Nostr: Social Media for Bitcoiners
💡 Daily Reminder: Stay humble, stack sats
Bitcoiners,
The bitcoin ethos promotes decentralization, censorship resistance, and permissionless activity.
This past year, a bitcoiner named @fiatjaf created a new social media protocol that inherits the bitcoin ethos and even integrates Lightning payments.
The protocol gained enough traction that billionaire Jack Dorsey recently donated 14 bitcoin (~$250,000 USD) to the developers.
Here is an overview of Nostr, why it is important in 2023, and a quick guide to setting up your account so you can experience what it's like to use censorship-free communication and payment technology.
What is Nostr
Nostr is an open-source protocol much like the Bitcoin network or email that uses clients and servers in a network to communicate data.
Protocol - an established set of rules that determine how data is transmitted between different devices in the same network.
Clients - any computer hardware or software device that requests access to a service provided by a server.
Server - computers built to store, process, and manage network data, devices, and systems.
Using email as an example, IMAP or SMTP are the protocols, Gmail or Microsoft Outlook are examples of clients used to create email messages and send them to a server, and a server is the computer hardware typically stored in large data centers that stores and transports email data.
There are many clients available that you can use to interact with the Nostr protocol. The Damus client resembles a crude version of Twitter with new improvements made daily. Rather than one centralized Twitter corporation in control of the user experience, many clients compete to make the best interface, and users ultimately decide which one they prefer to use.
Why You Should Use Nostr in 2023
Nostr is a tool for free speech.
The Twitter Files showed how information is suppressed or even censored by corporations and governments on centralized social media platforms.
Nostr gives citizens an alternative option to freely communicate on a social media-like experience without having their voice censored. No ads, no algorithms deciding which content to show you, and no spam. Just freedom.
Get Started Using Nostr
Here is a quick setup guide to use Nostr (protocol) and Damus (client) on your iPhone:
Download TestFlight from the App Store
Download Damus from this link
Generate a public key and private key
Share your public key with others and follow each other
Follow me on Nostr to find other bitcoiners: npub15fyjxjaq0jpjerhfny2lz3wq9quzg4yetzdx4w98gc0jaulwcayqz937zg
Note, the beta is full for the Damus app at the time of publishing. You can wait for beta testing spots to open or you can run a different client on your web browser such as astral.ninja.
Let me know what you think of Nostr by replying to this email or leaving a comment!
Happy Thursday,
-Pod
P.S. - This article was summarized from Walker's article What is Nostr and How do I use it?.
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Eric Podwojski
Founder, Bitcoin EDU
Twitter:Â @epodrulz
Disclaimer: This should go without saying: This is not financial advice. This is not investment advice. I write this newsletter for education and entertainment. Act accordingly.
