This morning, Jack Dorsey tweeted again as the Nostr protocol platform, which made the whole day of discussion in the encryption world (and the public key in the circle of friends) revolve around a series of Nostr ecological applications headed by Damus.
The full name of Nostr is "Notes and Other Stuff Transmitted by Relays", literally translated as "Notes and Other Stuff Transmitted by Relays". Github code update records show that this project started in November 2020. As for the vision that this agreement is trying to achieve, the official document makes a concise and straightforward summary——secondary title
What's so good about Nostr?
Nostr has three main features: it does not depend on any trusted central server, so it is flexible; it is based on encryption keys and signatures, so it is tamper-proof; it does not depend on P2P technology, so it works more stable.
As for the specific working principle, the protocol is mainly implemented by two components: the client and the repeater. The client is used to sign and verify information and is run by users; the relayer is responsible for delivering messages and can be run by anyone.
The client stores the user's key internally. Each message must be signed and sent to the relay. The relay does not change the data. The verification of the authenticity of these messages is done by the client, so the user does not need to trust the relay , more in line with the spirit of decentralization.
The Nostr protocol is most different from existing decentralized social products, and perhaps it is the "simplest open protocol" mentioned by the official. In the current decentralized social track, most projects are providing users with as comprehensive products and functions as possible. And Nostr is probably the easiest of them all.
Nostr does not even provide users with C-end products that can be directly operated, but focuses on the necessary infrastructure for social networking at the protocol layer. The productization capabilities are provided by third-party apps.secondary title
Twitter Alternatives Backed by Former Twitter CEO
Interestingly, Jack Dorsey, who once served as Twitter CEO, has repeatedly stood up for Nostr, and Nostr pointed out the shortcomings of many competitors, including Twitter, on his Github homepage.
One of the most well-known bitcoin proponents, Jack Dorsey is a fan of decentralization. While at the helm of Twitter, he led the creation of Bluesky, a decentralized social media protocol. Bluesky is a protocol dedicated to building a decentralized social network. Its mission is to promote the interoperability of multiple social networks with other social networks through open standards.
At the end of last year, Jack Dorsey frequently promoted Nostr on his Twitter, and he himself had already funded the project. According to media reports, Jack has donated about 14 BTC to this project.
After resigning from Twitter, Jack Dorsey may have put down the burden of management, and turned his attention back to the track he admired-decentralized social networking, and advertised this former "competitor" several times. For Nostr, Jack's influence is undoubtedly the best publicity for it.
On Nostr's Github page, the developer also pointed to issues with other similar products:
Question for Twitter:
Twitter has ads;
Twitter uses weird tricks to get you hooked;
Twitter does not show the real history of the people you follow;
Twitter will ban certain people's accounts;
Twitter uses Shadowbans.
Twitter has a lot of spam;
Problems with Mastodon and other similar products:
User identities are attached to domain names controlled by third parties;
Server owners can ban you like Twitter, server owners can also block other servers;
Migration between servers is difficult.
There is no clear motivation for operating a server. Users are subject to the tyranny of one person, which is often worse than a large company like Twitter, and users cannot migrate out.
Servers are often amateurish, which leads to them being often abandoned.
Each server's updates must be persisted to a large number of other servers.
SSB (Secure Scuttlebutt) problem:
The protocol of SSB is too complicated because SSB is not considered an open protocol at all.
SSB is not as simple as Nostr, SSB is mainly designed for P2P synchronization.
Other questions asking to run server scenarios:
require everyone to run their own server;
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Damus and Amethyst
Damus is the one who received the most attention in today's discussion. This app is based on the Nostr agreement, and currently only the iOS version is on the shelves, and there is no Android version yet.
From the perspective of product experience, this product is almost the same as Web2 Twitter for users in terms of perception. It has some basic functions necessary for social media, such as homepage, private message, search, and notification. The App also provides users with an entry to explore the latest updated information streams around the world.
Amethyst, on the other hand, is different from Damus. The app is only available on the Android version, not on the iOS version. Unlike Damus, this app provides users with a group chat function.
Products built on the Nostr protocol do not require account passwords, but use private keys to log in and use public keys as IDs. Users can import their own private key, or directly generate a new private key randomly.
In addition to these two most commonly used apps, the Nostr protocol also provides a variety of other front-end apps.
Anigma
Official website address:https://anigma.io/
Web front-end that imitates Telegram style.
Branle
Official website address:https://branle.netlify.app/
Twitter-style web frontend.
Nostr.ch
Official website address: https://nostr.ch/
A minimalist web frontend.
Nostros
project address:https://github.com/KoalaSat/nostros
Nostr mobile client for Android.
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at present,
at present,Nostr ecology already exists46 items, its product form is far more than "Twitter like", and there are some interesting small applications, Odaily introduces one or two here.
NIP-05
To be precise, NIP-05 is not a "project" on Nostr, but Nostr's No. 05 improvement proposal, just like BIP and EIP.
For users, a unique ID is a rigid requirement in social scenarios. Just like the standard DNS of the major public chains, Nostr also provides a native DNS system. NIP-05 is the domain name specification on the Nostr protocol, and users can get unique badges and IDs after registration.
However, it is different from the domain name solutions on the major public chains. The NIP-05 domain name is provided by the registrar. After the user registers, its format should be xxx@xxx.xxx (same as email). And this domain name service provider also has the right to take back. On the registration page of NIP-05, the service provider clearly stated that "Fake use is prohibited, names found to be registered for the sole purpose of resale will be suspended, and refunds will be made at our sole discretion."
An online Nostr-based chess game where players match opponents online or play against others via invite links.
A note taking app developed to support Nostr and Web5 (coming soon).
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Related topics
Decentralized social networking is booming again. Is Nostr the prototype of Web3 Twitter?
