samuelralak on Nostr: ...

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Ok, we need that procrastinators anonymous group already, lol. This has been a few weeks overdue, and I can't think of any other excuse other than a mix of laziness and the anxiety that comes with the task of writing a proper follow-up article. But, better late than never.

If you haven't had the chance to read the introductory piece on Apollo, I highly recommend taking a look at that first. It sets the stage for everything we're about to discuss and provides essential context about our mission and vision within NOSTR. Check it out here.

Alright, here we go!

State of development

Over the last few weeks, we’ve made some solid progress on Apollo, rolling out new features and UI enhancements to improve the overall user experience. Here’s a quick rundown:

• Zaps: Reward standout contributions with sats
• Profile Enhancements: Access your profile page and settings.
• Discussions: Comment on questions/answers with kind 1 notes.
• Accepted Answers: Mark answer as accepted.

Development has been slower than I had hoped, a challenging yet common scenario for solo projects with limited resources. Nevertheless, we press forward. I am reaching out for contributions in coding, feedback, quality assurance, or financial support in hard cold sats. Your support in any of these areas will significantly accelerate Apollo's development and of course, greatly appreciated.

We have a telegram group now https://t.me/+6EvEdCM2KnliMmNk. Please join us for real time updates and discussions.

Are we building the next Stack Overflow?

No, Apollo is not just another Stack Overflow clone on NOSTR, nor is it a Quora or any other platform you might think of. While it's true that some elements may draw inspiration from these familiar platforms, our goal is far from being a mere replica. We are building Apollo, end of story.

Allow me to digress for a moment, IMHO anyone claiming to be building a "better" version of an established platform like GitHub or anything similar on NOSTR is being delulu. Yep, delulu - and quite frankly, not looking at the full picture. However, I genuinely believe that we stand a fighting chance. We just need to build more robust, less buggy clients, delivering a decent user experience, and offering an appealing value proposition.

The average user may not care about this "freedom tech" nonsense or whatever underlying tech is powering their software. More often than not, they seek reliable solutions that serve their purpose efficiently and effectively. So what would make Apollo different from the rest (beyond NOSTR)? Our value proposition:

We reward active participation. It's as simple and powerful as that. Engage with the platform, contribute valuable insights, and you get rewarded. But it doesn't stop there. You have complete transparency and autonomy over your contributions and earnings. Sounds interesting? Well, this is made possible by this little thing called NOSTR. What is NOSTR you ask? NOSTR is…you already know where I am going with this, lol. We are simply offering an alternative that respects and rewards knowledge sharing without the constraints and limitations imposed by traditional platforms.

Yet, all this will not matter if we don’t already have a robust and functional piece of software.

Enough digression - we are still in the early stages of what’s possible with NOSTR, and whatever we come up with should transcend the idea of simply being a “better version” of something that already exists.

Uh, have you heard of Swamstr?

Yep, I have.

In the wise words of @fiatjaf:

Relays are already full of garbage, and there's garbage of every kind possible, so you have to write apps that are resilient to garbage.

Very sage advice from the creator of Nostr himself ;).

Apollo was designed from the ground up with coherence and organization, unlike Swamstr which lacks a certain degree of structure. The decision to build on custom event kinds for questions (kind 31993) and answers (kind 32017) was very deliberate - this very structure enables an efficient and coherent integration within Nostr, enhancing both the visibility and organization of content.

We are building with purpose (not that Swamstr wasn’t built with purpose, I don’t know), creating a resilient platform that can withstand the inevitable clutter - a critical aspect that IMHO Swamstr has overlooked. By leveraging custom kinds, Apollo offers a framework where specialized clients can thrive. Imagine integrating an FAQ section within a client, or tailoring the experience to suit educational purposes or technical support forums. The possibilities are boundless.

While Swamstr is undoubtedly a commendable effort, Apollo's methodical and structured approach sets it apart. It’s not just about surviving the "garbage"; we aim to transform this thing into something organized, useful, and most importantly, resilient.

Updates and future development

Here’s a detailed rundown of what we have accomplished and some very near future enhancements we are excited about:

Zaps and Zap splits: We have Zaps working and currently exploring zap splits as a potential approach to monetization. This idea proposes the distribution of zaps between answer contributors and Apollo itself, with the platform's share intended to support our development team and ensure a sustainable ecosystem. Here’s a link to the Github issue that proposes this https://github.com/samuelralak/apollo/issues/1. Let us know your thoughts

Discussions and Comments: The initial version of our discussions feature is up and running. We are leveraging kind 1 events to enable users post comments to seek clarifications or engage in deeper conversations around questions and answers.

Accepted Answers: We are satisfied with the current implementation of accepted answers, which allows users to recognize the most helpful responses. This feature contributes to the quality of discussions and ensures that valuable insights are easily identifiable.

Profile Page Enhancements: We already have a profile page framework set up but currently in its infancy. We will be adding detailed user statistics which will cover user’s questions, answers, and overall engagement level.

Expanding User Settings: Future updates will introduce a comprehensive settings menu, including Security, Notifications, Network, and Translation options. Additionally, customization features will allow users to upload and modify their profile pictures and banners.

Our goal over the next few weeks is to establish a more structured development cycle. This will enable us to implement new features and enhancements more consistently and timely.

Apollo remains committed to being a free and open-source project https://github.com/samuelralak/apollo.

Stay hydrated!