Hacker News: networkimprov

New comment by networkimprov in "Ask HN: What are you working on this year?"

networkimprov — Tue, 03 Jan 2023 00:26:39 +0000

What's your opinion of Etherpad? Does their roadmap overlap with your vision?

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 21:59:44 +0000

Wow, have to ask whether you're interested enough to contribute? :)

    > You can't use a volatile cache ...
    > all this work to juggle JSON in flat files

I really don't think I've misused the cache! I didn't use SQLite because ordinary admins need to be able to inspect and occasionally fix the database. That decision can be revisited down the line.

    > Companies don't want to host heir own email servers

TMTP is more like HTTP than SMTP. There must be many ways to host a service, just like a website. Any admin must be able to bring up a TMTP server. (It's nothing like getting a new MTA host to work with the SMTP network!)

I discuss the E2EE issue on the mnm website FAQ. Only certain kinds of TMTP sites will want it to be the default. If a consumer tech brand offers an online TMTP client, it would present a proprietary API to the browser, as Gmail does; TMTP can't protect those messages.

    > synchronization between multiple client devices?
    > permissions in groups?
    > identity verifications?
    > mobile clients which don't want to open dozens persistent connections?
    > the demo doesn't actually use the protocol?

Client sync is implemented already \o/ - that's the replicas feature. It already has simple, user-defined groups. Admin-defined groups is on the roadmap; need user input to chart a course here. I've implemented OpenID Connect auth for new account registration. It could also be required per login, if there's demand. JMAP offers a model for how to do non-persistent connections on mobile devices. The demo is just the browser-based UI to the client, reconfigured to use canned data. (The client is a localhost web app.)

And, hey, can't a protocol can be a work in progress? I'm only willing to spec what I am ready to implement!

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 17:54:00 +0000

A TMTP client can subscribe to any number of TMTP services at different sites.

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 17:14:20 +0000

FWIW, most of the roadmap for this project is not described on the website nor defined in the protocol.

This is a deep topic, and "messaging" is not the only goal, nor even the principal one :)

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 17:09:04 +0000

(Author here.) I imagine that existing web-based bulletin boards would simply copy messages to TMTP users if requested.

Conversely, TMTP groups/lists could be copied to a read-only website.

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 17:00:02 +0000

(Author here.) The message format definition is included in the protocol doc only as a convenience. Ultimately it would be two standards.

Trying to "upgrade" the email ecosystem is an impossible goal, and the requirements I'm working to can't be shoehorned into the email model.

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 16:51:36 +0000

(Author here.) Thanks for your interest & support!

Yes, the default concept for an Internet messaging service is "everyone can reach anyone". This isn't helpful for online services and businesses who need to reach their members/customers directly & securely, and with a rich content model (e.g. survey/form in message, and structured result in reply).

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 16:43:00 +0000

(Author here.) Development has been paused for ~1y as I've been at work creating a vehicle to take this forward.

The protocol specifics (e.g. identifiers & types) aren't polished, because I focused on features in working code. Thanks for the feedback!

You can't have alias collisions; it checks whether the string you propose is acceptable & available :)

A sender's alias is (or will be) checked against their recorded aliases.

The reason why lack of E2EE in email is a serious problem is that email traverses at least two "federated" services, which are typically third parties with whom you have no intrinsic need for a relationship. A TMTP message passes through a single service which you explicitly joined.

I don't see how your feedback justifies "poorly thought out"; it's merely an unpolished preview.

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 16:19:17 +0000

(Author here.) TMTP clients maintain concurrent (possibly intermittent) connections to any number of TMTP services, and each service gets its own inbox. So you don't need a separate app instance per service.

Inboxes for a set of related services could conceivably be merged, tho I haven't done any work on that yet.

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 16:14:11 +0000

(Author here.) The client UI is designed for desktop. A mobile frontend is in the works. Tentatively planning to use Ionic Framework with Vue.

New comment by networkimprov in "TMTP a Internet protocol combining elements of email and the web"

networkimprov — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 16:11:05 +0000

Hi, author here, AMA!

New comment by networkimprov in "Show HN: Shortwave: Enjoy Your Inbox"

networkimprov — Thu, 17 Feb 2022 03:09:18 +0000

Here are a few fundamentally different async protocols in development which could challenge SMTP:

DIME - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Mail_Alliance

Math Mesh - https://mathmesh.com

TMTP - https://mnmnotmail.org (my work)

New comment by networkimprov in "The Interledger Protocol"

networkimprov — Sat, 01 Jan 2022 20:35:47 +0000

Oddly, the Web Monetization spec, probably essential to ILP adoption, doesn't indicate how browsers would contact an Interledger network site.

https://webmonetization.org/specification.html

https://github.com/WICG/webmonetization/issues/195

New comment by networkimprov in "The Interledger Protocol"

networkimprov — Sat, 01 Jan 2022 20:30:59 +0000

It's the underpinning of the Web Monetization effort backed by Mozilla.

https://webmonetization.org

https://grantfortheweb.org

New comment by networkimprov in "Ask HN: Who wants to collaborate?"

networkimprov — Sat, 01 Jan 2022 20:11:20 +0000

"mnm" enables a safer, better, decentralized email network. It's open source (and not blockchain).

https://mnmnotmail.org & https://twitter.com/mnmnotmail

Because SMTP will not be fixed, here's why: https://mnmnotmail.org/smtp.html

---

Related protocol projects in development include:

https://mathmesh.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Mail_Alliance

New comment by networkimprov in "A realization of why email is critical infrastructure for the Internet"

networkimprov — Wed, 29 Dec 2021 23:06:04 +0000

I have sketched a plan for a venture, for which I'd need co-founders (e.g. mobile app code & UX expertise) -- feel free to reach out via Twitter @mnmnotmail (link above).

Those big corporate advocates necessary for the success of a new email protocol are fortunately not the major email hosting players! See the mnm FAQ #2 for a plausible adoption path.

New comment by networkimprov in "A realization of why email is critical infrastructure for the Internet"

networkimprov — Wed, 29 Dec 2021 22:49:21 +0000

At this early stage, I'd say the biggest obstacle is reaching a wide enough audience; I have no prior fame, and no PR budget yet.

New comment by networkimprov in "A realization of why email is critical infrastructure for the Internet"

networkimprov — Wed, 29 Dec 2021 22:07:37 +0000

And yet none of those corporations has displaced email, despite the fact that it has become a universal cyberattack channel, with a stagnant UX that doesn't address most real-world use cases for email!

I saw a need for a safer, better, decentralized protocol for email, so I drafted one (TMTP) and implemented client & server. More at:

https://mnmnotmail.org/ & https://twitter.com/mnmnotmail

Related protocol projects in development include:

https://mathmesh.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Mail_Alliance

New comment by networkimprov in "Re-thinking electronic mail"

networkimprov — Sun, 05 Dec 2021 21:50:55 +0000

The success of a wide variety of messaging and discussion apps demonstrates that the network effects of email are not necessarily a high barrier. What these products have lacked, which email has, is an open protocol. (XMPP had early success, but never addressed the main use cases of email, and has major design flaws.)

A handful of credible alternative protocols are now in development:

DIME - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Mail_Alliance

Math Mesh - https://mathmesh.com

TMTP - https://mnmnotmail.org (my work)

Email was designed in the 1970s & 80s for an Internet whose population and topology have dramatically changed since. We no longer need a messaging system that allows anyone, claiming any identity (i.e. "real name"), to send you any content, without limits. Federation was necessary for the topology of the early Internet, but today it is a drawback -- making email by far the most effective method to initiate cyberattacks.

New comment by networkimprov in ".plan"

networkimprov — Thu, 18 Nov 2021 03:02:44 +0000

You might like TMTP from the mnm open source project (my work).