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Comment by pmlnr | Hacker News Reader

The article actually proposes an alternative: Matrix, and Matrix is, in fact, a good piece of software, with federation options.

I tend to agree with most parts of the article, especially the lack of federation options.

My real pain point with Signal is that there is no real desktop application for it - no, a connected web interface is not a desktop application. For example, XMPP with OMEMO can be used simultaneously from Android Conversations AND Pidgin - same account, same messages (yes, it needs XMPP Carbons on the server), e2e.

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What do you mean by a "connected" web interface? And what would being a desktop application bring it?

Signal Desktop is somewhat buggy, not that full-features, and doesn't integrate that well with the rest of my OS, but otherwise it's working fine, and I can use it simultaneously with my phone. (But I can also use it with my phone turned off, which I love.)

> but otherwise it's working fine

It doesn't work at all for me, because it requires a mobile phone number, which I don't have (a phone + any monthly subscription fee doesn't fit in a tiny fixed income budget).

I don't think that has anything to do with the desktop app specifically?

It does. Desktop app is desktop, end of story - no GSM connection and/or phone number should be required.

It sounds like you'd also be against requiring phone numbers if they didn't have a desktop app...

A phone app requiring a phone number is reasonable; it doesn't matter if I like it or not.

On a desktop app, it's not reasonable to ask for a phone number. Ask for something else; email, for example.

Google Voice numbers are free.

Is that perfect? No, but if you want another unambiguous identifier, it's going to cost. Moxie does not have a lever that can move the world; if you think you do, you are probably well invited to haul on it.

> if you want another unambiguous identifier, it's going to cost

Nonsense - my XMPP addresses are free, globally unambiguous, federated, and support 3 types of end-to-end encryption. A phone number is patently unnecessary. The only reason to require a phone number is to tie the encrypted packets to a known identity.

An identity that everyone else already knows, yes. I figured that was so obvious as to not require elaboration.

I understand you may not have a phone number at all, but Signal doesn't actually require that you have a mobile phone number at all. It can be a landline or VOIP line that can receive a call and you get a voice verification.

Of course many don't want to tie their communications to some other identifier and that's fine but that does mean that Signal isn't for those people.

> My real pain point with Signal is that there is no real desktop application for it

Signal is open source, you can write your own -- just kidding. Moxie Marlinspike wants to lock you into his client as Facebook, Google and their ilk lock you into theirs.[1]

[1]https://github.com/LibreSignal/LibreSignal/issues/37#issueco...

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