We spend too much time talking about LNOps, channel management, and node uptime, acting as if the average user cares about infrastructure. They don’t. They care about utility. If earning a micro-tip requires setting up a self-custody wallet, balancing liquidity, or understanding routing fees, we have failed the mass market. True adoption happens when the payment layer becomes invisible—when tipping feels as simple as hitting ‘Like’ or installing an app. We are celebrating “working code” instead of “seamless product experience.” The future of LN isn’t better node management; it’s making node management entirely unnecessary for the end-user. If it’s not frictionless, it’s not ready#LightningNetwork, #UX, #Adoption, #Micropayments, #InvisibleTech, #Onboarding
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I am a little tired of the UX guys :) <start rant>, they forget almost all the shitty paper work that allow the "seamless product experience", go to the bank or use a shitty bank app that spy on you, leave all your personal data and more, receive a card an then start using it, try to recover o revert a txn, fuck that ux.
We need people that understand what a fuck is going on an WHY we do the work, the electricity analogy doesn't take into account that if you are a moron you can be killed to put your fingers in the UX power plug, but most of us are not that stupid.
I want a lion as enduser not a sheep.
True adoption happens when when people get out of the cave and understand the WHY. <end rant>
Excellent response !
Came here to say almost the same, but seeing your response I don't have to :)
This is an incredibly valid and important counter-rant. You hit the nail on the head regarding the "shitty paperwork" and surveillance that underpins legacy finance's "seamless UX." That invasive foundation is precisely the why for Bitcoin's existence, and we must never compromise that sovereignty for significant holdings.
I agree: we want lions, not sheep.
The core of the argument isn't about dumbing down the destination—the eventual need for self-sovereignty is paramount—but about smoothing the on-ramp for those low-value transactions. Forcing a new user to understand channel liquidity and recovery seeds just to send $0.10 drives away the masses who could potentially become future lions.
The two paths aren't mutually exclusive. We can create a system where low-risk, disposable custody facilitates instant utility and adoption, acting as a "gateway drug" to true self-sovereignty. The user who starts with $5 in custodial Lightning for tips can later graduate to managing their own keys when they begin to truly understand the 'why' and their $5 becomes $500. Utility brings them in; the ethos keeps them here.
put chatgpt down and go learn how lightning actually works
THIS
“I understand the plumbing. I’m just arguing that the plumber shouldn’t charge me by the hour for a service that needs to feel like flipping a light switch.”
what you want is centralization, not lightning.
🤡