A few things I'd recommend and they come from looking at I2P's project (might as well borrow good ideas when they present themselves):
*More support / communication for developers of applications for Freenet. As jrandom said about I2P/IP/TCP: "I2P by itself is pretty useless, but in the way IP by itself is pretty useless - who cares whether you can send packets on the internet if you don't have good applications to send them with? " Freenet is ok, but as much support as is possible should be given to people interesting in making applications that work with Freenet. You'll have to talk to the developers of these applications to see what their needs are, many are coming back so it can be a good time to ask them.
*Applications more easily found or included with Freenet. I2P appears, and correct me if I am wrong, to be including software bundled with it such as their anonymous blogging software (Syndie) and other useful software (anonymous data storage, organizers, mail etc. etc.). If the goal is helping people communicate anonymously then you don't scatter relevant applications all over the place and make them hunt for them.
*Support for 0.5, don't but all the eggs on one basket. I expect 0.5 to be around for a few more years, it would be good if 0.5 wasn't abandoned (which no on said it was) but it would be good to confirm that 0.5 will be supported. Once people see that 0.7 is good, if it is good, then they will move there but shouldn't be forced (antiforbidden fruit syndrome, you force someone to do something (even if they would have normally like it) they will predisposed to reject it.)
*Communication (Meetings, forums, request board, road map). A forum would be good where people could discuss instead of just a mailing list (I2P has one if you want to look at their setup, looks like Slyck's). Since Freenet is on sourceforge, and their system isn't that bad, their forums can be used. As well SF's request system seems to work well and using a request system would hopefully reframe the communication from "Freenet lacks this, it sucks, why doesn't this work" to more productive "I would like to request this, can the developers of Freenet add this, does anyone want to work on adding this feature with me" with a sourceforge request board. A bug board (SF also has it) would be good too.
Very good work,
SM
On 9/14/05, Ian Clarke <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
It has been quite some time since I last sent a status update to the
mailing lists.
This is an exciting time for the project, we are essentially
rewriting Freenet from the ground up, embracing that which has
worked, and throwing out that which hasn't. Furthermore, we are
fundamentally improving Freenet's security, functionality, and
usability.
Version 0.7 of Freenet aims to create a scalable "darknet", where
users only connect directly to other users they know and trust. The
purpose of this change is to protect users who may be placed at risk
simply by using the software, irrespective of what they are using it
for.
In this new approach, only people you choose to connect to will know
that you are running the software. Previous attempts at "dark" P2P
networks, such as WASTE, have been limited to relatively small
disconnected networks, allowing you to exchange information with a
few of your friends, not beyond that.
The core innovation in Freenet 0.7 will be to allow a globally
scalable darknet, capable of supporting millions of users, nobody has
ever achieved anything like this before. This is made possible by the
observation that human relationships tend to form small-world
networks, a property that can be exploited to find short paths
between any two people. The work is based on a talk given at DEFCON
13 in July by Oskar Sandberg and myself [1].
Other modifications include switching from TCP to UDP, which allows
UDP hole punching along with faster transmission of messages between
peers in the network. This will greatly simplify the task of getting
a Freenet node up and running, our goal is that you run the software,
and it "just works", with no mucking around with firewalls or
complicated configuration files.
We have learned much over the past few years. One of those things is
that it is difficult to simultaneously do experimental research,
while at the same time deploying a working usable piece of software.
As a result, 0.7 will in may ways be a simplification of Freenet,
sticking more closely to that which we know works, and for which
there is a strong mathematical basis, and leaving the more "far out"
ideas to the academic community.
Having said that, from the user's perspective 0.7 will have
significant new functionality. While previously Freenet only
supported the insertion and retrieval of information, Freenet 0.7
will support new modes of usage including the real-time broadcast of
messages. Applications of this range from real-time anonymous chat
(perhaps through the IRC protocol) to RSS-feeds.
The work on all of this is well underway, with experimental code
already being tested by a small group of volunteers (you can often
find them in the #freenet-alphatest channel on irc.freenode.net). We
anticipate the public release of Freenet 0.7 before Christmas this year.
Using donations through this website, the project has been able to
employ one developer full-time, Matthew Toseland. Matthew has since
become the backbone of the Freenet development effort.
The project requires $2,300 per month to pay Matthew's modest salary,
but at the time of writing our funds are seriously depleted, our
current Paypal balance is only $372.42. For that reason, I am
appealing to supporters of the project to, once again, dig deep and,
if you can, make a contribution to the ongoing development of the
project in the form of a Paypal donation, subscription, or an E-Gold
donation if you would rather not go through Paypal.
You can make a donation through the donations page on our website at:
http://freenetproject.org/index.php?page=donations
If, for whatever reason, you would like to make a donation through other
means, please contact me directly at [EMAIL PROTECTED].
Many thanks,
Ian Clarke,
Coordinator, The Freenet Project.
Links:
[1] http://freenetproject.org/papers/vegas1_dc.pdf
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