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IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

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21–30 of 56 posts

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some people want anonymity. Mobile phones do not provide it.

Yes they do? You can install system wide Tor on android. If you are referring to the fact that phones emit signals that can be triangulated, that doesn't interfere with anonymity in and of itself.

The fact that towers can ID which phones go where does interfere however.

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I miss IRC too, but I don't miss the doxxing and DDoS nonsense. I don't have to setup a znc bouncer to connect to Discord. I don't have to take any precautions. It just works. I hate the client though, so I feel you on that. The lack of terminal integration with Discord is painful.

That is mostly solved with ChanServ and NickServ services. Channels can't be taken over with DDoSes because ChanServ protects them and attackers can't get your real IP because NickServ provides host masking.

It's such a shame IRCnet refused to adopt services.

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#23

Sounds like a massive pain in the ass for just messaging friends. Both IRC and Tor are pretty mobile hostile. Would be much more practical to use an end to end encrypted IM platform on the clearnet. Matrix fits pretty well here. That said, I'm told almost the majority of traffic observed through tor is IRC. For botnet control.

Matrix makes sense for private invite-based chats, but for that we have Signal. I think some of the DID/pseudonymity features Dorsey's AT protocol will be the best future bet for facilitating true desire and revealed preferences. Matrix feels a bit derivative, solving a problem too late for a community that may have aged out and dispersed. It would have been the best IRC/SILC alternative ever, if the culture still supported the interaction model of those prior techs.

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#24

Man I wished we can go back to IRC, compared to the shitshow that is discord ! Slow client, stupid login circle-jerks, desktop-clients-vs-webclient and and and. Yea yea I'm old, but dammit in "my day", it was easier to communicate and the "tech" didn't get in your way. IRC was basically a "done product" and new features were usually spearheaded via "scripts" from users with a need. It seems the "new features" in disc…

What's holding you back? Name a network and a channel and booya. Just wait for the folks to join, i guess?

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#26

Sounds like a massive pain in the ass for just messaging friends. Both IRC and Tor are pretty mobile hostile. Would be much more practical to use an end to end encrypted IM platform on the clearnet. Matrix fits pretty well here. That said, I'm told almost the majority of traffic observed through tor is IRC. For botnet control.

It's not so much that internet protocols are hostile as cellular internet connections are bad (random round trip time leads to TCP back-off, often no ipv4) and smart phones are energy limited re: radio modem activity (can't hold open a TCP connection).

They require crutches and compromises to be made to participate in the internet. Usually this is in the form of a incorporated entity doing the hand holding.

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#27

Sounds like a massive pain in the ass for just messaging friends. Both IRC and Tor are pretty mobile hostile. Would be much more practical to use an end to end encrypted IM platform on the clearnet. Matrix fits pretty well here. That said, I'm told almost the majority of traffic observed through tor is IRC. For botnet control.

It's not so much that internet protocols are hostile as cellular internet connections are bad (random round trip time leads to TCP back-off, often no ipv4) and smart phones are energy limited re: radio modem activity (can't hold open a TCP connection). They require crutches and compromises to be made to participate in the internet. Usually this is in the form of a incorporated entity doing the hand holding.

The behavior you describe with cell phones is also how overall internet access works in many geographic regions.

There are areas where residential internet is fast and reliable, but if you’re building a service that sucks on bandwidth/energy/throughput constrained links, you’re building a service that’s not viable for tons of users.

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#28
post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not so much that internet protocols are hostile as cellular internet connections are bad (random round trip time leads to TCP back-off, often no ipv4) and smart phones are energy limited re: radio modem activity (can't hold open a TCP connection). They require crutches and compromises to be made to participate in the internet. Usually this is in the form of a incorporated entity doing the hand holding.

The behavior you describe with cell phones is also how overall internet access works in many geographic regions. There are areas where residential internet is fast and reliable, but if you’re building a service that sucks on bandwidth/energy/throughput constrained links, you’re building a service that’s not viable for tons of users.

You're right. In the last decade or so the capabilities of the average internet user have degraded significantly. Should we handicap all software to accommodate these people? Profit motive says yes and incorporated entities surely will do so. But it is not the right move for human persons.

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I miss IRC too, but I don't miss the doxxing and DDoS nonsense. I don't have to setup a znc bouncer to connect to Discord. I don't have to take any precautions. It just works. I hate the client though, so I feel you on that. The lack of terminal integration with Discord is painful.

That is mostly solved with ChanServ and NickServ services. Channels can't be taken over with DDoSes because ChanServ protects them and attackers can't get your real IP because NickServ provides host masking.

Wasn't that already a thing in 2001?

I was on euIRC and basically "grew up" with those services.

Re: IRC Server as Tor Hidden Service on OpenBSD

#30
post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The behavior you describe with cell phones is also how overall internet access works in many geographic regions. There are areas where residential internet is fast and reliable, but if you’re building a service that sucks on bandwidth/energy/throughput constrained links, you’re building a service that’s not viable for tons of users.

You're right. In the last decade or so the capabilities of the average internet user have degraded significantly. Should we handicap all software to accommodate these people? Profit motive says yes and incorporated entities surely will do so. But it is not the right move for human persons.

The people with bad internet connections are human persons.

The idea that to make something that works for those people we have to make systems that are worse for people with fast internet is a false dichotomy. We can (and should) make services and systems that work well for everybody.

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