Farcaster Devs

Ethereum builder & people connector. @juicebox revnet.eth.sucks defifa.net d33m.com

Purple is a DAO whose goal is to proliferate and expand the Farcaster protocol and ecosystem. 

https://purple.construction/

During the discussion about the Ordering FIP, we practically identified three different network state models, and I think we should be aware of them. Each one has its pros and cons, and makes some use cases simpler and some harder.

- Global-state oriented (current model, most probably future model too)
- User-state oriented
- App-state oriented

Depending on how current and future apps want to use the network, each model offers advantages and disadvantages.

For example, for a twitter-like app, think Warpcast and Supercast, the global-state oriented model is the best fit. 

If you're interested in knowing what only specific users do and not the whole network, a user-state model would be a better fit. 

And if you mostly care about what users do within a special-purpose app (@kmacb.eth's d33m.com comes to mind, or maybe a channel-specific app like @purple has been discussing for some time) then an app-specific model seems better.

Dad, geek, conversation liquidity provider. vrypan.net (home), /weatherxm (work), @l--o--l (fun). Also https://paragraph.xyz/@purplesubmarine

Some more examples:

If you want to create a user activity feed, then the user-state model is a better fit. You don't need everyone's casts, just the N users you're interested in. This is something to have in mind if we decide on sharing at some point. But if you want to know how many likes a specific cast received, then you need easy access to the global state.

Now, if you have a special-purpose app and you only care what users did within this app (for example, casting and commenting on a game, or discussing governance proposals and using likes as votes), then you probably mostly care about user activity that happens within the app. For example, you don't care if I liked a cast that is not part of the game discussion or the gov process. 

Knowing what we optimize for can lead to different design decisions in the future. For example, if we decide to use sharding at some point in the future, sharing by fid or by app will make some use cases easier and other harder.

Right now, the network is (relatively) small, and the killer app is Warpcast, so it makes 100% sense to favor a global-state oriented model, which also leaves the door open to any other type of app (given the current network size).

BTW, this is why I don't think the federated model is a good fit, for almost any social network use case I can think of: On one hand it is user-state oriented (each user's state is stored on a different node), but tries to implement features that require a global-state oriented model (how many users replied or reacted to my posts).

Ordering FIP and discussion: https://github.com/farcasterxyz/protocol/discussions/193

hunch: all three models will eventually come into play

I think the insight that some global state is necessary to make an at-scale broadcast based social network possible is likely right and it makes sense to start there

But it seems likely the future will hold something like global identity and social graphs mixed with app specific content and social graphs mixed with user oriented protocols for things like direct casts or fmail

For the record, I'm not commenting on the FIP, but the three models that were practically identified during the discussion.

I have mixed thoughts about vamping. I think @dwr.eth has written here he's ok with it (and I'd love to be convinced).

I only see open innovation & growth with app state & overwhelming constraints & coordination bottlenecks with global state. ie submit to wc & pray there’s a different game to play. 

FC is a data verification, storage & sync protocol. The need for this FIP has little to do with app lead protocol development & more to do with sins of the past. Now is a great time lay a wider more open path forward & create a lasting legacy. 

Let a thousand flowers bloom. Many apps & at least one protocol are vampiring FC. It will get worse w global state. 

Free the protocol.

Developer 🤓 build, develop and operate Farcaster solutions @ dtech.vision also love tech, decentralization, fitness and oldschool rap 😎

@samuellhuber.eth 

Would love to understand what's being written here, feel like you've probably read it already and understand it? 😆