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I sense, at this time, it is the only move. Steemit cannot afford to run the way they were and need to cut the node cost. From what the "experts" tell me, having much smaller nodes is a cost reduction.

It seems that Steemit's focus (reducing costs) aligns with the community's (decentralization) since less expensive nodes will allow others to set them up.

I've also heard some arguments against it though. That it could possibly have some performance issues?

That is the great part of the module aporoach, from the sound of it. An answer to a question from themarkymark in these comments made it sound like committed RAM may, perhaps, be adjustable in the finished version. At least it was not flately denied.

P.S. Right now you can run with or without the mod.