How Bluesky Works 🦋

Bluesky is a decentralized social network protocol designed to give users control over their data and interactions. It uses the Authenticated Transfer Protocol (AT Protocol) for account portability, composable moderation, and interoperability. The system features a federated model with personal data repositories (PDRs) and leverages cryptographic signatures for security.

Core Technical Concepts/Technologies

• AT Protocol: Decentralized networking protocol
• Personal Data Repositories (PDRs): User-controlled data storage
• Federation: Interconnected servers (PDSs)
• Cryptographic Signatures: Secure identity verification
• Lexicon: Schema definition language
• Composable Moderation: Customizable filtering rules

Main Points

• Decentralized Architecture:

  • Built on the AT Protocol, enabling server independence and data portability.
  • Users can migrate accounts between providers without losing data.

• Data Management:

  • PDRs store user data (posts, follows) and sync with Provider Data Servers (PDSs).
  • Uses cryptographic signatures to verify data authenticity.

• Moderation & Interoperability:

  • Composable moderation allows users/communities to set custom rules.
  • Lexicon defines schemas for interoperability across services.

• Performance & Scalability:

  • Uses CRDTs (Conflict-free Replicated Data Types) for consistency.
  • Optimized for real-time updates with efficient data replication.

Technical Specifications

• AT Protocol: Combines decentralized identifiers (DIDs), HTTPS, and JSON for communication.
• Lexicon Example:

  {
    lexicon: 1,
    id: "com.example.post",
    defs: {
      main: {
        type: "record",
        description: "A social media post."
      }
    }
  }
  

Key Takeaways

1. User Control: PDRs enable data ownership and portability.
2. Flexible Moderation: Custom rules adapt to community needs.
3. Interoperability: Lexicon ensures cross-platform compatibility.
4. Decentralization: Federation reduces reliance on single entities.

Limitations/Caveats

• Early-stage adoption may face scalability challenges.
• Moderation complexity could lead to inconsistent enforcement.
• Requires broader ecosystem support for full interoperability.