GM, Nostriches!
The Nostr Review is a biweekly newsletter focused on nostr statistics, protocol updates, exciting programs, the long-form content ecosystem, and key events happening in the Nostr-verse. If you’re interested, join me in covering updates from the Nostr ecosystem!
Quick review:
In the past two weeks, Nostr statistics show over 240,000 daily trusted pubkey events, a 28% increase from the previous period, The daily peak reached 22201, the highest in the past two months.New user profiles with bios have reached around 40,000，profiles with contact lists are around 18000，both showing increases over 20%. More than 11 million events have been published, with posts leading in volume, totaling about 2.1 million. Total Zap activity reached over 19 million, marking a significant 70% increase.
Additionally, 26 pull requests were submitted to the Nostr protocol, with 8 merged. A total of 42 Nostr projects were tracked, with 12 releasing product updates, and over 419 long-form articles were published, 33% focusing on Bitcoin and Nostr. During this period, 1 notable event took place, and 3 significant events are upcoming.
Nostr Statistics
Based on user activity, the total daily trusted pubkeys writing events exceeded 240,000, a 28% increase compared to the previous period (Oct 29-Nov 10). The daily peak reached 22201, the highest in the past two months, with a low of nearly 17682.
In terms of new user numbers, profiles with bios are around 40000, up 21% over the past two weeks; profiles with contact lists are around 18697, up 22%. Public writing events exceeded 200,000,The daily peak reached 32480.
Regarding event publishing, the total number of note events published has surpassed 11 million, marking a significant increase of approximately 28%. Posts remain the most dominant in volume, totaling about 2.1 million, far exceeding reposts (357,168) and reactions (560,243).
For zap activity, the total zap amount has exceeded 19 million, showing a significant increase of over 70% compared to the previous period.
In terms of relay usage, the top five relays by user count are: wss://bostr.bitcointxoko.com/,wss://feeds.nostr.band/,wss://realy.nostr.band/,wss://realy.lumina.rocks/,wss://unostr.site/
Data source:
NIPs
Break out chat and threads from nip 29
hodlbod is proposing that this is a variant of #1589 which attempts to reconcile NIP 29 and flotilla's rooms over chat and thread kinds. This requires no changes of NIP 29 clients, only flotilla will need to be modified,andmove kind 9 and 11 out of NIP 29.
The choice of new event kinds was initially made to avoid conflicts with existing implementations. However, it would be beneficial to align the two approaches. For chat and threads, maintaining shallow reply hierarchies rather than arbitrary ones is a key consideration. Moving forward would depend on whether this stipulation is acceptable to the NIP 29 community.
Relay chat
hodlbod is proposing an alternative to NIP 29 for several reasons. NIP 29 is overly prescriptive in several ways and encourages group admins to host their groups on a third-party relay. Moving group-like features to relays eliminates the need for separate specifications for each group. Additionally, group metadata is redundant because relays already have a NIP 11 information document and a public key with which they can publish additional information.Admins and moderators can be handled implicitly, out-of-band, or by querying feature support using LIMITS. This approach keeps the base specification small while allowing features like moderator lists to be added as optional extensions. Member lists are managed by the members themselves, enabling them to choose whether to publicly disclose their group membership. This approach facilitates web-of-trust-based community recommendations.
Time-ordered event ids
Vitor Pamplona is proposing that there are a lot of performance benefits to having primary keys with temporal locality.when your database needs to check the uniqueness of IDs, only a small portion of the index needs to be hot (in memory). With the current “random identifiers”, the working set eventually becomes all of the data and your database will be page-faulting continuously. Sequential primary keys also make it easier for the database to place new records in order, minimizing the need to rearrange data or update index structures.This PR makes a simple, but breaking change, to the way we compute event ids. It was inspired by the improvements made by UUIDv7.
NIP-37 - Transport method announcement
Arjen is proposing that Nostr decouples applications completely from the transportation layer, meaning services no longer have to be designed around a single transportation method, but can be accessible through a plethora of ways. This NIP is meant to act as a lookup system that tells a client which transportation methods can be used to access its services.There have been NIP proposals that touch the connection between pubkeys and addresses, example NIP-97 - Nostr Naming System, NIP-66 - Relay Discovery and Liveness Monitoring.
NIP-97 is very close to solving the issue of this mapping.However, it attempts to also include human-readable naming into the solution. human-readable naming of pubkeys/services is inherently different from mapping a pubkey to an address where a user can access that pubkey's services, which may or may not map to a legacy domain name.NIP-66 covers discoverability from the client side and can be a very important tool to discern which services are worth connecting to. I think it can act as the feedback mechanism to the proposed event of this NIP. It can be used to build metrics for the various networks a pubkey announces it to be accessible. Things like rtt (round trip time) can also be different for each network and should be measured separately.
nip46: simple public key login using kind:10046
fiatjaf is proposing that This vastly simplifies the bunker:// flow while also making it easy for the user on every other front possibly -- and brings back NIP-05 login, but in a simpler, more generic way.
Add optional arg to nostr.getPublicKey()
Lez is proposing that if login is optional for an application, nostr.getPublicKey({optional: true}) can be used to retrieve the pubkey if the user has already granted permission to the app. This allows the user to view the app’s landing page without being interrupted by a popup window. The user can still press the login button later, which calls nostr.getPublicKey() and prompts for permission.
NIP-62: Collections
limina1 is defining a specification for organizing nostr events into collections - ordered, optionally-hierarchical structures like books, journals, or documentation. Currently, there's no standardized way to create versioned collections of content. The closest option is to use lists, but this extends that idea beyond a strictly linear hierarchy.
Introducing two new event kinds: kind:30040 - Collection Index and kind:30041 - Collection Section. The Collection Index serves as a table of contents, providing metadata about the collection and listing events in display order. Meanwhile, the Collection Section contains the actual content and supports linking to other content using wikilinks, enabling seamless connectivity within the collection.
Add r to kind 10009
hodlbod is proposing adding an "r" field to kind 10009, allowing users can advertise what relays/groups they are members of. Flotilla uses this to recommend relays. These of course should be considered non-canonical because the users publishing them may not actually have access to the relay specified.
Add support for naming unmanaged groups
hodlbod is proposing Instead of allowing human-readable ids, it's probably better to just allow users to name groups. I opted for a petnames strategy here instead of recommending sending 9002 events or something. Clients can choose whatever heuristic they want to resolve conflicts.
Add feature detection for unmanaged groups
hodlbod is proposing feature detection for unmanaged groups that has to exist on two levels.On the group level, so that clients can toggle the richer NIP 29 behavior on or off. Feature detection based on NIP 11's supported_nips field isn't sufficient, since a relay implementation might support NIP 29, but the actual relay may not.On the relay level, since clients need to be able to know whether users can post events to groups that don't yet exist, or whether they have to send a create-group event instead.The default (obviously) has to be that unmanaged groups are allowed, so unmanaged group support is opt-out.
kind-scoped follow
PABLOF7z is proposing kind-scoped follow does NOT (necessarily) replace kind:3, it's a way to do a very simple follow of one or more kinds that might be of interest.This way we also start moving away from huge follow lists that can get wiped at a moment's notice and instead clients are responsible for computing the follow list and updating its local state.This also allows apps to show "followed" notifications without a central source.
Build Your Own Adventure posts
Vitor Pamplona is defining kind:296 and kind:297 as text notes with options to navigate to the next text notes and continue reading. Kind 296 serves as the root story and 297 for the sections of that story.The idea is to replicate the dynamism of build your own adventure books, where each reader takes their own journey in the story.Story Section events contain an optional title tag and option tags for the next sections.Clients SHOULD render options in a way that users can select and move to that post.
Notable Projects
Primal now offers a much more comprehensive view of Nostr, with the following additions:
- New tab: READS
- New tab: EXPLORE
- Feed Marketplace
- Advanced Search
- launched Primal Premium, for $7/month, you can get a Primal Name and Nostr Tools for power users
- enable plugging any feed into the sidebar
Mobile latest updates:
- Adjust your home feed with what interests you the most.
- Home suggestion box can be enabled and disabled.
- Profile preview can be enabled and disabled.
- Replies can be previewed and highlighted directly.
- Articles, videos and curations can be quoted inside notes for more exposure.
- Add the ability to link connected wallets to your profile for zaps receiving.
- Thread view is enhanced and well adjusted.
- Fix a variety of introduced bugs.
- General improvements across the app.
Web latest updates:
- A fresh design overhaul for the article, video, and curation pages, enabling seamless browsing and enhanced interaction with content.
- Connected threads! A refined notes thread makes following entire discussions more intuitive.
- Users can now personalize their home feed by selecting their top interests.
- Replies can now be previewed directly from the note card, without needing to open the full note.
- Wallets can now be linked to your account directly from the wallet page.
- Drafts for notes and replies are now saved, allowing easy edits later.
- The suggestions box on the home page can now be hidden.
- The on-hover user preview can now be disabled for quicker access to profiles.
- Articles, videos and curations can now be quoted and shared as notes.
- General improvements.
- Bug fixes and optimizations.
- All payments will incur no fee for the receiver (previously 2.5-10% depending on amount)
- The minimum amount receivable has been lowered to 1 satoshi (previously 10 satoshis)
TestFlight is a program designed for those who want to join the nostr:#damus roadmap, prioritizing improvements to video support and introducing several new features：
- Improved video controls
- Stability improvements to video support
- New image share options on the full screen carousel
- Hashtag suggestions
- Multi image uploads
- A video player that actually works
- Share sheet action
- Seamless scroll
- Added Damus Share Feature
- Fixed missing tab bar on navigation
- Fixed some issues where profile QR code scanning would not work, and improved UX to make experience more robust
Olas is an Instagram-like client for iOS and Android，provides a feed of videos (like those on flare/highlighter/zap.stream), picture events (kind:20, a new kind that no client had implemented yet) and the classical short notes with images attached we are all used to.Some more features already available:
- blossom uploads
- NIP-22 replies
- Reels (still quite buggy though)
- Edit your preferred blossom servers
- Edit your nutsack mint list
- Image download optimization (to be gentle with mobile data plans)
Additionally, there are some coming next, including NIP-55 (Amber) Logic,Fix NIP-46 (bunker) login,complete NIP-60 (nutsack) wallet,Add NIP-57/61 zaps + nutzaps,and more.
This is a major release with the following major changes:
- Bookmarks support (including private bookmarks)
- Global feed and per-Relay feeds (with volatile storage, erased when you quit)
- Friends-of-friends scores shown in avatar
- Improved spam filtering script with more inputs to make decisions on
Additionally, there are some minor changes, including updated emoji picker, reworked relay scoring, more efficient background tasks, faster database (less syncing),and more.
Nostur v1.16.0
- Nostr Nests integration
- Live video streams and chats
- Relay Autopilot improvements
- VPN detection toggle: only connect to additional relays if VPN is detected
- Relay Connection stats improvements
- Rewrite of feed loading. Faster & more efficient
- Possible imposter label also added on new follower notification and quoted posts
- Improved profile card rendering/animation
- Improved quoted post and inline naddr1 rendering
- Optimized profile gallery loading
- Exclude reposts for new posts notifier
- UI tweaks, more compact, less clutter
- Full width images now go to screen edge
- Reduced data usage for new follower notifications
- Many many bug fixes and other optimizations
- Add and upvote tracks in the queue
- Support the artist currently playing
- Post in the live chat
- Save tracks to your library
- Listen to Fountain Radio on other apps
- Artist takeovers
Plebeian Progress Update
Plebeian Market
There are some enhancements and new features:
- dialog manager
- hide non-working parts of the ui
- publish events, we are just signing
- Moderation Tools for Admins and Editors
- introduce 'editor' role
Additionally, a major bug causing errors when creating stalls with more than one shipping method has been fixed, and the “v4v” text has been updated to Community Contribution.
Zapstore 0.1.6 released now.Some performance issues addressed, reverted installer, fixed themed icon and toasts, and more.
- Optimized video player UI with support for landscape mode
- Added audio configuration in settings
- Enabled copying of ecash tokens from ecash messages
- Support for media deletion
Additionally, some bug fixes,such as the occasional gray screen when sending e-cash，gray screen issue in Hungarian language，“mark all as read” function not working，and more.
The updated version introduces a new Web of Trust system and a Blog system, with relevant pages and sections now implemented and updated.And there are some changes:
- (technical) nPub user addresses now lead to a user's profile if added through the URL, which would be auto-converted to an nProfile type address.
- Reaction (heart/poop) numbers now show a loading indication with 3 dot animation, and you'd only be able to react once loading is finished.
- There's now a spinning loader animation for the comments of a post to make sure, as a user, if there are comments or not
- There's now a comment loader button that you can press to load newly discovered comments for a mod or blog post
- Minor design adjustments for blog posts
Additionally, fixed the ordering of the latest mods, ensured profile links in comments (from clicking the name or user address) lead to the correct profile page now, and more.
Long-Form Content Eco
In the past two weeks, more than 419 long-form articles have been published, including over 100 articles on Bitcoin and more than 30 related to Nostr, accounting for 33% of the total content.
These articles about Nostr mainly explore the protocol's development, practical applications, and its role in driving the decentralized social media ecosystem. They cover updates on tools and features like TestFlight and Knox Beta, highlighting innovations such as healthcare micro-apps, privacy enhancements, and NFC integration. Community-driven initiatives, like self-hosted Zap cooking, board member introductions, and the power of collaboration, reflect the growth of the ecosystem. Additionally, the articles discuss challenges such as key management and content moderation, as well as creative contributions like Thanksgiving use cases and cultural content.
The Bitcoin articles discuss the development, adoption, and impact of Bitcoin on the global financial landscape. They cover Bitcoin's market performance, technological advancements, and its role in the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem. The articles also explore Bitcoin's rise, its increasing market cap, and predictions for its future price movements. In addition, they focus on Bitcoin's use in various applications, the challenges faced by Bitcoin mining, and its evolving role in decentralized finance, highlighting Bitcoin's potential to address global issues, from the limitations of fiat currencies to the challenges posed by central banking systems and surveillance. Overall, the articles reflect Bitcoin's growing influence and its potential to drive future technological and financial revolutions.
Thankyou,Sebastix， hodlbod，Rod，Inner Circle Nostrich 🔮，DoraDesigner，Student of Bitcoin，Fiat Revelation，Dikaios1517，
and others,for your work. Enriching Nostr’s long-form content ecosystem is crucial.
Nostriches Global Meet Ups
Recently, several Nostr events have been hosted in different countries.
- Adopting Bitcoin 2024 took place successfully from November 15 to 16, 2024, in the southern region of El Salvador. The event attracted over a hundred Bitcoin experts, advocates, and innovators from around the world, including 42pupusas, Svetski, calvadev⚡️, Max DeMarco，and more. Discussions focused on Bitcoin’s potential to reshape global finance, culture, and social structures, with key themes around decentralization, Bitcoin’s challenge to sovereignty, and its impact on education and family life.
Adopting Bitcoin
Here are the upcoming Nostr events in November that you might want to check out.
Btrust Developer Day will take place on Sunday, December 8, 2024, in Nairobi, Kenya, as part of the Africa Bitcoin Conference (ABC 2024). This event aims to provide a platform for African developers to explore Bitcoin technology, learn from industry leaders, and collaborate on projects. The event will feature lightning talks, panel discussions, hands-on workshops, project showcases, and networking opportunities, making it ideal for Bitcoin developers, open-source developers, technologists, and Bitcoin enthusiasts.
The Africa Bitcoin Conference 2024 will take place from December 9 to 11, 2024, in Nairobi, Kenya, featuring key programs such as Btrust Developer Day, TBD Hackathon, ABC Social Impact Award, Afro Bitcoin Fellowship, and Africa Bitcoin Day. The event will host nearly 70 distinguished speakers, including Noelyne , Renata Rodrigues , Jack Dorsey ⭐️, John Dennehy, and more,focusing on topics such as Bitcoin adoption, regulation, innovation, and security. This conference offers attendees valuable opportunities for in-depth discussions and knowledge sharing.
The Asia Bitcoin Tech Unconference is set to take place from February 8 to 10, 2025, in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Organized as a workshop-style event, it will feature a diverse lineup of speakers, including Roland, Luke Childs ☂️, Sherry, WendyDing, Shaun，and others. The conference will focus on key topics such as scalability, mining, payments, and infrastructure, while also encouraging participants to share unfinished projects or technical challenges. Through hackathons and hands-on discussions, the event aims to foster collaboration and innovation. Highlights include technical talks, pitch competitions, Bitcoin product showcases, and creative and wellness activities such as Thai massages, ice baths, and arts and crafts workshops.Sats N Facts ⚡🥥
Additionally, We warmly invite event organizers who have held recent activities to reach out to us so we can work together to promote the prosperity and development of the Nostr ecosystem.
Thanks for reading! If there’s anything I missed, feel free to reach out and help improve the completeness and accuracy of my coverage.
