[MUSIC PLAYING]
What's up, everybody?
For the week ending March 23rd, my name is Marks, and
this is Freedom Tech Wrap.
Freedom Tech Wrap is a weekly source for news and project
updates in the freedom and independent technology space.
We live in a highly connected world.
Freedom Tech lets you decide how you want to connect and
where you want your data to live.
Freedom Tech Rap is an independent show, so if you
want to support what we're doing, you can send us value
through your podcasting 2.0 app.
Your support and feedback are greatly appreciated.
And now, on to the news.
First story today, Elon Musk is building the world's most
advanced spy satellite swarm network for the US government.
This is courtesy of Reuters reporting.
Elon Musk's SpaceX is developing a network of
advanced spy satellites under a secret contract with a US
intelligence agency.
The project involves SpaceX's Starshield business unit and
has been valued at around $1.8 billion.
This collaboration highlights growing connections between
SpaceX and national security operations
organizations, if you will.
If successful, the sources said the program would
significantly advance the ability of the US government
and military to quickly spot potential targets almost
anywhere on the globe.
I was very excited about what SpaceX was doing with its
Starlink system, and it still is super cool.
They've deployed hundreds and hundreds of mini satellites
orbiting the globe, building out a robust network for
internet connections anywhere in the world.
But I've always had this thing in the back of my mind as to
how much should I trust it.
So this is a story that is allegedly reporting
connections that they have.
So further research is needed.
But remember to always question how much you can
trust the organization that you're working with.
Next up, Roman Sterlingov found guilty on four counts.
Court finds chain analysis reliable.
This one is by way of Bloomberg.
Roman was found guilty on four counts related to money
laundering and failure to register a
money-transmitting service.
The defense for Roman claims that a lack of evidence
connecting Sterlingov to Bitcoin Fog operations and
questions the reliability of chain analysis.
Meanwhile, the government argued that Sterlingov
operated Bitcoin Fog and used a secretive process despite
having an identifiable account linked in.
They will most certainly appeal because there are
concerns over really the evidence and the reliance on
chain analysis to get a guilty conviction.
This is incredibly important for the future of online
transactions, monetary transactions, specifically as
it relates to Bitcoin and other blockchain technologies
that have a ledger that is publicly auditable.
So we should continue to watch this because it could
have dire consequences if he continues to be found
guilty over something that he may or may not have even
done, but chain analysis is saying that it is true that
it was him when it appears that it is not as cut and dry
and clear that it was.
OK, we have been chatting about the Sovereign
Engineering Cohort.
Well, they just announced version two, SEC number two,
is happening back in Madeira, and it's going to take place
from May 6th to June 28th.
So if you're interested in participating, they have a
form on their website that you can fill out.
So just go to Sovereign Engineering Cohort number two
and fill out their type form.
We have a couple of different announcements for grants
with development for Bitcoin developers and other Freedom
Tech developers.
First one is from the Human Rights Foundation.
They granted $500,000 to 14 different Bitcoin projects
worldwide, and Bitcoin Magazine reported on this.
I'm not going to go into every single one, but man,
there are a ton.
So they gave money to Cashew Protocol for developing a
secure USD-based Chameon e-cash system that respects
your privacy.
We have talked about Cashew a lot on here.
They gave money to BTC Pay Server, which, as you probably
know, provides free open source software for
organizations that rely on Bitcoin.
It can be your POS server and payment processor for
Bitcoin transactions.
Another one that they gave a grant to is the Bitcoin Design
Foundation, which I think is great because one of the
biggest things that plagues Bitcoin at the moment, and
really for adoption in the future, is having a really
good UX, or a really good user experience.
And this isn't just UX in one app where you need to make it
look really pretty and behave well.
This is the overall experience with Bitcoin as a thing, as a
protocol, as money, as a way of exchanging value.
And so the Bitcoin Design Foundation is really geared at
trying to create standards and naming conventions and design
conventions that apps and services can adhere to, to
create a much better cohesive user experience.
So I think it's great that they have given
some money to them.
Another one is Domus, probably the most popular Nostra
client on iOS.
Maybe the most of all clients, I don't know.
But Domus is coming to Android, and they have given
grant money to them to develop it.
Funding enables this critical initiative, the article says,
which makes this open source client available to millions
of new users in authoritarian countries and the developing
world.
I think it's very exciting.
And I know that Will has been working on building Domus for
Android in a way that it could also be run on a web browser.
So I'm really excited to see what can come out of that.
One more that I want to call out here, again, there were
14 different grants given out, so I'm not going to read
through all of them.
But one that I thought was really interesting, too, is a
video series called Bitcoin for Billions.
It is making Bitcoin accessible to millions in India in a
variety of local languages.
Funding will be used for research, content creation,
translation, and promotion.
A couple reasons why I want to call this out.
One, India is a massive place that could really benefit from
Bitcoin.
And there have been a lot of laws on the books there that
have been trying to shape how Bitcoin can be adopted in the
country and really somewhat restrict it, is how much of
the legislation has come through.
But another reason why I wanted to call this out is
that a lot of people who want to get involved in building
FreedomTech and working on Bitcoin and other technologies
like that, they think that they need to be a coder.
Like, they have to know how to write code and be a
developer.
But a lot of these grants are not for that.
They are for people who are building content, building
education, building these design standards.
And here, these people are producing a film that will be
targeted at a very large market in the country of India.
And then hopefully, that can also be seen around the world
and help other countries see how they might adopt Bitcoin
as well.
So if you are thinking that you would like to apply for a
grant and you have something you can build that might help
further the Human Rights Foundation's cause, definitely
submit it.
And then continuing with the grants, we have OpenSats.
OpenSats is an organization that we talk about a lot on
here.
In fact, if you are streaming sats right now to this
podcast, or if you boost this podcast, 5% of your sats go to
OpenSats.
We donate all of them.
I need to consider doing the same for HRF.
I'll see if they have a way to do that.
But yes.
So you're donating to OpenSats if you are streaming or
boosting this podcast.
OpenSats announced that they issued long-term support grant
for Bruno Garcia.
Bruno Garcia is a Brazilian developer, and he receives
long-term support from an organization due to his
significant contributions to Bitcoin Core.
Garcia began contributing to Bitcoin Core in 2021 after
being inspired by Brazil's economic crisis in the '90s.
His work includes fixing bugs, implementing new features, and
enhancing the Bitcoin network's resilience.
He created Bitcoin Fuzz, a crucial tool for identifying
issues within Bitcoin libraries and implementations.
Additionally, Garcia works on AS Map, which aims to
strengthen the Bitcoin network by promoting diverse node
connections.
Beyond technical contributions, Garcia mentors
aspiring Bitcoin developers through initiatives like the
Summer of Bitcoin.
Funding from the grant will enable Garcia to continue his
work while maintaining his focus on the long term.
And again, congratulations, first off, to Bruno.
That is awesome.
But that second-to-last bullet point, I think, is great.
Beyond the technical contributions, Garcia is
helping other developers and helping to mentor people.
Again, Bitcoin and FreedomTech development is more than just
writing code.
It is helping to build out the entire space and really that
human connection as well.
All right.
Let's take a look at boosts and zaps for the week.
Thank you to everybody who streamed sats.
And we want to give shout outs to our top boosters.
First is the top booster.
And that's from SeanDunn206 for 5,000 sats.
And the note is, "Great to meet at the takeover.
Like the format of your show.
We'll go back and listen to some more episodes for sure.
Salute emoji."
Sean is referring to the Bitcoin takeover that happened
in Austin.
We met there, chatted a lot, had a great time together.
Sean, thank you for the boost.
That is awesome.
And then we have three more.
JustListenIn with 1,776 sats says, "Boost.
Thanks for all you do."
Next up, Joel W. with 333 sats.
And then Username404 with 100 sats saying, "Great show.
Freaking super trolls.
LOL.
Wow."
Yeah.
Well, thank you to the four of you for boosting.
Really appreciate it.
And you all are awesome.
Now let's move into the project updates and software releases.
First up is a big one.
We already talked about it a few weeks ago,
but it is officially here now.
And that is Umbral OS version 1.0.
So they finally have released it.
There is a new UI.
It has an architectural overhaul.
They've added search and so much more.
You can see all the code on GitHub.
They've tagged it version 1.0.0.
And then some notes from their release notes.
It's available for Raspberry Pi 4 and 5,
as well as, obviously, Umbral home devices.
Linux users can expect an update in April of 2024, so next month.
It has new UI, search feature, quick actions,
the architectural overhaul, live usage.
You can monitor your system, and then multilingual support.
So congrats to the Umbral OS team
on this major milestone of shipping.
I'm excited to play around with it some more.
And if you are running Umbral, go check it out
and consider updating.
If you are not running Umbral, definitely look into it.
I've got my episode that I did in this RSS feed called
You Need a Home Server.
Go back and check it out and see why you really
need to run a home server.
You don't have to do it for everything.
You can just start one thing at a time
and start moving stuff over to that home server
to create more independence for yourself.
Next project is OpenVibe.
You've probably never heard of it,
but maybe you've heard of Plebster.
Plebster is a Noster client, and they have rebranded,
and they now call themselves OpenVibe.
It is a multi-social client, so it
connects to all the different decentralized networks
at once, which now explains why their mascot is an octopus.
So the tagline here on the website
is, "Interact with anyone on the open internet.
All decentralized social networks, single timeline."
They have support for Noster, Mastodon, BlueSky, and Threads.
Beta 1 is available for download,
so try it out and give them feedback.
All right, Wikifredia.
Wikifredia has a new version, 0.0.6.
Codename, WOT, all the things.
Web of Trust is what WT stands for.
Major thing is a categories feature.
Pablo says, "Web of Trust helps determine
what the categories are.
Decentralization includes no top-down decision
of what categories should or shouldn't exist.
Further decentralization by allowing users
to indicate which relays they want to use for wiki entries."
And then Pablo also posted on Noster
that he has added LaTeX support for Wikifredia,
so you can write in LaTeX.
OK, on the LLM machine learning AI front,
we have a new release from OpenAgents, openagents.com.
And this is a brand new launch.
And it is an AI agent swarm capable
of continuous improvement through crowdsourcing
and Bitcoin incentives.
What is this?
Well, really, it's another chat bot, right?
Like ChatGPT or these other services.
So you can go on the website, and you can chat with it.
You can perform basic tasks right now, like conversations.
You can introduce yourself.
You can check on prices of stocks and Bitcoin.
But what gets really cool is that developers
can contribute their own upgrades to the agent swarm.
So they can add plugins and new AI agents.
And then they can receive Bitcoin rewards
based on the usage of their contributions.
How might you ask these rewards work?
Well, they use L402 for their resource allocation.
L402, it stands for Lightning 402.
And it is a payment protocol that
utilizes HTTP 402 status codes.
That status code is called payment required.
And it's really been around for decades.
It's part of one of the really early HTTP specs.
And I think what's kind of comical about it
is that the docs for 402 have long said,
this is for future use, potentially
for digital currencies.
So now digital currencies are using this thing
that is for future use, which means the future is now.
We live in the future.
All right, so OpenAgents has a bounty.
They put a one Bitcoin bounty allocated
for developers who are creating the first plugins.
So if you want to get some of that Bitcoin,
you can create some plugins.
OpenAgents aims to provide a fully open alternative
to existing AI platforms.
Key breakthroughs here include building agents
from reusable components, enabling them
to hold Bitcoin balances, and developing a meta agent
structure for infinite extension and upgradability.
User feedback is sought to guide future development efforts.
And their tagline at the very end
says, one agent to rule them all.
One does not simply chat into Mordor.
Here we have an update from Stacker News.
They have announced open source contribution awards.
Introducing SNDEV, S-N-Dev, a tool allowing users
to run a full Stack Exchange network developer environment
locally in one command.
They've developed it due to struggles faced by newcomers
setting up contributions to SN's open source project
and suggestions from community members.
Futures include starting a local Stacker News environment,
logging into the local accounts, funding accounts,
managing databases, and more.
Continuously being improved and updated,
developers may use it exclusively
for development purposes.
Contribution awards have been implemented,
encouraging further involvement in the project.
So if you are a Stacker News user and your developer,
go check it out.
If you're not using Stacker News, why aren't you?
Next up, we have SimpleX with version 5.6.
SimpleX is a privacy-focused chat platform.
So in the release notes here, we have real privacy
and stable profits through nonprofit governance.
The SimpleX network aims to align community and business
interests by growing the network while enriching stakeholders.
By leveraging access to investment resources
and providing stock-based incentives beyond salaries,
the network ensures long-term viability and growth.
Transition to decentralized nonprofit protocol governance.
As the network grows and matures,
its governance will transition to multiple nonprofits,
ensuring continued evolution aligned
with a vision of community-driven, independent,
and transparent governance.
And lastly, quantum resistance end-to-end encryption in beta.
In version 5.6, they introduced post-quantum resistance
to messaging protocols, creating security
against future quantum computers.
It is currently opt-in and requires separate enabling
for new and existing contacts.
Now, quantum computing has long been
something that's discussed among the Bitcoin world,
as well as overall encryption.
And people like to use it as a way
to say that Bitcoin has a weakness if quantum computing
comes along.
However, I always like to talk about how that is really
a weakness of all encryption that we depend on every day
for every single thing that we do online.
Our banking websites, our communications,
our text messaging, all sorts of things
are relying on encryption.
And I have to think that if quantum computers are coming
along and going to start coming online,
that encryption methods and tools to safeguard
these things will be built on quantum computing platforms.
So we will simply have a newer technology
that we don't have today while being able to secure things.
So I don't think it's just going to be this overnight thing where
somebody flips on a quantum computer
and takes and owns all of the Bitcoin everywhere.
It's going to be an evolutionary process.
That was a side note for Simplex.
And go check it out.
OK.
On to some Bitcoin wallet stuff.
We have Samurai.
Samurai launches stage one of Whirlpool decentralization.
Samurai has launched the initial phase of decentralization
in its Whirlpool CoinJoin service.
Now, if you aren't familiar with CoinJoins
or you have heard of CoinMixers, those
are two slightly different things.
CoinMixers have been somewhat problematic legally.
You can refer to the story that we talked
about earlier in this episode.
But then CoinJoin has been a little bit better
from a legal standpoint.
I am not a lawyer, so don't trust me on any of that.
But go do some research.
You can search CoinJoin versus CoinMixers.
Continuing on with the release notes.
Updates were rolled out for Samurai Wallet, Whirlpool,
GUI, and CLI, and Dojo, enabling decentralized Whirlpool usage.
Communication between Whirlpool clients and coordinators
is now facilitated via the Sorobon network,
ensuring continuity even when the servers go offline.
Users are encouraged to update their software
to take advantage of these improvements.
Next up, we have Robosats with version 0.6.0 Alpha.
And this is dubbed the Federation Layer.
Robosats version 0.6.0 Alpha introduces the Federation Layer,
which allows multiple Robosats instances
to function as a single entity through a unified client
application.
This feature improves the platform's resilience
and user experience while maintaining
transparency and security.
Decentralization is achieved through the use
of independent coordinators hosting orders.
A new avatar generator creates unique identities
within the client app, improving speed and appearance.
And then there's also bug fixes and performance enhancements.
Robosats is a system that has been
recommended to me many times.
I have not yet used it myself.
But if you are looking for other ways to acquire Sats
and buy some Bitcoin, check out Robosats.
OK, moving over to Bitcoin mining.
We have something in the world of Stratum V2.
This is called Stratum V2 Reference Implementation,
or SRI, version 1.0.0.
So this, from their notes, it says,
"aims to improve efficiency, security, flexibility,
and decentralization in Bitcoin mining,
fully open source and community-driven,
independent of any single entity,
and aims to be fully compatible with Stratum V2 specification.
Enhanced features include connectivity to SV2 pools,
optional local job declaration client usage,
and patched Bitcoin core node for creating custom block
templates."
And there's a bunch of other things in here.
And they go on to say, "the project welcomes contributions
from developers and encourages individuals and corporations
to support its development and maintenance."
I'm excited about Stratum V2 and what
it can bring to the mining world and the decentralization
that hopefully can occur there more.
We have Bitcoin Mintz.
This is a new release, a launch of BitcoinMintz.com.
That's Mintz as in M-I-N-T-Z.
This is the first platform listing and reviewing
of Cashew Mintz, utilizing Nostr as its discovery and identity
layer.
It enables makeprisms.com users to send
millions of Bitcoin transactions with a single click.
It utilizes NIP87 to publish and review the different Mintz,
providing a decentralized solution for listing
and evaluating Cashew Mintz.
So this is great to see some of these infrastructure
and ecosystem-type tools being built around Chameon Mintz,
specifically Cashew.
Now, speaking of Cashew, we have another update here
from Cashew Nutshell Project.
And this is version 0.15.1.
And the release notes here add Blink Backend,
Nut07 Spent State Check with Y, Nut09 Update Response Model.
And then there are also a Docker image and a PyPy package
for developers to check out and use.
Last project update today is actually
an announcement, a fairly big one.
And this is Strike Black.
Now, Strike is one of those companies that
is in the freedom tech space, but is
like a full startup corporate company that is for profit.
But they are bringing Bitcoin and Lightning to users
all around the world, trying to help people opt out
of the financial system in their country.
A lot of times, these are people who are already unbanked
and not able to participate in the financial system there.
And they're trying to bring tools to them.
So Strike Black is here to help developers build more Bitcoin
tools into their products.
It says here, "Bitcoin, Lightning, APIs, cash,
and onboarding services for businesses,
developer tools for building Bitcoin
into your app or service.
Services include buying, selling, holding Bitcoin,
sending and receiving payments via Bitcoin or Lightning,
connecting cash payment methods, making cash payouts
to bank accounts, onboarding through KYC flows,
and utilizing OAuth for authentication, permissions,
and access controls."
Now, there was a key word in there
that some people will cringe at.
And that is the onboarding process
through KYC flows, otherwise known as know your customer
or anti-money laundering.
Now, I don't know the extent of how
KYC is utilized throughout all of these services.
But just be aware that it's in there.
And if your app needs KYC, then this will hopefully
be a service that you can use.
I also am hopeful that there are things
you can use here that don't require KYC,
but just know that it's in there.
And then continuing on, "Strike Black
provides flexibility and customization options,
allowing users to choose which services to implement
and how to deliver them to end users.
Users can integrate Strike Black services
either programmatically via the Strike API
or through the in-app Strike widget," which
I think is really cool that they provide a widget that other apps
can just benefit from.
I haven't dug in yet, but it's likely something
that will just slide up in your app
and have the Strike interface on it
and have all the things already baked in.
So that can help a lot of people who don't even
want to access an API.
They can just work directly with that.
So that's really cool.
"Lastly, by offering a wide range
of Bitcoin-related functionalities,
Strike Black aims to provide a complete solution
for developers looking to incorporate Bitcoin features
into their applications."
So something I really like about what they're doing here
is that they are trying to help build this awesome Bitcoin user
experience that I was talking about earlier with the Bitcoin
design specification stuff, in that Strike is building
a consumer brand as well as a B2B brand.
And really, one of the most difficult things
with FreedomTech and open source software
and independent software is that normal users have
had a poor experience in the past with it
because the software wasn't super easy to use,
it was very technical, or maybe it
was built for one specific use case
when users might have had a slightly different variation
of that.
And that's not really fully the fault of the developers.
They simply didn't have the funding,
or they were donating their time,
and so they were building something
that they could do with what they had.
Whereas you do have companies that have some funding
or want to build a better user experience,
Strike is trying to help make that possible
for small independent developers that
want to provide a much better user
experience for FreedomTech.
So really excited about that.
OK, well, that is it for news and project updates this week.
This is FreedomTech Wrap.
If you find this weekly source useful,
please share it with your people.
You can support us through Value for Value in your podcast app
or on Noster.
If you have any feedback for us, send it our way on Noster.
You can message me at marks@nosterplebs.com.
To close it out, we have the Song of the Week,
where your stats directly support this artist.
So stick around and boost.
For the rest of you, thanks for listening to FreedomTech Wrap.
And remember to live independent.
Later.
For the Song of the Week, we have a track
from a band called Meraki Tosca.
I originally planned on playing their track called
Texas Weather.
However, one of their tracks was recommended to me
by user The Wild Hustle.
And I like that one even more.
So this one is called Day and Night, Day/Night, really.
Now, as I listen to it and I kind of think about it,
I'm thinking about how when we watch films or shows
and we're streaming something, we often
see everyday life and everyday routines portrayed
as being mundane and somewhat suffocating.
These characters saunter about life,
going from place to place, repeating tasks,
and just internally wanting to scream out loud.
Well, life doesn't have to be that way.
We can find joy in your day.
Find joy in your life.
Do things that make the lives better for the people
around you, because in turn, that
will make your life more fulfilling.
Yes, work is hard and can be frustrating.
But when you know what you're working for,
when there is meaning behind it, the sun will shine
and you'll find happiness in your routine
and in your daily life.
So now, let's give a listen to the track from Meraki Tosca,
This is Day and Night.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
Another day, another day.
Another waste of time.
I'm wearing thin.
I need a break.
I'm just a dream.
I need a break.
Another cigarette.
Another dream.
Another cigarette.
Another dream.
I cry.
I just have this life to stay.
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I cry.
I just have this life to stay.
I fight.
I took a little.
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I cry.
I just have this life to stay.
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I cry.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC - MERAKI TOSCA, "DAY AND NIGHT"]
I fight.
I took a little.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
[BLANK_AUDIO]