this post was submitted on 12 Oct 2021
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Privacy
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I like Session because it is anonymous (onion relay), decentralized, doesn't require a phone number, and I can have multiple accounts. But I still have to dependend on other people's generous infrastructure.
With Signal, you have to trust the server software (and hope it doesn't get hacked) to not collect a social graph, and the server address can be blocked/censored. Allowed one account per phone number. It's nice making communication easy, therefore will prevail as being the most popular...until a government or hacker takes down the service.
Session concerns/wishes:
Matrix and XMPP still require a server, and trust. Gajim/XMPP seemed clunky to me. Tox over Tor is fast, simple, nice....but handling offline messages is a problem.
What I really want are these communication apps to be both client/server. Similar to torrenting/DHT and I2P. No need to administer a server, or for your server to become a dependency, or need to have a domain so all your contacts can reach the server.
Status might be better. Seems to offer everything Session has, but P2P. Not sure where DApps and crypto wallets is going though....seems like a lot of messengers are headed in that direction.
What are your thoughts on briar. Its like session but you don't need a central server to chat over tor. It has use features where you don't even need internet.
Downside is that it is only available for android.
I don't use it because it's Android only, which greatly limits communications.
Berty.tech might become an alternative to some of Briar's features.
Session/Status don't need a central server either (decentralized and distributed).
The question I have is how much is something decentralized/distributed and how peer discovery works. Ideally everyone would be a client/server (like bittorrent and I2P).
Well it is me tooting the horn. I feel a balanced aproach is federation ( I hear "duh!"). A central node makes it convenient & fast yet for the sake of not giving power to one th3 nodes are to be distributed to serve there local/thematic community where the locals can also interact with other nodes and people there.
Few easy to implement (relatively) chats are matrix, xmpp, Delta chat + own email server.