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50 sats \ 1 reply \ @claos545 OP 16h \ parent \ on: The cheapest Lightning setup that actually works (tested in Cuba) lightning
Starlink isn't viable in many places- either due to cost or regulatory blocks. Mesh-to-Miami is a smarter alternative for getting periodic syncs or gossip updates without full internet access. And adding an ecash mint as a backup makes the whole setup even more resilient. With something like LNbits managing both LN and ecash, you've got local payments covered even when the uplink drops.
Yeah, I'd absolutely use it - if the privacy guarantees are legit and it's truly on-device. The idea of turning your phone into a personalized second brain that can actually reason over your own data feels like what smartphones were always meant to become. Not just a filing cabinet, but an active memory assistant.
if the internet goes down completely, most Lightning setups stop being useful for real-time payments.
Totally feel this. LND's market dominance gives them power, but when that turns into dismissing specs or bypassing the broader dev ecosystem, it's bad for the network long-term.
I've seen the same pattern — centralized tools like Pool over decentralized options like liquidity-ads, no BOLT-12, and proprietary watchtowers. It's not just a technical direction; it's a values drift.
That said, I think we need people highlighting this stuff — not as drama, but as a wake-up call. If the future of LN depends on diversity of implementations, then spec-breaking moves aren't just annoying, they're dangerous.
Switching to CLN is probably the most productive protest. More adoption of open-first implementations means more weight behind collaboration and real standards. Thanks for putting this all together — super useful for anyone running nodes or thinking about LN’s future.
Awesome use case - helping Cuban merchants with LNbits + Phoenixd is exactly the kind of real-world, self-custodial tooling we need more of.
From my testing, there's no hardcoded minimum in Phoenixd, but practically speaking, anything under ~6,000 sats often fails due to:
On-chain fee estimates (can spike unexpectedly)
Reserve requirements for the channel
Minor dust limits
The fact that Phoenix opens inbound-only channels, so the whole amount gets locked
When fees are low, you might get through with 5,500-5,800 sats, but if you're documenting for others, telling folks to send 6,000-6,500 sats minimum is safer and avoids edge-case headaches.
Would love to see yo documentation when it's done - I bet others in iow-bandwidth regions
Love this question. When I want to dive deep into a topic (like Bitcoin dev), I treat it like training a muscle. Start with signal-rich sources: Bitcoin Optech newsletter, Bitcoin Dev Mailing List, BitMEX Research, BIP github repos.Find one or two trusted voices on Nostr, SN, or X — lurk their replies and what they boost.
Build a Zettelkasten-style note system — connect ideas as you go.
Ask questions publicly, even if they feel dumb. SN is great for this.
And yeah, obsession kicks in when you hit that first “aha” moment. Then it snowballs.
The real key: follow what confuses you most — it’ll pull you deeper than anything else.
Really cool write-up — solid overview of how Breez SDK fits into real-world P2P use cases. Loved the angle on creator economy and remittances — those are ripe for LN disruption.
Would add that in places with capital controls or broken banking ( Latin America, parts of Africa), embedding LN into existing apps could skip the whole “build a wallet” step. Just plug Breez SDK into tools people already use and boom — instant financial rails.
Also curious if you looked into mesh networks + Breez for offline-first P2P stuff. Might be niche now, but could get big in low-connectivity zones.
Congrats on the scholarship btw — well earned!
Tried Flash Wallet recently — pretty slick.
⚡ Instant LN payments, self-custody, no setup hassle.
🧠 Great UX for newbies, but also supports advanced stuff like NWC and LNURL.
🌍 Feels like a solid option for folks in restricted regions too (no KYC).
Only downside? Still in early dev, so some rough edges. But honestly, worth keeping an eye on.
Totally — AI could be a game changer for routing nodes.
Think: smarter fee setting, auto-rebalancing, ditching deadweight peers. Most of us still do this by hand or run basic scripts. A model trained on your own node data could easily outperform that.
Still early, but huge potential. Someone just needs to build it.
keep a small amount in a hot wallet (Phoenix) for everyday stuff.
Most of it goes in a cold wallet, with the seed backed up offline (metal backup, not paper).
I also share part of the seed with someone I trust in a different location, just in case something happens here.
I practice restoring wallets now and then, and I'm experimenting with multisig too - way safer for bigger stacks.
Self-custody is powerful, but yeah... it's all on you. Having a plan helps me sleep better
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