Popular social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are easy to use. Because they are so popular, they are good choices for sharing information with broad audiences. However, because they are owned and operated by companies, the owners/operators define their own rules. They can easily and automatically ban users and delete content they disagree with.

Nostr is a new standard that allows social media to be decentralized. Nostr is an acronym for Notes and Other Stuff Transmitted by Relays. Nostr users use write and broadcast notes (aka posts or tweets) to relays. Relays are decentralized, anyone can run their own relay. Nostr clients use multiple relays to send notes and receive notes from others.

Pronunciation: naw-stir, similar to the word ostrich.

Why is Nostr important?

  • The promise of decentralized and censorship resistant communication has powerful implications for freedom of speech globally.
  • Content creators can be paid with small micro-payments from individuals who find value in the content. The idea of “value for value” exchange has significant benefits over traditional advertising revenue models.
  • Many Nostr clients are incorporating Bitcoin payment options so that small amounts of bitcoin can be easily sent between users.

Is Nostr secure?

  • Nostr uses public-key cryptography and digital signatures to authenticate users and transmit content.
  • When you use your first Nostr client, a private/public key pair will be generated for you.
    • Anyone can see your public key. Your private key is required to write content “from” you.
    • Its a good idea to capture and store both keys in a safe place (such as a password manager.)
  • You can “login” to same account on multiple Nostr clients by reusing the same public/private keys.
  • Remember that anyone can read your notes. Notes cannot be deleted once transmitted.

How do I begin using Nostr?

  • There are many web-based Nostr clients that are easy to experiment with. I recommend starting with one of these:
  • There are also more traditional mobile Apps for Nostr.
  • When you create an account and define your user profile (e.g. pick a username and profile picture) that content will be transmitted to relays as notes from you.

Cautions:

  • Nostr does not offer privacy. Be cautious about using your real/legal name and identity.
  • Anyone can read your notes. Notes cannot be deleted once transmitted.
  • Because Nostr is a free standard, relays are flooded with undesirable content. However, software developers are exploring ways to filter undesirable content from clients and relays.
  • Nostr is new and rapidly changing. It will be different a week from now than it is today.

What do I need to know about relays?

  • Whatever client you start using first will auto-select a few popular relays for you. That selection will be saved to your profile.
  • When you view the profile of another user, you can see which relays they currently use.
  • Some relay operators require payment.

Where do I read more?

Security
Protect your digital footprints
Using Bitcoin with Nostr