Decentralised, Real-Time, Interoperable Communication with Matrix | Hacker News Reader

Decentralised, Real-Time, Interoperable Communication with Matrix

hacks.mozilla.org

58 pointsbpierre6 comments

  > Matrix is an open standard for interoperable, decentralised, real-time communication over the Internet.

  > The ActivityPub protocol is a decentralized social networking protocol based upon the [ActivityStreams] 2.0 data format. It provides a client to server API for creating, updating and deleting content, as well as a federated server to server API for delivering notifications and content.

Is this yet another protocol that is supposed to replace all other protocols? Have we not learned from kxcd?

Or am I comparing Apples to Oranges?

This looks like email, but with shared storage of emails similar to the way IPFS allows nodes to cache pinned content.

And if anyone is aware of Matrix integration in a traditional email client at this point, I'd be grateful to know of it. Seems like it ought to be an opportunity to lure non-technical users into using something with better security potential than email while staying with the letter as a metaphor and a familiar interface.

Remember when Google supported XMPP and Gmail auto-logged you into the Google Chat thingy? Was not that popular...

There is support in Mozilla Thunderbird - but as a chat mode, rather than email as you might be expecting. You can enable it by changing the value of "chat.prpls.prpl-matrix.disable" to false in the advanced config editor. Still, since it really just enables a chat client, another Matrix client might be better suited.

Email is a good analogy - this is even alluded to in the project FAQ: https://matrix.org/docs/guides/faq#how-is-this-like-e-mail%3...

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