It is indeed basically the stock Cryptonote implementation, even further, - Bytecoin fork with minor changes. We do not plan to invent any 'fifth wheel', remaining pure digital local money without any features not directly tied to 'money' when changes are concerned. We believe we have good enough foundation to rely upon and focus on missing parts of the necessary infrastructure like web wallet, mobile wallet, tools for merchants, improving usability - all that might drive adoption because nice name is not enough. Later we may merge some elder CN currencie's inventions and improvements like RingCT, blockchain pruning etc. We also are researching motivation of maintaining full open nodes but it is far from completion. We are not going to add merged mining because we think that additional hashrate is not worth getting coin in the hands of miners not directly interested in it as a byproduct of other coin' mining. This is what to expect from this currency realistically.
Edit,
I am interested in supporting a "Ukrainian Monero" as you called it earlier. No premine - no ICO is good.
What is your vision for this coin? Helping the Ukrainian people?
well, it is not based on Monero, though we like its approach on open source development. As it's stated above it's Bytecoin fork, which also did good job in development since the time Monero was forked from it.
If you look upon what's going on in Ukraine, with total mess and ruined everything, war with Russia, society struggling for freedom, democracy, fighting against unbelievable enormous corruption and mafia in government - isn't it perfect occasion to make loud and epic announcements?
No we are not going to do that. We are realistic, we are not planning to substitute official currency or dominate the
world Ukraine. We want it to be local currency in Ukraine, independent and not controlled by ineffective government, unaffected by terrible inflation frauds made periodically here, used along side with other currencies more like club or discount network with own ecosystem of merchants, services and users. We want it to be legal, conform to laws, will gladly cooperate with new progressive people in government if they pay attention to us, though it is highly doubtful. Government shows some signs that they want to innovate and there is still chance that not all is lost:
http://forklog.net/cashless-ukraine-the-national-bank-considers-blockchain-technology/ Successful attempt to show that currency is possible in decentralized way would be life achievement. And yes, earn some money would be great too
P.P.S. Yes, everyone likes no ICO no premine, but from the other side - we do not have free KRB to pay for development. Though I am not sure that premined payment for development would have some value. The only way to pay for development we have now is donations based fund raising. Like last fundraising for web wallet. We are going to do that for any development and will see if this currency has decent community capable to fund development realizing that this will drive their KRB capital growth.
For miners if you think you will mine some KRB and sit on it waiting someone to make you rich - you are wrong. Do something yourself, like donate 1% of your KRB towards development, spread the word and you will be amazed how it works. You will make rich yourself.