So what exactly are witnesses? From my understanding, they have something to do with the value of Steem, but it's all a bit confusing.
Who should I vote for? Why are we voting? What powers do witnesses have over everyone else? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Also, on that note, what's the deal with Steem? How is it generated, what makes some upvotes worth more than others, and how does one get to that level?
Witnesses verify the transactions on the Steem network (just like miners with Bitcoin). Voting determines who is trustworthy to be a witness.
The witnesses are rewarded with a percentage of new STEEM tokens for their work and the rest is distributed as post rewards. The value of an upvote is determined by the amount of STEEM you delegate as "Steem Power".
Ahhh, very informative, thanks!