Cash Poor, 'Whuffie' Rich

Talk is cheap, especially on the Internet. Everyone who has an opinion or some level of expertise about anything can easily blast their viewpoints and advice to the world by spending three minutes setting up a blog account. It's truly a mixed bag out there, a combination of misinformation and "trolling" with a few real gems of wisdom and some glimmers of valuable citizen journalism.

But the authors of some of the best online content usually don't make a dime, which is where the Whuffie Bank comes in, as reported by technology journal TechCrunch.

A "Whuffie" is a unit of currency bestowed upon those who who create value online -- in essence, it's a way of attaching value to one's online reputation. The Whuffie Bank's welcome message reads: "In a world where reputation is wealth, only those who do good and well onto others are the richest. Welcome to The Whuffie Bank."

Reverend Run, one half of the hip-hop phenomenon Run-DMC, leads the pack with 281,494 Whuffies. So how is it calculated, you ask? The organization's computer algorithm tracks social networks such as Twitter and Facebook and detects public endorsements, level of influence and endorsements by those who already have a boatload of Whuffies, while peering into the content of messages that are retweeted or reposted by others.

As explained in the FAQ section, "Each time a message you put on Twitter gets retweeted or a Facebook post gets liked by others, that's considered a positive endorsement for you."

Okay, I've got Whuffies in the bank, so now what? According to the Web site, you can redeem your Whuffies for real or virtual goods, but I was unable to find out exactly where or how this redemption transpires.

So if you feel undervalued in your efforts to change the world with your infinite wisdom or share your award-winning chocolate chip cookie recipe, at least the Whuffie Bank values you.

Photo courtesy of andyp_uk, via Flickr