Solid, the decentralization solution no one is talking about | The Solid Project

Decentralization and blockchain are two of the most talked-about technologies in the world today. But what are they? And why is Solid, created by Sir

Solid, decentralization without blockchain

I'm passionate about decentralized solutions. I believe that they are the future of our society and economy. And I'm not alone in this belief; many of my friends, family, and peers share my excitement for the possibilities that decentralization offers. But there's one decentralized solution that no one is talking about: Solid. Solid is an open source project that allows anyone to create their own decentralized applications. It's a standard that allows users to control their own data, without relying on any third-party services or the blockchain (This is key). This makes it a perfect solution for anyone who is looking to create a more secure and privacy-friendly online experience. So why isn't Solid more well-known? I'm not sure, but I hope that this blog post will help to shed some light on this exciting project.

What is Solid and what are its benefits over other blockchain based solutions?

      The blockchain, in simple terms, provides a shared and immutable ledger for recording the history of transactions. It is duplicated and distributed across the entire network of computer systems on the blockchain. The blockchain allows for secure, tamper-proof records, which are ideal for storing financial transaction histories and other sensitive data. However, blockchain is not without its challenges or short comings. One major challenge is the lack of identity management capabilities. blockchain does not have a built-in mechanism for managing identities, which can make it difficult to comply with KYC/AML regulations. Another challenge is scalability. blockchain's decentralized nature makes it difficult to scale up the network as more users are added. This scalability challenge was highlighted during the 2017 CryptoKitties craze, when the Ethereum network was so congested with transactions that it caused delays and increased transaction fees.

      Enter Solid, a new standard that seeks to address some of blockchain's challenges by providing a decentralized identity management system. Solid allows users to control their own data, granting them access to the data they want to share while keeping the rest private. This not only helps to protect users' privacy, but also makes it easier to comply with KYC/AML regulations. Solid also provides a standard for developers to build decentralized applications, which can be used to create a more secure and privacy-friendly online experience.

Simply put, Solid is not reinventing the wheel. It's not a radical new system or standard that you need to be either in or out of. Think of it as a new Oauth provider like "signin with Google" or "signin with Apple" that you actually control.

Who is behind the Solid project?

The Solid project is being developed by a team of researchers at MIT and a group of engineers, and developers who are passionate about decentralized solutions. The initial feedback seems positive

What are the challenges facing Solid in terms of adoption, and how can they be overcome?

      One of the key challenges facing Solid today is adoption. In order for Solid to reach its full potential, it needs to be adopted by a critical mass of users. However, there are a number of barriers to adoption. Solid is a new technology and users may be hesitant to switch from more established standards such as Facebook and Google etc. In addition, Solid requires users to have some technical expertise in order to set up their own Solid server (more on this below). Without these factors in place, it will be an uphill battle for Solid to achieve widespread adoption. However, there are a number of ways to overcome these challenges.

Where I see Solid going in the future, and what role will it play in the decentralized ecosystem?

      For me, Solid and Blockchain are like two sides of the same coin. The first example that comes to mind is a solution for one of the problems around adoption: setting up your own pod. Most people will not want or know how to setup up a self custodial POD hosting server, But there could be something like this happening within decentralized organizations (DAOs), where a DAO operates as a Solid POD provider making use of existing infrastructure such as AWS. The user benefit to this is, as a user I don't need to setup and maintain a server to reap the benefits of Solid, while also being able to vote on governance. It is also important to create compelling content and applications that will inspire users to switch from other standards. With these efforts in place, Solid can overcome the challenges it faces and achieve widespread adoption.

I am still hyped

While I remain bullish on the potential of blockchain technology, I believe it's important to focus on the main problems decentralization solves rather than getting bogged down and distracted in the underlying technologies. Solid is another project focused on the core problem of decentralization and data ownership. With any new technology there are always challenges to overcome before widespread adoption can take place, but I believe that Solid will play a key role in the decentralized ecosystem moving forward. What do you think?

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