A nostr event is an IP data packet for freedom of expression.
Tim Bouma
trbouma@safebox.dev
npub1q6mc...x7d5
| Independent Self | Pug Lover | Published Author | #SovEng Alum | #Cashu OG | #OpenSats Grantee x 2| #Nosfabrica Prize Winner
Javier Milei’s speech was like a university lecture. What was the point of that?
‘One common blockchain’
IP packets and Nostr events share the same core idea.
The Internet works because every IP packet is complete, independent, and meaningless to the network. Routers don’t know if they’re carrying email, video, or money, they only know how to move packets. Meaning lives above the protocol.
Nostr makes the same move for expression and records. Every event is independently signed, has its own event ID, and declares its own semantic intent through kind. Relays don’t know (or care) whether an event is a post, a payment, a credential, or a log entry, they only verify the signature and propagate the event.
In both systems, validity is local and mechanical; meaning is voluntary and social.
IP separated movement from meaning.
Nostr separates authority from platforms.
That separation is not a flaw. It’s the source of their power.
My guardrails are cryptographic.
If you don’t spend the up-front effort of understanding a problem, you end up building something that is too complicated and which doesn’t do enough.
It's time for snow bank removal!
Another big pushback FUD on #nostr is that the protocol is not ‘quantum-safe.’
Well, I called bullshit on that FUD by upgrading the protocol to use quantum-safe algorithms (including an upgraded relay)
GitHub
GitHub - trbouma/pqrelay: Post-Quantum Nostr Relay
Post-Quantum Nostr Relay. Contribute to trbouma/pqrelay development by creating an account on GitHub.
It took me a couple of years to figure this out. The core reason why #nostr is going to win as a protocol:
By creating a unique event id that is the digest of its:
- author (pubkey),
- meaning (kind),
- timestamp (created_at),
- metadata (tags),
- message (content), and:
signing of this resulting event id (sig)
That means you can sign whatever the hell you want with whatever meaning you intend, and it can be uniquely stored or relayed anywhere.
#nostr become the sword of simplicity that cuts through the Gordian Knot of interoperability bullshit and semantic capture.
This simple format allows anyone to define whatever they want, with only a simple rule for cryptographic validation that it was actually they who created the event. With a few additional conventions it becomes a baseline protocol for social media, but can be expanded to an infinity of possibilities.
Thanks for this genius, @fiatjaf
Nostr is the protocol that keeps on giving.
I’ve been following the debate in Open Identity Connect (OIDC) where bearer tokens can be used by anyone who intercepts them. Now there is a panic to further lock down the tokens.
With, #nauth , I don’t have to worry about this, because I effectively have what I am calling ‘channel-binding’. I have 100% assurance that whatever I send to another npub, only they can decrypt and used. No need to bind the bearer token for the purpose of transmitting between two parties.
#nostr #safebox
I think it’s possible to build #digitalpublicinfrastructure that is controlled by no-one and used by everything.
That is what I am trying to prove with #nostr #safebox
Digital Public Infrastructure Map - UCL IIPP
The first global investigation of digital public infrastructure.
CA:
- Certificate Authority
- Certified Assurance
- Con Artist
GM
A priest, a pastor and a rabbit walk into a blood clinic.
The rabbit says, ‘I’m a typo!’
I am now looking for a enterprise relay deployment for #nostr #safebox.
#strfry by @npub1yxpr...qud4 has been excellent (flawless) so far and I plan to give #pyramid by @fiatjaf a whirl
GitHub
GitHub - fiatjaf/pyramid: a wondrous furnace of communityzenship backed by a dynamic ladder of socialhood
a wondrous furnace of communityzenship backed by a dynamic ladder of socialhood - fiatjaf/pyramid
POW > NGU