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The first choke point is the ISP. You are completely dependent on the ISP or mobile provider to get on the network. Once on the network there are multiple choke

by tobbyb 9y ago

The first choke point is the ISP. You are completely dependent on the ISP or mobile provider to get on the network. Once on the network there are multiple choke points around IP addresses, dns, ca authorities, registries and more. As long as you are dependent on anyone to get on the network it by definition can't be decentralized. Consumer wireless tech is heavily regulated and governments are extremely paranoid about communication channels they don't control and can't monitor. This is unlikely to change because there are no incentives to develop technology that truly empowers individuals, there is no profit in it, it's a social good. If developed it will be demonized and made illegal, and limited to minority dissenters, the general population is unlikely to go through hoops to get on a network.

ytjohn 9y ago
He takes a while to get there, and doesn't quite drive the point home, but this is actually what André Staltz is proposing. Mesh-first devices. If we start at the bottom of his article, here's basically the plan: 1. Work on polishing IPFS, CJDNS, SSB[1], Beaker Bowser and some others into a "mesh-first" setup. 2. Sell, subsidize, or outright gift mobile devices to offline users in Africa (I'm going to assume these are android smartphones) setup to automatically join a mesh network, with these apps installed. 3. Users will transport these phones around, adding and creating content. Their phones will automatically sync content with other devices as they come in range. In general, only content that the user is interested in (that they follow) will be synchronized, though some may act as hubs syncing all manner of content for later redistribution. 4. As usage grows, there will be various regional and national mesh networks that build up. I think a good comparison is to Cuba's weekly sneakernet[2] distribution, just with wireless mesh. [1]: Secure Scuttlebut is one of the author's creations: https://www.scuttlebutt.nz/ https://www.scuttlebutt.nz/ [2]: https://www.wired.com/2017/07/inside-cubas-diy-internet-revolution/ https://www.wired.com/2017/07/inside-cubas-diy-internet-revo...

by tobbyb 9y ago

ytjohn 9y ago

He takes a while to get there, and doesn't quite drive the point home, but this is actually what André Staltz is proposing. Mesh-first devices. If we start at the bottom of his article, here's basically the plan: 1. Work on polishing IPFS, CJDNS, SSB[1], Beaker Bowser and some others into a "mesh-first" setup. 2. Sell, subsidize, or outright gift mobile devices to offline users in Africa (I'm going to assume these are android smartphones) setup to automatically join a mesh network, with these apps installed. 3. Users will transport these phones around, adding and creating content. Their phones will automatically sync content with other devices as they come in range. In general, only content that the user is interested in (that they follow) will be synchronized, though some may act as hubs syncing all manner of content for later redistribution. 4. As usage grows, there will be various regional and national mesh networks that build up. I think a good comparison is to Cuba's weekly sneakernet[2] distribution, just with wireless mesh. [1]: Secure Scuttlebut is one of the author's creations: https://www.scuttlebutt.nz/ https://www.scuttlebutt.nz/ [2]: https://www.wired.com/2017/07/inside-cubas-diy-internet-revolution/ https://www.wired.com/2017/07/inside-cubas-diy-internet-revo...