# Introduction My intention with this article is to introduce the average internet user to the NOSTR protocol and its advantages as well as how to get started with it. # What is NOSTR? NOSTR stands for **N**otes and **O**ther **S**tuff **T**ransmitted by **R**elays. It is a simple and open decentralized protocol for a social media platform that is **censorship-resistant** and **tamper-proof**. This means that it is not controlled by any one company or organization. Instead, it is run by a **network of independent servers called relays**. Let's try to break down some of those terms and concepts in simple words. ## Notes Notes are what you post. That could be text, images, videos, etc. For simplicity, however, let's focus on text-only notes, similar to tweets. ## Your Identity To sign up for any popular social media platform nowadays, you're usually required to provide your name, your email address, and your phone number, among other things. With NOSTR, none of those things are required of you. The only thing that makes you you on NOSTR is what's called a **public/private key pair**. Don't be intimated, it's a simple concept and they're very easy to generate. Think of the public key as your **public identifier**, and how people can find you, while your private key is kind of like your **password**. That's it, that's everything you need. Refreshing, right? I'll show you later in this article an example of generating a key pair. ## What makes NOSTR censorship-resistant? Consider Twitter. Your tweets are stored **exclusively** on their servers. This is what's called **centralization**. It means all your eggs are in one basket, and in this case, you don't even own your basket. Twitter can remove your tweets and can even ban you or delete your account if you violate their terms. **Their servers, their rules**. This is fundamentally different from **NOSTR**. There are no centralized servers, and there is no centralized ownership. **The network instead relies on independent nodes/servers called relays. Anyone can volunteer to run a relay, even you.** When you want to say something, you post a note, and this note gets sent to relays, which in turn distribute them to other users who are following you. **Every relay you choose to send your notes to has a copy of your notes, and can distribute them to other users.** That means there is no one centralized place or database that has your notes, which makes it very difficult to censor you. Here's a simple way of visualizing this: you write what you want to say on 3 pieces of paper. You hand one to Alice, one to Bob, and one to Charlie. Alice, Bob, and Charlie are distributers (relays), located in different parts of the world, and they are able to show your piece of paper (note/post) to users connected to them. What happens if Bob gets shutdown? **Nothing, Alice and Charlie still have a copy of your note**. ## What makes NOSTR tamper-proof? Remember the public/private key pair mentioned earlier? Every time you post a note, it is **cryptographically signed** with your private key. This signature means that the authorship of a post can be **mathematically verified**. **Q.** Can anyone impersonate you or sign a note with your signature? **A.** No, because your signature is derived from your private key, and **no one has access to it other than you**. **Q.** Can a relay tamper with your notes? **A.** No, because your note is signed with your key, and if it's tampered with, **the signature will no longer be valid**, and it will be rejected by the clients connected to the relays. **Q.** Can a relay decide to not broadcast my note? **A.** The core principle of a relay is **impartiality**. They're built to treat all messages and users equally. Their primary responsibility is to guarantee smooth communication and distribution throughout the network. That said, however, it is possible for a relay to decide not to broadcast your message, which is why should connect to multiple and trusted relays. You can find a list of relays [here](https://nostr.watch/relays/find). **Q.** Wait, does that mean I can run my own private node and only share it with my friends/family/community to have our own mini private social network? **A.** Absolutely! ## How do I get started and join the network? First, you need a client to interact with the network. Those are the clients recommended by Snowden: - Amethyst on Android. - Damus on iOS. - [snort.social](https://snort.social/) on the web. This example will focus on **snort.social**. To get started, go to https://snort.social/login. You should see something similar to this: ![[snort_login.png | center ]] Click on **Create Account**. If you're prompted to provide a PIN, feel free to enter one. You should now see something like this: ![[snort_keys.png | center ]] This step is **very important**. Press the copy button next to your public and private keys and save them somewhere safe. You **cannot** recover your private key if you lose it, and without it you will lose access to your account. Ideally, save all this information in your **password manager**. Feel free to also expand **How do keys work?** for a refresher. ![[nostr_keys_how.png | center ]] Once you've saved your keys somewhere safe, proceed to the next step. Here, you can **optionally** choose a nickname (that you can **change** at any time) and a profile picture. **Neither** is mandatory. ![[nostr-profile.png | center ]] Snort may now suggest some people for you to follow. Feel free to do that. Now you should be greeted into a clean timeline with only the people you follow. **The timeline is in chronological order. There are no suggested posts. No trackers. No ads. No recommendation algorithm. You're in control.** Here's a sample of what my timeline looks like. ![[my_snort_timeline.png | center ]] By default, Snort will get you started by connecting you to some **predefined relay nodes**. You can see those by going to your profile (top right icon), then clicking on relays. This is the default list for your new account. ![[snort-relays.png | center]] Those are reputable public and free relay nodes. But remember, you're in control. **You can disconnect from or connect to any relays you want**. **That's it! Welcome aboard! Be nice and speak up your mind.** **And here's my public key if you want to find me** `npub1up3drc22ugdvxhc0eq7uq9hlm7ra0s4df5l8jzxl93zgssfhh3gq5mape6`. # Further Reading - https://usenostr.org - https://github.com/nostr-protocol/nostr - https://voltage.cloud/blog/nostr/the-essential-guide-to-nostr-relays/ - https://wiki.wellorder.net/post/nostr-intro/