Getting off the grid, and onto the mesh!
Now more than ever, the desire to decentralize is manifesting into reality. Regional networks are beginning to pop up across the US and rest of the world (https://docs.meshwith.me/meshlocals/existing/), but in order to gain traction needs to appeal to the masses. Getting connected to a mesh network looks and feels a lot like connecting to the internet (at a provider level) but with a cryptographic twist.
Making a mesh network into a functional internet replacement requires much more than just a connectivity layer. To be successful at minimum it would need:
- DNS
- Caching
- Routing
- 'CDN'
- Intelligent storage
- Consumer purchaseable hardware
Without these platforms, it is possible to communicate, but not thrive in the media-rich world we live in today. If you need to be a SysAdmin to connect to the network, is the project really a success? In this talk we take a look at software solutions that address the above items, as well as some design principles and hardware solutions that could empower every day computer users to get involved in mesh networking.