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> Signal is truly some awesome tech and I don’t understand the hate. Signal has a frustratingly terrible client that I curse every day. But, I can sort of liv

by jjav 5y ago

> Signal is truly some awesome tech and I don’t understand the hate. Signal has a frustratingly terrible client that I curse every day. But, I can sort of live with that. The big problem with Signal is that it has a proprietary client with no supported alternatives. The other fundamental problem with Signal is that it requires a phone number registration. I did it because I only use Signal to chat with some friends, but if I had to use something for truly private communication there is no way I would ever tie identity to a phone number.

sigg3 5y ago
> if I had to use something for truly private communication there is no way I would ever tie identity to a phone number. This is a confusion of terms. Privacy doesn't entail anonymity. Having a private conversation means exactly what Signal is offering: peer to peer encrypted communication. What you are referring to is a secret conversation. Signal is awesome as a replacement for SMS and any messenger using telephone number as ID.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- kitkat_new 5y ago
  privacy is not only having private conversations, but keeping my phone number private instead of sharing it with everybody
  - bryan_w 5y ago
    It's a bit odd that it's a deal breaker for you to keep your phone number private with signal, as that would be your only option to communicate (via phone) if no messengers existed.
    - kitkat_new 5y ago
      ? I don't understand. 1. Messengers exist. 2. Isn't the SMS App not a messenger as well? What about Email? SMS style messaging can be implemented via Matrix as well. I am just confused by this comment. I just want to keep my phone number private
      - bryan_w 5y ago
        Before messengers, people used "phones" to communicate. The _only_ way to use these phone things were by exchanging that very same phone number that you want to keep private.
        jjav 5y ago
        Before the Internet (at least, Internet available to people outside a few institutions), caller-id was either not available at all or an extra-cost service you had to pay for. So the normal case for a ringing phone was that you had no idea who was calling or any way to get the number. Those capabilities came later. You'd look up someones phone number in the white pages and anonymously called them. Which of course was a source of much entertainment for us kids of the 70s and 80s. Now, of course, the phone company knew both numbers, so there wasn't any privacy in that sense.
Cunny 5y ago
> The big problem with Signal is that it has a proprietary client with no supported alternatives Molly on Android
- jjav 5y ago
  Signal (the company) doesn't tolerate any clients other than their proprietary one so that's not a reliable & open solution. I also use signal-cli, so I know some of these work, but it's not something I'd rely on for anything important since it can be squashed at any point on a whim.

by jjav 5y ago

sigg3 5y ago

> if I had to use something for truly private communication there is no way I would ever tie identity to a phone number. This is a confusion of terms. Privacy doesn't entail anonymity. Having a private conversation means exactly what Signal is offering: peer to peer encrypted communication. What you are referring to is a secret conversation. Signal is awesome as a replacement for SMS and any messenger using telephone number as ID.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
kitkat_new 5y ago
privacy is not only having private conversations, but keeping my phone number private instead of sharing it with everybody
- bryan_w 5y ago
  It's a bit odd that it's a deal breaker for you to keep your phone number private with signal, as that would be your only option to communicate (via phone) if no messengers existed.
  - kitkat_new 5y ago
    ? I don't understand. 1. Messengers exist. 2. Isn't the SMS App not a messenger as well? What about Email? SMS style messaging can be implemented via Matrix as well. I am just confused by this comment. I just want to keep my phone number private
    - bryan_w 5y ago
      Before messengers, people used "phones" to communicate. The _only_ way to use these phone things were by exchanging that very same phone number that you want to keep private.
      - jjav 5y ago
        Before the Internet (at least, Internet available to people outside a few institutions), caller-id was either not available at all or an extra-cost service you had to pay for. So the normal case for a ringing phone was that you had no idea who was calling or any way to get the number. Those capabilities came later. You'd look up someones phone number in the white pages and anonymously called them. Which of course was a source of much entertainment for us kids of the 70s and 80s. Now, of course, the phone company knew both numbers, so there wasn't any privacy in that sense.

Cunny 5y ago

> The big problem with Signal is that it has a proprietary client with no supported alternatives Molly on Android

jjav 5y ago
Signal (the company) doesn't tolerate any clients other than their proprietary one so that's not a reliable & open solution. I also use signal-cli, so I know some of these work, but it's not something I'd rely on for anything important since it can be squashed at any point on a whim.