[ANN] IPO of MaidSafe: Entering the Future of the Decentralized Internet

[zeeman]

Article by The Inquirer


'World's oldest startup' launches Internet 2.0

EVER FANCIED owning an internet domain with your own name? As in john.com, say? Well now you can, and not on the old leaky insecure internet but on a brand spanking new one - the SAFE Network.
You'll have to be quick, though, and if your name is John, David or Nick you may already be out of luck. So what's it all about? We spoke to David Irvine, CEO of MaidSafe, the Scottish firm behind SAFE, and COO Nick Lambert to find out.

So, a new internet, eh? What's wrong with the old one?
David: The problem is data is neither private nor secure. If you taught a computer engineering graduate all about IP networks and computers then said "here are a bunch of cables and routers now go away and design a network where we can all store data and communicate securely", the very last thing they'd do is design a server. The only reason we did it that way is because disk drives were invented before the internet.

So the server's the problem?
David: Yes. We should be focused on securing the data, not the server, and the only way you can really do that is to create some form of network where humans can't interfere, and where a piece of data is never stored on a single machine. By definition that has to be an autonomous network."

No servers? So where is my data stored?
David: When a user stores files on the SAFE Network, the operation appears as uploading, or saving a file to an existing storage provider, such as Dropbox. But SAFE splits the file into chunks and each chunk is then randomised and encrypted and stored at different locations on the network. Unlike the conventional internet, data is always encrypted on SAFE.

You describe yourself as the world's oldest start-up. After 10 years you've only just released a "pre-alpha" minimum viable product and an API. What's taken you so long?
Nick: Removing data centres and servers involves replacing several layers of the internet - transport, session and presentation. Working on such a big project with a small team ... you can start to understand why it has taken us 10 years to get to this point.

Fair enough, so what can I do on the SAFE Network right now using the test application?
Nick: Right now we are testing the SAFE Client on which it is possible for early adopters to create their own credentials and login to the test network to create their own webpage and/or upload a website. The Launcher API is a REST API, so it's language-agnostic and also does not impose any hard dependencies to the core libraries.

So I can develop apps for SAFE Network?
Nick: Yes. MaidSafe will release some example applications (such as messaging and storage) that will showcase network features to end users and serve as tutorials for developers. Longer term we will look to add network-wide computation and we will be looking to partner with companies to add features like search.

What about existing applications? Can they be ported across?
Nick: For typical applications where the functionality exists within the network, such as storage apps or, fairly soon, messaging apps, stored within existing PaaS suppliers like AWS or Google it will be trivial to port the app to SAFE. So you can have apps hosted on both the existing internet and SAFE.

Will I be paid for my app? How can I monetise it?
Nick: App developers will code their safecoin wallet address into their application and based on how much their application is used they are automatically paid by the network in safecoin. Developers keep 100 per cent of the safecoin they earn.

Whoa! Hang on a sec! Safecoin?
Nick: Safecoin is a network cryptocurrency that rewards and incentivises end users for providing their spare computing resources - called farming - while also providing a revenue stream for application developers. As the network becomes more fully featured and safecoin is incorporated into the network it will be required to use services - or apps. The cost of these apps will be down to each developer. Users will obtain safecoin by farming or by purchasing them via an exchange.

So, finally, john.com?
Well, john.safenet anyway. Baggsied it. It's mine (see above - you'll need to spark up the Launcher to view it online though). To be honest there's not much more you can do on SAFE at the minute beyond cybersquatting domains, uploading simple websites (this is a template), storing files and checking out the API and maybe writing a bit of code, as it is still very much in test mode.
But, hey. After 10 years what's a few more months?

[zeeman]

And another one:

Meet the men who have rewritten the internet

[Habeler876]

Is it really possible to reserve website domains on Safenet? When you create one, it is tied to your public id so I am still able to register john.safenet, the difference being mine is john."mypublicid".safenet.

[dasource]

Is it really possible to reserve website domains on Safenet? When you create one, it is tied to your public id so I am still able to register john.safenet, the difference being mine is john."mypublicid".safenet.

Service naming must be unique within you own Public ID ... you could have web.john.safenet but you cannot have a website on john.safenet as per my understanding.
Edit: See here https://maidsafe.readme.io/v0.4/docs/demo-app

[Habeler876]

That is what I have gathered so far. There can be unlimited instances of john.safenet websites running, but each will have a different public id associated with them. I don't understand how you would find each instance of john.safenet though if multiple public id's are registered to this domain. If you just searched for john.safenet on the Safe network, which public id would it take you to? Do you need to include someone's public id in the address to be able to reach a website?

There is a lot to still learn for me but I am interested in where this is going.

[zeeman]

No, you can't create multiple versions of john.safenet on the network. Someone took that ID already so it's his. Try to register it, you'll see it won't work  .
I just registered jeff.safenet. The App asks for a service and I just typed in WWW. This will notify the system that it actually is a website. But that's just at registration. That way the software in the background knows that a index.html is expected.



Once you go to your browser they'll use http:// but this is only to support multiple browsers at this time. Later on the Devs will probably release their own Electron browser that only
handles .safenet websites or safe:websites. But right now I can directly go to my website without http:// and WWW. Don't know if that will work for all browsers right now:




ID's are unique, so make sure to register your name when the network is reset and the real network goes live . I expect to have so called "mixed browsing" like we have now.
When you go to cnn.com you're on the normal internet. But when the SAFE Launcher is running (no need to log on) it will serve .safenet websites as well. But here's a safety issue,
trackers from other websites might follow you and see you're at .safenet websites as well. So mixed browsing is easy to use but might give away the fact you're surfing The SAFE Network.

A different approach is to use a specialized browser (just like TOR does) for surfing SAFE. People are already working on it.

[Habeler876]

I registered "jordan" as my public id, but I don't know how I could register just jordan.safenet. Within my "jordan" public id, I've created bob.jordan.safenet and john.jordan.safenet.



I don't seem to have a vanilla jordan.safenet. How were you able to get just jeff.safenet?

[zeeman]

I registered "jordan" as my public id, but I don't know how I could register just jordan.safenet. Within my "jordan" public id, I've created bob.jordan.safenet and john.jordan.safenet.

I don't seem to have a vanilla jordan.safenet. How were you able to get just jeff.safenet?

When they ask for "service" just use WWW. I don't know the exact details but they did that for some reason. Then in Chrome it works for me without anything else.

[Habeler876]

Ah ok, I see now. I assume that will likely be changed with an official release. Thanks for the clarification.

[Piston Honda]

k whoever, pls stop dumping maid you're making her look like a whore!

[Omega.SportSciencie]

Undervalued coin, it should be expensive.

[ljm81new_again]

k whoever, pls stop dumping maid you're making her look like a whore!

Maids almost a one man show trading wise that's why i dint buy in even tho i like the idea, totally controlled. He slipped up about 3 days ago and flashed 6million sell wall while stacking down.

[BadAss.Sx]

imo a good price to buy now...mvp is coming this weeks, so i do not see any reason not to buy now for this price.

[ljm81new_again]

Imo hes cashing out and its going lower, that buy wall at 13 is a ghost

[BadAss.Sx]

Say that again?

[Coinler]

k whoever, pls stop dumping maid you're making her look like a whore!

Maids almost a one man show trading wise that's why i dint buy in even tho i like the idea, totally controlled. He slipped up about 3 days ago and flashed 6million sell wall while stacking down.

yep someone bought 6million maids at various price points. but the dumping is causing greater distribution which is good at such low price points. here we separate the holders from the shorters. enough holders means that many have in their minds a high value for maid.. and that is what will set the overall price.

cant say that im worried about the price slipping further. just an opportunity for other investors who wanted to get in before to get in. im quite confident that maid can maintain a 30million dollar marketcap. i mean.. really.. that is nothing. its bound to do a 100million+ marketcap when mvp is released. the next major rise could be quick and quite sudden.

will maid go back to 13k? no way.. i cant believe it. but at the same time if it does id be happy to get some at 13k since 17k is the cheapest i could get it for.

lol 13k.. no way... never. id bet money.

[BloomBit]

www.BloomBit.net

Welcome to Bloombit.net!

We notify you that we added MaidSafeCoin on our exchange!


https://youtu.be/8e_8Nu8M9C4

Make your coins BLOOM!


BloomBit Team

[TrueAnon]

Still a buy!

[kushalgaudel]

i think its good price to buy.

[BadAss.Sx]

Still a buy!

What do you mean with "still"? It was always a good buy