Please describe your proposed solution

Many Japanese people struggle with reading English documents and communicating in English.

Since its establishment in August 2020, SPO JAPAN GUILD has provided opportunities for Japanese people to become SPOs (Stake Pool Operators), resulting in the creation of over 100 SPOs.

With funds raised in FUND6, we created Japanese-language documents on stake pool setup and operation procedures, and by continuously updating them with the latest information, we are providing opportunities for more Japanese people to become SPOs.

Additionally, in FUND10, we secured funds for one year of community management and document maintenance, and have been supporting the creation of new SPOs and providing ongoing support. Now that Cardano has entered the Conway Era, governance is being provided, and there is a growing need to share more technical information with SPOs.

Within our Discord community, users can always ask questions in Japanese, allowing beginners to improve their skills and eventually become SPOs. We aim to continue nurturing new SPOs, promoting decentralization, and sharing the latest technologies with existing SPOs.

Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

We constantly gather and translate the latest protocol technical information, explaining specialized terms in an easy-to-understand way. By providing all information in Japanese, we offer opportunities for Japanese people to become SPOs (Stake Pool Operators).

At present, we have 232 community members, 101 of whom are SPOs. This community includes many non-engineers, such as magazine editors, tax accountants, architects, sales professionals, students, and individuals from a wide range of professions.

The presence of diverse SPOs promotes further decentralization, and by increasing the number of information disseminators who can communicate the benefits of Cardano in Japanese, we can expand the Cardano community.

We believe that increasing the number of diverse SPOs will attract a variety of delegators, ultimately leading to the expansion of the Cardano community.

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

BTBF, the operator of this community, began running a stake pool on July 30, 2020, and launched this community in August of the same year, continuously managing it for four years now.

Also successfully completed the proposal adopted in FUND10 through to the end.

Additionally, the documents have always been kept up to date.

Other experience:

• Server engineering: 6 years
• Web system development: 18 years

What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Milestone 1: Annual Operation Phase 1 (Months 1-3)

A: Milestone outputs

• Weekly meeting minutes.
• SPO JAPAN GUILD DOCS update
• Verification results of new versions of cardano-node and cardano-cli (* Only when a new release candidate version is announced.)

B: Acceptance criteria

• Take at least 3 meeting minutes per month.
• At least one or more releases, including minor releases.
• Translations and explanatory documentation of features added to the new version.(* Only when a new release candidate version is announced.)

C: Evidence of milestone completion

• It will be posted on the official web site.

<https://spojapanguild.net/>

• It will be track it in the changelog on the document page.

<https://docs.spojapanguild.net/changelogs/>

• Post on the Node Setup or Update page

<https://docs.spojapanguild.net/changelogs/>

Milestone 2: Annual Operation Phase 2 (Months 4-6)

A: Milestone outputs

• Weekly meeting minutes.
• SPO JAPAN GUILD DOCS update
• Verification results of new versions of cardano-node and cardano-cli (* Only when a new release candidate version is announced.)

B: Acceptance criteria

• Take at least 3 meeting minutes per month.
• At least one or more releases, including minor releases.
• Translations and explanatory documentation of features added to the new version.(* Only when a new release candidate version is announced.)

C: Evidence of milestone completion

• It will be posted on the official web site.

<https://spojapanguild.net/>

• It will be track it in the changelog on the document page.

<https://docs.spojapanguild.net/changelogs/>

• Post on the Node Setup or Update page

<https://docs.spojapanguild.net/changelogs/>

Milestone 3: Annual Operation Phase 3 (Months 7-9)

A: Milestone outputs

• Weekly meeting minutes.
• SPO JAPAN GUILD DOCS update
• Verification results of new versions of cardano-node and cardano-cli (* Only when a new release candidate version is announced.)

B: Acceptance criteria

• Take at least 3 meeting minutes per month.
• At least one or more releases, including minor releases.
• Translations and explanatory documentation of features added to the new version.(* Only when a new release candidate version is announced.)

C: Evidence of milestone completion

• It will be posted on the official web site.

<https://spojapanguild.net/>

• It will be track it in the changelog on the document page.

<https://docs.spojapanguild.net/changelogs/>

• Post on the Node Setup or Update page

<https://docs.spojapanguild.net/changelogs/>

Final Milestone: Annual Operation Phase 4 (Months 10-12)

A: Milestone outputs

• Weekly meeting minutes.
• SPO JAPAN GUILD DOCS update
• Verification results of new versions of cardano-node and cardano-cli (* Only when a new release candidate version is announced.)
• Project Close-out Report and Project Close-out Video

B: Acceptance criteria

• Take at least 3 meeting minutes per month.
• At least one or more releases, including minor releases.
• Translations and explanatory documentation of features added to the new version.(* Only when a new release candidate version is announced.)
• Project Close-out Report and Project Close-out Video

C: Evidence of milestone completion

• It will be posted on the official web site.

<https://spojapanguild.net/>

• It will be track it in the changelog on the document page.

<https://docs.spojapanguild.net/changelogs/>

• Post on the Node Setup or Update page

<https://docs.spojapanguild.net/changelogs/>

• Project Close-out Report and Project Close-out Video

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Founder and administrator of this community.

BTBF X-StakePool

<https://x.com/btbfpark>

More than 2 years of experience as an SPO.

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Document Update and Management: $4,740 →<u> 15,800 ADA</u>

• Personnel costs (10 hours/month x $35) x 12 months = $4,200
• Management costs $45/month x 12 months = $540

Community Operation and Management: $8,100 → <u>27,000 ADA</u>

• Management costs (5 hours/month x $35) x 12 months = $2,100
• Contributor reward budget $300/month x 12 months = $3,600
• SPO meeting (weekly) ($50 x 4 times) x 12 months = $2,400

Technology Catch-up and Verification: $17,160 → <u>57,200 ADA</u>

• Gathering and translating new technology information (30 hours/month x $35) x 12 months = $12,600
• 6 Testnet servers (Preprod/preview) ($60/month x 6 servers) x 12 months = $4,320
• Translation tool subscription $20 x 12 months = $240

Calculating $0.3 / ADA

We are calculating based on a comprehensive assessment of the market trends in 2024, with 1 ADA valued at $0.3.

Cardano-node

Cardano-cli

gLiveView

CNCLI

Grafana

How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

The average hourly wage for freelance server engineers in Japan is 3800 Yen (≒ $28).

This project requires specialized knowledge of Cardano and translation into Japanese, so we estimate $35 per hour.

We have provided many Japanese, including non-engineers, with the opportunity to become SPOs.

We believe that this project is necessary and should be continued in the future.