The idea of making the Internet Archive decentralized is a very good one. It would be a real tragedy if the IA burned down like the Library of Alexandria did. I know Archive Team/Jason Scott attempted this a few years back with the IA.bak project but it seems like that died, so I hope this time turns out better.
That said, I don't actually understand how cryptocurrency or blockchains help with distributed file storage. Are these "filecoins" actually useful for anything, like incentivizing people to make copies of files? I'm by default skeptical when I hear about cryptocurrencies because the majority of ICOs seem to be get-rich-schemes riding off the Bitcoin buzzwave that then fizzle out over time.
That said, I don't actually understand how cryptocurrency or blockchains help with distributed file storage. Are these "filecoins" actually useful for anything, like incentivizing people to make copies of files? I'm by default skeptical when I hear about cryptocurrencies because the majority of ICOs seem to be get-rich-schemes riding off the Bitcoin buzzwave that then fizzle out over time.