I decided to drop Windows support for #NoorNote/#NoorSigner after all. I know I bragged about making it work, but I've got technical, economic, and moral reasons for it.
1. Technical friction: For communication between NoorSigner and NoorNote, Windows needs separate code paths for IPC (named pipes versus Unix sockets), file system handling, and media uploads (WebView2 CORS restrictions). Every platform difference brings in potential bugs that are tough to reproduce and debug.
2. Code signing costs: Without a paid certificate (around 300 to 400 bucks a year per app), Windows users get "Unknown Publisher" warnings that scare them off from installing. That expense just isn't worth it for an open source niche app.
3. Target audience: Nostr draws in tech savvy early adopters who are mostly on macOS and Linux. The average Windows user who wants a one click install is probably going to find the setup (key management, Zap/Lightning wallet etc.) way too complicated anyway. And NoorNote has (and will have, insh'Allah) A LOT OF features normies are unfamiliar with.
4. Maintenance burden: Every Windows specific bug takes 3 to 4 times longer to fix because of VM testing and long feedback loops between builds.
The moral reasons are: It spies on its users like crazy. I mean, screenshots of your whole desktop every few seconds and telemetry you can't even turn off? That's way over the line. That's actually unacceptable. It's totally incompatible with NoorNote's privacy promise. With NoorNote, I don't store any data on my side, I don't even run it on a server so I'm not even subject to Europe's GDPR, I'm don't even ship it with a relay (I leave that to other, way more intelligent folks) and I secure everything as best I can... only to ship it for Windows? That would be a joke, that'd be a huge contradiction. That just doesn't work, I can't do that.
MacOS is still kinda shaky on the edge. It has some crappy defaults, but you can turn off all the integrated AI and cloud stuff pretty easily. Not as bad and controlling as Windows. If that changes for the worse down the line, then no more MacOS support either. Simple as that.
The IT and Internet landscape is shifting hard right now. Its users are at a crossroads. Either the cyberpunk path (Bitcoin payments, Linux, GrapheneOS, open source, and Nostr) or the old fiat path (Instagram/YouTube, AI slop, fiat payments, Android and iOS, KYC, and proprietary systems like Windows). The middle ground is disappearing more and more.
MacOS (the desktop OS) survives technically thanks to its FreeBSD base, even if it's not 100% GNU/Linux. But it at least allows GNU tools. Even if the business side seems different, they leave a door open at least. We'll see how long Apple can keep up this balancing act.
Step 2: Even though you've already downloaded it, the browser doesn't write it to your hard drive. It yaps about "trust" and stuff. You have got to click "Show more."
Step 3: Only then do a trash icon and a three dots icon show up in the download bar, but just on mouseover.
Step 4: If you click the three dots icon, a context menu pops up, and one of the five options is "Keep."
Step 5: But that's still not it. Another popup comes up where you have got to click the three dots next to the "Delete" button.
Step 6: There, a pulldown menu opens with "Keep anyway" in the nicest design.
Step 7: NOW it finally writes the file to your downloads folder and generously lets you run it.
So you run the setup. But hey, Windows isn't done yet.
Step 8: A blue window pops up yapping about "Defender Smartscreen" with only a "Don't run" button. It's the same blue as the Blue Screen of Death. If it wasn't, they'd probably make it flash red and orange.
Totally user friendly and logical, right? You have got to click the "More info" link...
Step 9: ...so the "Run anyway" button shows up.
Step 10: And only then does the setup program start.
That's some top notch dark UX.
So, what's the deal? I didn't buy a code signing certificate. That costs about 300 to 500 Euros a year. A year! That's why my app got this special treatment.
At the same time:
- Windows 11 Copilot/Recall takes screenshots of everything you do
- Telemetry is almost impossible to fully turn off
- Cortana, OneDrive, Microsoft Account get shoved down your throat
Apple's got a similar system:
Gatekeeper plus Notarization
- Unsigned apps: "Can't be opened because the developer can't be verified"
- User has to right click Open or allow it in System Settings
Costs:
- Apple Developer Account: 99 bucks a year
- With that, you can sign AND notarize (Apple checks the app automatically)
Difference from Windows:
- One time 99 bucks a year for everything (not per certificate)
- Notarization is automated (no hardware token needed)
- Easier to integrate into CI/CD
But:
- Apple reserves the right to remotely block apps
- M1/M2 Macs are even more restrictive
- For open source, Apple's actually a bit cheaper and easier than Windows. But it's the same principle: Pay up or your users see warnings.
Ubuntu Linux has a warning in its app center too, but it still lets you install the software easy. And 'sudo dpkg -i filename.deb' still works in the terminal with no warnings.
It's 2025. This is the state of our home computers.
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Starting today, there's a Nostr desktop client for Windows. And a key signer too. I didn't think it would actually work, especially the communication between the two, #NoorNote & #NoorSigner.
The Linux and Mac versions were pretty easy, but the Windows one was totally worth the effort. Not because it'll reach more people, but because it'll make NoorSigner stronger and more stable. Because Windows = weak system. So NoorSigner and the pipe connection between them have to be more stable.
Linux and Mac are stable systems. They've kinda spoiled NoorSigner. Not such big demands on stability when the underlying OS is already solid. Weak systems make strong apps or something.
Anyway, Windows has been the ultimate stress test for NoorSigner today, and tomorrow I'll try to improve NoorSigner and apply these lessons to all the other platform versions too.