteries | 38 seen

Nikortsminda Cathedral is a Georgian Orthodox Church, located in Nikortsminda, Racha region of Georgia.

I first discovered this beautiful cathedral in mid-October 2022, during our first trip to the region of Racha.

It is said, that Nikortsminda was built in 1010–1014 during the reign of Bagrat III of Georgia and was repaired in 1534 by the King Bagrat III of Imereti. Three-storied bell tower next to the cathedral was built in the second half of the 19th century. Frescoes inside the cathedral date from the 17th century.

The cathedral is on the Tentative List for status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stylistically, Nikortsminda reflects the Georgian cross-dome style of architecture, following a six-conch-within-rectangle plan. The rectangular western apse has adjoining side chapels.

Nikortsminda has a massive dome and unbroken arcatures as its twelve windows, which are decorated with ornamented architraves.

Make sure to visit this cathedral, when planing a trip to the region of Racha in Georgia

Top 20 Best Selling Lenovo Laptops in 2023

14 November, 2022 | Laptop Reviews | 23 seen

Over the years Lenovo has proved itself as a reliable business, everyday use, and even a gaming laptop.  Besides its Chromebook series - Lenovo is known for the ThinkPad, IdeaPad, Yoga, and Flex line of notebook computers.

In this article,  I've listed Lenovo laptop models (both traditional and Chromebooks) which are among the top 20 sellers / most popular laptops on Amazon.com in 2023.

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links to Amazon.com, by clicking on links on this page and by making a purchase on the Amazon site, I will earn an affiliate income at no cost to you. Prices for laptops listed on this page are retrieved using Amazon Product Advertising API and is updated daily. For actual prices please refer to the product page on Amazon.

• Memory is 8GB high-bandwidth RAM to smoothly run multiple applications and browser tabs all at once. Hard Drive is 256GB PCIe…