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0 sats \ 1 reply \ @rizful_com 4 Nov \ parent \ on: Breez MCP for AI agents ⚡️ lightning
Looks like that is SOME of the necessary code, but since there is no public specification for the Spark server.... it's mostly useless. Anyway, as you say, it's a closed system, David Marcus is going to decide who can run it. Again, similar to like Solana or Tron or something, totally on-point for that kind of top-down ecosystem -- perfect for building the gambling solutions that LightSpark is working on, but totally uncool for serious Bitcoin/Lightning apps.
I'm not saying that Roy @ Breez WILL necessarily provide the spreadsheet. But I bet David Marcus will. And just the fact that he COULD -- that is terrible. You can believe that Alby or Megalith or Olympus absolutely CAN NOT provide such a spreadsheet and has no idea where payment are coming from, or where they are going. That's what is so great about Lightning.
(Had to look up Baader–Meinhof, nice one.)
Could be to some extent -- I think I looked into Spark, got into the docs for a while, thinking it was some kind of fancy L2 that could be really interesting... and then I was like "Oh my God, this is just an API that only LightSpark runs! That's crazy!".
Lightning should be the common language ... AND -- companies like Coinbase or Paypal or whatever SHOULD work with companies like LightSpark, maybe to build fully compliant lightning solutions... I have NO problem with that at all!
But the idea that some Wallet Of Satoshi user, in, say, Palestine, or the U.K., or another country without a Bill of Rights... the fact that this user is (probably without their knowledge) sending all their transaction data to LightSpark -- and all a government has to do is send an email to David Marcus (or to Roy @ Breez?), and they'll get a spreadsheet of I.P. addresses and transactions.... that is horrifying.
Strange that all of your recent marketing is pushing the centralized, non-private solutions like Spark to the front. Why is that? Do you make more money if users are locked into Breez and LightSpark, without outside competition?
This is what you mean by "self-custody"... right? That it's possible to withdraw funds from the Breez API? How does that differ from Coinbase? Coinbase also allows me to withdraw from their centralized service.
But, no option to use a decentralized network like the LSP standard? Only centralized services are possible with the Breez SDK? After inventing the LSP standard, what caused you to, 5 years later -- simply not support any decentralized, open standard?
Can you show me where in your code a user who has been hooked up to the Spark API could easily switch to using an LSP or another open standard with decentralized participants?
How would a user switch from LightSpark's API to native lightning? By withdrawing their funds and putting it back on the Lightning Network, right?
"A client-side library" -- which hard-codes URLs, (owned by the Marcus family / LightSpark) -- such that your unsuspecting users find that all of their transactions, along with their user-agents and I.P. addresses -- are exclusively shared with this one, centralized server, run by a Lighting "compliance" company.
Please see image below...
Another good test. What happens if Megalith LSP goes down or disappears?
I can tell you exactly what happens --- several other 100% compatible LSPs are available -- Olympus, among others. A user takes 5 minutes to switch LSPs, and that's that.
What happens when the Breez API or the Spark API goes down?
Your users are fucked! Your system is totally centralized, so it's not only not private, but it's not fault-tolerant at all!
This is the heart of the misinformation you are spreading, which for some reason is being repeated widely.
As you well know, nobody but LightSpark can run the server-side code of Spark.
LightSpark has not released the server-side code -- likely because it would show that their "self-custody" claims are a sham.
LightSpark might at some point "invite" other companies to run it, but that seems unlikely -- and anyway -- this is Bitcoin. This is not Solana or PayPal. In Bitcoin, we want OPEN standards which are PERMISSIONLESS.
We do not want millions of users tied to one web server in Los Angeles or Tel Aviv that gets their IP address AND all of their transactions.
And: If I have to set up a meeting with David Marcus or Roy in order to participate in this closed ecosystem... that is really bad, and really dangerous.
There are DOZENS of LSPs currently implementing an open standard, and ANYONE can run an LSP, without permission.
Comparing the Breez API or the Spark API to LSPs, or the Lightning Network -- you're taking advantage of the naivete of certain influencers. It's bad & it's dangerous and you should stop doing it, please.
"Yes, it's that easy. As switching to another LSP. We actually make it very easy"
So an app that users the Breez API.... Let's say they get uncomfortable with their user's IP addresses all going to LightSpark, or Breez, where they could be associated with their transaction details.
What would they do? They have to rebuild their implementation without Breez, right?
Because the only service that runs Breez -- is Breez -- right? Nobody else uses your proprietary API, right?
If anyone wants to read Roy's defense of his buddies at LightSpark -- here is the "X" thread: https://x.com/MegalithicBTC/status/1970491694580932723
Why is the "inventor of the LSP" now spending his time shitting on open standards and trying to get everybody to use a dangerous, centralized, proprietary API like Spark? Is it just as simple as a financial interest?
Uh, the LSP standard is open -- and there are dozens of LSPs following the same public standard-- anyone can run an LSP. To switch to another LSP, literally just change an endpoint and open a new channel.
If your users want to switch out of Breez, to another company, is it that easy??
By marketing Breez's centralized API, you are getting users into a service that they can't easily switch out of. Great business for Breez, bad deal for the future of Bitcoin.
Also, of course, now you are also subjecting your users to surveillance by LightSpark -- the same company whose main purpose was "compliance", just 12 months ago. It's gross.
Also "multiple sub-networks". Huh?
Why did you go from supporting open standards to just running another centralized API?
Before using centralized APIs like Breez, please consider decentralized & private alternatives like Alby Hub. It's better for Bitcoin.
Breez is supposedly adding NWC... but I think companies like Spark and Breez are carefully AVOIDING open standards, because they (rightly) believe that locking companies and users into their ecosystem(s) will be a better business long-term -- and they're likely correct about this...
Yeah, sorry about that. We could change the messaging. But then again, we're finding that users are often surprised that their lightning address won't accept 1 sat... on the other hand, there are likely good reasons that certain users or back-ends won't accept less than a certain number of sats per zap.
Note that you will only get a message like this ONCE, we will never attempt a test zap more than once on an address.
Also, what's the point of Breez's wallet if it all stops working when the Breez API goes down? If you want that, just use PayPal!
100 sats \ 5 replies \ @rizful_com 2 Nov \ parent \ on: I saw this tweet reply about spark lightning
- Alby Hub
- "unilateral exit" is I think overblown -- to exit out of any wallet or service, withdraw your funds.... so much better than having to use Spark's API to move from their token into real money.. (and as you know, it's impossible with Spark for small amounts, making it basically useless.)
- Any NWC service
- Any NWC service
- Most NWC services
142 sats \ 9 replies \ @rizful_com 1 Nov \ parent \ on: I saw this tweet reply about spark lightning
, there's no mystery as to why wallet companies when faced with the three alternatives (ask their customers to think about channels, go custodial with kyc/aml, or use liquid which lacks unilateral exit)
Sure, good point here. But there IS an alternative -- NWC. Any developer can use NWC, and users have choice of NWC providers -- right now at least 5+
It's simple, it's decentralized, it's powerful, and it's an OPEN and INTERCOMPATIBLE system that require NO PERMISSION to participate in.
ANYONE can (and will!) spin up a NWC service, and provide wallet services to the world.
What we need are more serious operators of NWC services, to expand that marketplace and provide more options.