this post was submitted on 25 Feb 2025
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Privacy
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This is why you make a protocol rather than an app so there is no owner.
Protocols are much more difficult to create and implement.
The barrier for technical ability and maturity is much higher. Which is why you don't see them as often, and when you do see them they tend to suck, have massive gaps, or some other significant failing that prevents them from really scaling out.
Building reliable and robust protocols with a hobby project is a nearly impossible task, it takes a lot of effort and a lot of minds over a long period of time to settle on the specifications. And just as long to actually implement it.
Usually this requires some sort of funding and dedicated resources from the get-go. Which many of these projects lack.
"But doing things correctly in life is difficult so why try".
People still do and build thinga the correct way. See Matrix and Element.
Matrix is a long fuckin shot from "doing things right" it's not even funny. Have you not seen their funding crisis, the cost to host, and the general inability for it to scale affordably?
It's almost a poster child for what I just said. Protocols are hard, that's a great example. Funding is hard, that's a great example. Software engineering is expensive, that's a great example. 🤦
Also please don't straw man me. I'm stating the facts, protocols are hard to make. If you want to make one, you should know this, if you want to hand wave the word, then you should know this.
Being more informed isn't defeatism, stop trying to be toxic and swing anti intellectualism as a weapon to shut down conversation. If you don't want people to talk and discuss topics of interest, STFU and go somewhere that isn't here with that sort of attitude.
Can’t the protocol be blocked at networking level by the ISPs ?
Just send it through SSH?
In theory yes. In practice you cannot expect that every user maintains a server and one with internet facing ssh, specially a message app and the average non technical user.
People can use email without having to setup their own mail server.