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Hopefully this makes you realize that Nostr can be centralized and decentralized at the same time. That the same client can read notes only from a single curated source and at the same time be totally censorship-resistant and follow users even if they're in the most chaotic places ever.
A relay can be like a website that you access, and Nostr apps can like browsers that visit these websites at a user request.
Replies (4)
The difference is that because they expose this very simple compatible interfaces the access to these websites becomes very programmable and allows clients to do crazy things like connect to a bunch of different websites and fetch only a specific common part of them, then mash these things together, fetch other related things from other websites and display the result (plus a ton of other possibilities).
You don't need Nostr for that. People do it without Nostr already. They use bits of design, code, load data. Why the hell would I need Nostr for this if I still have to monitor everything myself anyway.
Why do we need a second bad browser and a dumb standard when we already have proper browsers and W3 standards? The key word here is "why". What does "dumb" Nostr with its buggy, useless clients actually give us? The moment it steps onto a field where "grown-up" standards operate, it not only contributes nothing β it outright loses. In speed, in integration, and in purpose. You're literally saying that JSON with tags can be used for something serious, even when clients are forced to duplicate the letter case of tags because people are somehow even dumber than Nostr itself.
Nostr only works well for the very thing its name refers to. And I donβt see anything like "and also a great tool for standalone solutions" in there.
Precisely.
As for DNS, its installed base is the only excuse for its perpetuation. Public/private key pair signing is the only non-client server option that remains.
Sensible move decentralising the NIPs, well done.
