WASTE 1.6 "Special Edition"

[Mazer]

Originally Posted by Malk-a-mite

Quick point, most of the world doesn't care to look at the code, and of those that do not all of them are qualified to tell what is a security hole and what isn't.

I count myself among that first group. I've never bothered to look at the source code. I put my trust in the competitive self interest and paranoia of the programmers and hackers who use their own software. If it's good enough for those people who actually know how to find security holes then it's good enough for me. Of course I leave this decision to each of us individually. If someone decides that they only trust the original programmer and none of the ones that came after him, fine.

Originally Posted by theknife

it is a particular political and legal climate that makes a program like Waste necessary in the first place...and it is this climate that breeds the fear and prejudice that Waste users may experience. the software only creates a group dynamic for a valid paranoia, because there really are powerful forces at work against people who would use a program like Waste.

People still find ways to feel unsafe within the strictures of WASTE's peculiar group dynamic. The legal climate makes the encryption necessary, but it doesn't make the infighting and the ostracizing and the turning of friends against each other necessary. As much as possible the software should shelter its users from the climate of fear and prejudice outside, but it often does not. Once you've exiled all the people in your mesh who make you feel unsafe (something you can only do by making them want to leave on their own), WASTE works perfectly.

[JackSpratts]

Originally Posted by Mazer

By the way, if I sound argumentative I apologize. Maybe I've been spending too much time in the Political Asylum.

well ok, but calling waste the 8-track of secure file-sharing was a bit extreme.

if only it were true!

imagine hopping into a multi-colored van and being greeted with "Dude! You gotta check out this new MESH!"

Originally Posted by Mazer

Once you've exiled all the people in your mesh who make you feel unsafe (something you can only do by making them want to leave on their own), WASTE works perfectly.

you've just described every private tracker i've ever visited lol. ditto btw soulseek and its own brand of ban-mad power-sharers.

in the p2p community waste has no monopoly on social tension and uber-cliques, peculiar or otherwise. one need only gaze back at the turbulent genesis of this very forum to see that. but yes, as long as apathy, member differences or a determined troll can disrupt a community then waste groups, like any social organization will be vulnerable. on the other hand since no one can be forced to leave under any circumstances i’m always happily surprised to see meshes lasting as long as they do.

- js.

[Mazer]

Well there's always that I guess. My own Wasted experiences have never turned me against anyone, I've only ever watch it happen to other people. Once a mesh does manage to settle into a groove it's a beautiful thing. Building a successful mesh is a growing experience for all those involved, and the reward is longevity. But is filesharing really supposed to be a test of character?

The answer is probably blowin' in the wind or something.

I think the security WASTE provides is sufficient, but there's room for improvement in its social features. Does the way WASTE brings out the paranoia in people enhance its security in any way? I don't think it does and if that effect could be eliminated then it would be for the better. That's why I'm not a WASTE purist.

[TankGirl]

The only noteworthy difference between version 1.6 and SourceForge version 1.5 beta 3 seems to be the end-to-end encrypted PM feature of 1.6. I can imagine situations where some special small group members might wish for another layer of trust like that but for normal filesharers the feature seems quite useless. The basic need for a filesharing group is to protect the network from hostile outsiders; version 1.6 protects private communications of group members A and B from a curious group member C that would have to use a modified client to spy PMs of A and B that happen to be routed through C - a rather hypothetical threat, especially as no developer has made such modified clients available so far.

As for the differences between Justin Frankel's original version and SourceForge 1.5b3 version, I think there are a couple of practically meaningful new features on 1.5b3 that make me recommend it to new groups instead of the original version. First: the new stealth mode, which encrypts the initial handshaking routines of WASTE clients when they connect to each other. This makes it harder for hostile third parties to detect that you are using WASTE in the first place - which might help you to avoid e.g. p2p traffic shaping at your ISP. Second: longer chat messages. This may sound like a small thing but anybody who has used the original client any longer knows how annoying it can be when your chat message is cropped but you are not aware of it. I think the original client allowed some 256 characters in a chat line, the 1.5+ versions allow 1024. 1.5b3 also has a nice broadcast feature that allows you to send a message to all group members (just open a chat channel named $$broadcast and send messages there).

[multi]

(just open a chat channel named $$broadcast and send messages there).

been using this version for 6 months or more
and never realized that was there

Thanks TG!