Spacechain

Elemental Chat

What is Elemental Chat?

Elemental Chat is our proof-of-concept app that represents a successful end-to-end infrastructure test of the Space Hosting network built to run on the new version of Spacechain (RSM).

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Why was Elemental Chat chosen as a proof of concept? What is this proving?

Elemental Chat was built as the simplest test application for the Space platform and testing Spacechain at scale. It is not a production ready application.

We chose chat because we knew that it would put Spacechain and the Space Hosting infrastructure to the test, challenging their ability to power high-throughput, low-latency apps — the kind of apps people use every day. If any app could expose bugs and performance bottlenecks, this would be it. The success we have seen has enabled us to move forward with developing the primary Holo apps (Host Console, Publisher Portal, and SpaceFuel), with enough experience to feel confident that we can continue improving and deliver great user experiences.

Why are you releasing chat rather than SpaceFuel? is Space pivoting?

We’re not changing our business model, nor trying to sell a chat service. We simply wanted to roll out an app that could give end users a direct experience of the speed of Spacechain and Space hosted apps. When you chat with someone and they can immediately reply without needing to wait 10 minutes for a new block to commit to a blockchain or pay $5 per message, then you know you’re using next gen distributed apps.

SpaceFuel is still coming, but requires much greater security review than a proof of concept chat app does.

How do I sign up to use Spacechain apps (hApps) like Elemental Chat or Chess?

It's easy! Just go to our hApp informational page and click the link.

Elemental Chat is a prototype app we’ve used to test Spacechain and the Space infrastructure. Chess is a community built prototype.

What do I do if I can’t sign up for a hApp like Elemental Chat or Chess?

Elemental Chat and Elemental Chess are not production hApps, so the experience may not be perfect. If you’re having issues try these tricks.

  1. Try "hard refreshing" the page (press Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows, or ⌘+Shift+R on macOS) and signing up with the same email address and password.
  2. Try clearing your browser’s storage, then refreshing the page and signing in again.
  3. Try signing up using new credentials. (Hint: many email providers let you create ‘plus addresses’ by adding a ‘+’ and a few letters or numbers to the first half of your existing address. For example, if you have the address [email protected] you can also use [email protected])

If you keep having this problem, it may be a bug that we should know about. Read more about the kinds of bugs we're looking for and how to report.

What do I do if I return to Elemental Chat and can’t sign back in again?

Try the below steps one at a time. Usually it is a quick fix.

  1. Try hard-refreshing the page (press Ctrl+Shift+R, or ⌘+Shift+R on macOS) and signing up with the same email address and password.
  2. Try clearing your browser’s storage, then refreshing the page and signing in again.
  3. Try signing up using new credentials. (Hint: many email providers let you create ‘plus addresses’ by adding a ‘+’ and a few letters or numbers to the first half of your existing address. For example, if you have the address [email protected] you can also use [email protected])

If none of these work you might be having an issue connecting to the SpacePort assigned to you. Please read the troubleshooting connectivity FAQ.

Stuck on the ‘Connecting to a SpacePort’ message?

If you see this message for more than a few seconds, it may be caused by one of a few issues. Try these steps one at a time. You might not need to do all of them.

  1. Check your device’s internet connection; you might be offline. You need to be online to connect to a SpacePort. ;-)
  2. The easiest next step is just to use a different browser or device (remember Elemental Chat isn’t optimized for mobile/tablet).
  3. If you're still seeing the same message, try A) clearing your browser storage then, B) refreshing the page, and then C) sign up for a new account with a new password.

If you keep having this problem, even after trying step 3, it may be a bug that we should know about. See how to report a bug.

Why can’t I see new messages that I know I should be able to see?

Wait a little while and try refreshing the page. It should be there in less than a minute, but if you still don’t see it after an hour, it may be a bug that we should know about. See above for info on how to report.

Spacechain has two ways of broadcasting messages: signals, which are fast but unreliable, and DHT data, which is reliable but slower. If you don’t see a message that was there before — for instance, you closed Elemental Chat or switched to another channel and back to the previous one — it’s because the fast signal arrived in your browser, but the DHT data hasn’t been copied to your assigned SpacePort yet. There are more user-friendly ways of handling this, but as we've mentioned, Elemental Chat is just a proof-of-concept app and has some rough edges.

How do I clear my browser’s storage?

There is a known issue in which incomplete data might stay in your browser, preventing you from signing up, signing in, or using Elemental Chat or Chess. We’re working on a fix; in the meantime, you can clear the data from your browser.

In Firefox:

  1. Click the padlock at the left of the address bar.
  2. Choose the ‘Clear cookies and site data’ menu item.

In Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge:

  1. Click the padlock in the address bar.
  2. Choose the ‘Cookies’ menu item.
  3. In the dialog box that pops up, expand the ‘chaperone.Holo.host’ dropdown, then the ‘Local storage’ dropdown.
  4. Click on the only item, which should be ‘https://chaperone.Holo.host’.
  5. Press the ‘Remove’ button.

In Safari:

  1. Click the ‘Safari’ menu.
  2. Choose the ‘Settings’ menu item.
  3. In the dialog box that pops up, choose the ‘Privacy’ tab.
  4. Press the ‘Manage Website Data’ button.
  5. In the dialog box that pops up, search for ‘Holo.host’.
  6. You should see one entry; choose it and press the ‘Remove’ button.

Once you clear this data, refresh the page and try again. If this doesn’t fix the problem, it may be a bug that we should know about. See above for info on how to report.

What should I do if I see offensive or illegal messages on Elemental Chat?

Because Elemental Chat is just a proof of concept, it doesn’t have features such as moderation. While we expect that everyone will abide by the Code of Conduct, you might still see unpleasant messages. Here’s what you can do:

  1. If the messages are mildly unpleasant, challenge the participant to remember the Code of Conduct. You may also want to get support from fellow participants.
  2. If you feel personally threatened, take care of yourself and avoid that participant. Reach out to fellow participants for help if you need it.
  3. If the messages are seriously threatening, discriminatory, sexually explicit, or illegal, contact a team member via the Space Forum. We may need to abandon the current chat space and create a new one.

Read this article for more details, or this article if you want to know even more about content moderation in hApps.

What should I do if I find a bug? What kinds of bugs are you looking for?

This stage of testing is an open, public test of Spacechain and the Space Hosting infrastructure. We believe that we’ve found all critical bugs in both, as well as many non-critical bugs that lead to reduced performance. We’re not looking for bugs in Elemental Chat itself, as it is just a proof-of-concept app.

Currently we’re looking for new, serious, persistent issues that are experienced by multiple people. Read this article to learn what kinds of bugs we are and aren’t interested in. If you’re seeing a bug that you think should be reported, here’s where to do it:

Why can’t I add a new channel?

In previous tests, anybody could add a channel. It was a great demonstration of what can be done in a hApp, but it created problems. The channel list was huge, with many duplicate channels. But most importantly, people spread out and conversations died quickly.

We want this to be an enjoyable experience for you, and we want to better understand performance over time. That means people need to keep sending messages! In the interest of supporting that, we decided to limit the number of channels in the hope that conversations will stay alive.

Why can I change my nickname so easily and to other people’s? Is it easy to impersonate other people in Spacechain?

This chat app doesn’t have any restrictions on usernames, and doesn’t enforce unique names. You could build that into an app if you need it.

In Spacechain, it is virtually impossible to actually impersonate another user because every action and communication you make is signed by your private key. However, in Elemental Chat we haven't designed usernames that reflect that fact. User avatars, on the other hand, are unique, unforgeable 'identicons' that are generated directly from the user's public key. We will also use these in the SpaceFuel app to protect against fraud.

Is there a Code of Conduct for Elemental Chat?

There is!

Elemental Chat Code of Conduct

We are committed to making participation in this forum a harassment-free experience for everyone regardless of level of experience, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, personal appearance, race, ethnicity, age, religion, or nationality.

Examples of unacceptable behavior include, but are not limited to:

  • Use of sexualized language or imagery
  • Personal attacks
  • Trolling and insulting/derogatory comments
  • Public or private harassment
  • Publishing private information without explicit permission (Example: physical or electronic address)

We appreciate your consideration, voice, and action in living into this code of conduct and welcome good-faith dialogue around it.

Does Elemental Chat have a Terms of Service?

Yes! And it's really long. ;-)

Alpha TestNet Terms & Conditions (Terms of Service)

I. INTRODUCTION:

Welcome to the Space Alpha TestNet Program (“Program”).
This Alpha TestNet Program Participation Agreement (“Agreement”) sets out the terms and obligations for you (“Participant”), to install, use and test our product(s) [where applicable] before the Beta release of the Space network. Please read this entire Agreement and indicate whether you agree to its terms by clicking to access, register, configure or download any or all of the Alpha Materials.

By accepting this Agreement, you will be entering into a binding agreement with Space Ltd. (“Holo”). This Agreement contains provisions which may affect your legal rights. If you do not agree to all applicable terms set forth in this Agreement, please do not click to access, register, configure or download any or all of the Alpha Materials. If you proceed to do any of the above, it is deemed that you have accepted all terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement.

FOR THE PURPOSE OF ALPHA TEST(S) WHICH ARE PART OF THIS PROGRAM CONDUCTED BY HOLO, PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL REFERENCES TO SpaceFuelTM SHALL RELATE TO ‘TEST FUEL’ AND SHALL NOT HAVE ANY RELATIONSHIP TO SpaceFuelTM AS SHALL BE USED IN THE BETA LAUNCH.

II. PAYMENT

You agree that Space will not pay you, the Participant, for the services you provide in relation to this Program. The consideration you will receive for this Program will be the early access to use our Alpha Materials and products/services.

III. DEFINITIONS

As used in this Agreement, the following terms shall have the respective meanings indicated below:

“Affiliate” means a Company or any entity that directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with, the Company.

“Feedback” means and includes information that the Participant will be required to provide to Space Ltd. as part of the Program.

“Test Fuel” means test units of account that are used exclusively for this Program and is unrelated to SpaceFuelTM. Test Fuel does not and cannot be converted to SpaceFuelTM at any given point. In the event of any change to this arrangement, the Participant will be duly notified.

“Participant” means any individual who has signed up, or has been invited to participate in this Program.

IV. ALPHA MATERIALS AND PROGRAM

Holo may provide you with software, hardware, documentation and access to the Alpha Testing website (collectively, “Alpha Materials”) that is required for participation in the Alpha TestNet Program. The Program may include Alpha Materials published by Space.

Holo may terminate this Program at any time without cause or advance notice to you. For the purposes of Alpha Test(s) of the Space platform, please note that all references to SpaceFuelTM shall reflect ‘Test Fuel’ and shall not have any relationship to SpaceFuelTM as shall be used in the Beta launch.

V. PARTICIPANT FEEDBACK

Holo or its Affiliates may obtain information from you regarding the use of the Alpha Materials or your participation in the Program via an electronic form, including information such as your name, email address, geographical location, networking information, IP addresses, or other information about who you are and how you’re interacting With Space and/or Spacechain. You agree to provide information to Holo regarding your experience using the Alpha Materials including the efficiency and usability of Alpha Materials. Your desired responses may include responding to surveys and/or reporting bug problems. Information you provide to Holo in connection with the Program, including ideas or inventions collected by Space is referred to as “Feedback.”

You agree that Feedback:

(i) contains your original ideas or invention(s) related to the Spacechain framework or the Space Platform and is provided by you to Holo without payment or conditions;

(ii) once conveyed to Holo, becomes the property and confidential information of Space;

(iii) may be used or distributed by Holo for any purpose in connection with this Program or development of any other product or service(s), including but not limited to disclosure of such information to Holo’s affiliates, subsidiaries or third-party developers and publishers; and

(iv) permits Holo to collect and use your personal information in connection with the Program, provided thAt Space does not distribute that information to non-affiliated third parties without your permission or as otherwise stated in the applicable privacy policy of Space Ltd. which can be found here:
Privacy Policy 4

VI. OWNERSHIP OF THE PROGRAM AND ALPHA MATERIALS

Holo, its affiliates or both own the Program, the Alpha Materials and the intellectual property rights associated with them. You may not copy, distribute, sell, license, loan or transfer the Alpha Materials. You shall keep the Alpha Materials in your possession, custody and control during the tenure of this Program and take reasonable efforts to prevent non Participants including unauthorized third parties from using or accessing those materials. You will be responsible for any loss or damage caused to the Alpha Materials or to Holo’s intellectual property rights in those materials, including loss or damage resulting from the disclosure of Alpha Materials or any Program information.

VII. CONFIDENTIALITY

You acknowledge and agree that:

(i) Alpha Materials, the Program and any information regarding your use of Alpha Materials, whether shared With Space or not, are Holo’s confidential information. You will use Alpha Materials solely for the purpose of testing the Alpha Materials in connection with the Program, and you will not transfer, distribute or disclose any of the Alpha Materials, Feedback, or any information in connection with the Program to any third party, including through a public exhibition or display of this information. You will not discuss your experience with Alpha Materials with third parties or publish or disseminate information about those experiences;

(ii) Alpha Materials are not thoroughly tested and are pre-release materials that are not intended for public release;

(iii) the features provided in Alpha Materials may not be available in later releases;

(iv) disclosure of any part of Alpha Materials, Program, Feedback or your experiences using Alpha Materials or the Program to any third party, including any trade or consumer press, news agency or any competitor of Space, will cause significant and irreparable harm to Holo, the extent of which may be difficult to ascertain. Accordingly, you agree that Space is entitled to injunctive relief as well as all other legal remedies that may be available in the event you breach this Agreement.

VIII. PARTICIPANT’S WARRANTS AND REPRESENTATIONS

You warrant and represent that you:

(i) will conduct yourself responsibly in regards to participation in the Program and treatment of the Alpha Materials and Feedback following a reasonable, common-sense code of conduct;

(ii) will not in any way cause harm or inconvenience to Holo, its affiliates, subsidiaries or publishers;

(iii) agree that if you allow anyone else to use the Alpha Materials, you accept responsibility for their acts, including any violation of this Agreement which could result in a breach in any part of the Terms set forth in this Agreement;

(iv) will immediately notify Holo if you suspect or become aware that the Alpha Materials provided to you as part of this Program are distributed or transferred to a third party, and you will use your best efforts to help recover those Alpha Materials and to prevent any further loss of disclosure;

(v) will not misappropriate any of the intellectual property of Space or any other party;

(vi) will not reverse engineer, decompile or disassemble the Alpha Materials or engage in the unauthorized transfer, exhibition, export, import, or transmission of programs and will not use any devices to circumvent any authentication schemes unless such an action is intended for the purpose(s) of testing the product and is authorized by and communicated to Holo directly and within a reasonable time.

IX. NO GUARANTEE OF SERVER UPTIME/DISCLAIMER

Space and each of its subsidiaries and affiliates do not guarantee the continuous operation of the servers used in connection with this Program. Space is not liable for your inability to use the Alpha Materials or delay or failure of the servers to perform. If you receive a message during login identifying an error, please contact Holo Support as instructed in your Alpha Test welcome information.

X. NO WARRANTIES AND REPRESENTATIONS

The Alpha Materials provided by Holo under the terms of this Agreement are provided “as is” and, to the maximum extent provided under law, Holo disclaims all representations and warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. From time to time, problems beyond Holo’s reasonable control may prevent or delay your access to the Program or cause the Program or the Alpha Materials to fail to perform. In the event of a dispute regarding your use of any of the Alpha Materials you agree thAt Space may exclude your participation in this Program and may repair or replace the Alpha Materials (if applicable) At Space’s option. You agree thAt Space has no liability for discontinuing the Program for any reason that it may deem necessary. All other software not published by Space is the sole responsibility of the named publisher.

XI. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY AND REMEDIES

The foregoing limitations, exclusions and disclaimers apply to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, even if any remedy fails of its essential purpose. Holo or its affiliates will not be liable for any special, incidental, indirect, or consequential damages in relation to this Agreement.

XII. TERM/TERMINATION

Either party may terminate this Agreement at any time. Holo may terminate the Agreement by sending an email notification to you, and if possible, shall remove terminated Participants from any forum or group tools used by the Participant community. You may terminate this Agreement by sending a written notification of termination via email to [email protected] stating the reason for the same. Your account’s participation privileges may be terminated immediately if you fail to comply with the terms of this Agreement or if you fail to provide Feedback. Holo also reserves the right to terminate your participation in the Program at any time without cause. Upon termination, you are required to return any Alpha Material in your possession to Holo unless the same has been validly purchased by you.

XIII. ENTIRE AGREEMENT

This Agreement is the entire understanding between you and Space, governing the Program and Alpha Materials. In the event of any conflict between this Agreement and the terms of a third-party agreement (if applicable), including a third-party privacy policy, the terms of this Agreement will prevail as between you and Space.

XIV. GOVERNING LAW AND VENUE

You agree that the laws of Gibraltar shall govern the terms of this Agreement and your participation in the Program. You also submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Gibraltar courts in all matters relating to it except to the extent thAt Space invokes the jurisdiction of the Courts of any other country.

XV. SURVIVAL OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS

The provisions of this Agreement set forth in Sections V (Confidentiality) and X (Term/Termination) and any remedies for the breach thereof, shall survive the expiration of this Agreement.

XVI. QUESTIONS

Should you have any queries or issues concerning this Agreement, please contact Holo Support at [email protected].

Why am I having trouble getting access to Elemental Chat with Spacechain Launcher?

Though we’ve previously tested Elemental Chat with both the hosted version and Spacechain Launcher (and it worked well!) we’re not supporting Launcher for this test. However, everyone is more than welcome to try out Launcher and create their own private chat space.

How much power / bandwidth / electricity is this chat using? Who’s paying for it?

It’s hard to know for sure, but we can make some estimates. If there are 500 SpacePorts running at less than 1/10 capacity with a 45 watt power supply (which draw between 10 to 32 watts depending on load) then that comes out to around 11 kWh for every hour the network is running. Compare that to 2.1 million kWh per hour for the Ethereum network or 656 kWh for a single bitcoin transaction!

At the moment each host running a SpacePort is paying their own electricity, but keep in mind that it’s like having a 25 watt light bulb turned on. It’s a little early to make serious bandwidth estimates, and they vary hugely based on usage load and creation of new content. Since chat messages are small, overall bandwidth per node is quite small just like energy consumption is low.

What’s next?

It depends when you read this. ;-) At the high level check out our roadmap will show the progressive milestones we’ve set for ourselves. You can also hear more regular updates on the Space Forum news section and also on twitter.

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