Lightning Talk: What I Learned From WebTorrent

Come hear the lessons that Feross has learned from starting and running a P2P open source project. He will try to condense as many lessons into the time slot as possible. This will be a whirlwind!

# What will You learn?

Listeners will learn valuable takeaways for running DWeb projects in a way that prioritizes helping as many users as possible. Learn what WebTorrent did right and wrong!

Presented at the DWeb Camp (https://dwebcamp.org/) in 5 minutes as a lightning talk.

Links:
- https://webtorrent.io
- https://feross.org

Transcript

1. WHAT I LEARNED FROM WEBTORRENT:
   LESSONS LEARNED FROM STARTING AND RUNNING A P2P OPEN SOURCE PROJECT
   

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6. LESSON 1
   SHARE YOUR WORK EARLY AND OFTEN
   

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7. WORSE IS BETTER
   "It is often undesirable to go for the right thing first. It
   is better to get half of the right thing available so that
   it spreads like a virus. Once people are hooked on it, take
   the time to improve it to 90% of the right thing."
   

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8. $ webtorrent --help
   Usage:
   webtorrent [command]
   Example:
   webtorrent download "magnet:..." --vlc
   Commands:
   download Download a torrent
   seed Seed a file or folder
   create Create a .torrent file
   info Show info for a .torrent file or magnet uri
   Specify as one of:
   * magnet uri
   * http url to .torrent file
   * filesystem path to .torrent file
   * info hash (hex string)
   Options:
   --airplay Apple TV
   --chromecast Chromecast
   

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10. LESSON 2
    PROVIDE VALUE ALONG THE WAY
    

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11. WHO IS YOUR IDEAL USER?
    

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13. LESSON 3
    SOLVE ONE USE CASE PERFECTLY
    

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14. webtorrent_success = js_bet * electron_bet * webrtc_bet
    

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15. js_bet = .95
    electron_bet = .80
    webrtc_bet = .50
    webtorrent_success = nodejs_bet * electron_bet * webrtc_bet
    console.log(webtorrent_success) // 0.38
    

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16. LESSON 4
    TECHNICAL BETS ARE MULTIPLICATIVE
    

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17. Thanks for the feature request!
    WebTorrent Desktop values simplicity more than most torrent apps. This sometimes
    means saying 'No' to good ideas. We try to implement only the most important
    features that a torrent app needs and make those features as good as possible.
    We don't want the app to get overloaded with knobs and dials that may only
    benefit a small percentage of users.
    That's not to say we won't ever add large new features. We support powerful
    features like instant streaming, dynamic piece prioritization, web peers
    (WebRTC), etc. but only when they have a clear benefit to a vast majority of
    users. See the 80-20 rule.
    I don't think it makes sense to implement this feature right now. I hope this
    makes sense!
    

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21. LESSON 5
    IGNORE THE NERDS
    

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22. // App version
    telemetry.version = config.APP_VERSION
    // Screen resolution
    telemetry.screens = getScreenInfo()
    // OS version and amount of RAM
    telemetry.system = getSystemInfo()
    // # of torrents currently active, # in list, total size
    telemetry.torrentStats = getTorrentStats(state)
    

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25. LESSON 6
    GROWTH MATTERS
    

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26. !
    

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27. THE OPPORTUNITY IS
    HUGE
    

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28. HAPPY HACKING!
    @FEROSS • FEROSS.ORG
    

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