#meshtastic

[hillbillyoracle]

My nesting partner got these Meshtastics working today. The range on them is fantastic! I was able to text my partner from my parent's place (quarter mile away) while my phone was on airplane mode (no cell signal, no internet). It's encrypted by default too!

We got it because cell signal and internet is so terrible here. I can't even make phone calls in my house for the most part. So this will let us text and should drain our batteries a little less than Briar seems to.

But it would be great in emergencies or camping in low signal areas. We've disabled the GPS for right now but you can use these as little GPS devices too.

They're so dang cool. I wish I could explain to other people why I'm so about stuff like this right now but alas I am too brain fogged to find the words. I just think more people should check them out.

[debian-official]

Group meowing session in LongFast starts in 10 minutes

[cutecipher]

Making my trans day of visibility post: Im Agie, Im a trans woman and a computer scientist. I dont want to put a picture of my face up since Ive been getting very nasty attention so youre just going to have to trust that im cute. How you can support me is by helping me with making a new internet to keep marginalized people connected so we can continue to talk about our experiences and talk to each other.

I'm working on a project called PierMesh which you can read about at https://piermesh.net and on my work blog @utopicwork and I need as much help as I can get. Primarily Id like money to buy parts and equipment but what would also help is if anyone had info about some group that might fund our research and development. You can give out this contact email to anyone who might be interested: info@piermesh.net.

Places to donate:

Venmo: agief

Cashapp: $cmder

Paypal: https://paypal.me/agieocean

Infographics below the cut

The first graphic is a first draft at a new art direction by Lillie @transamus

[utopicwork]

Welp, procuring new TLoRa boards will not be possible soonish, once the resellers sell out we are frankly boned. If anyone wants to get one you should do it soon. We're currently out of money but if there are boards left when we do get funds I'll buy what I can unfortunately the cost has already doubled.

[theplushfrog]

Hey so, I haven't seen much about this on here, but a GREAT resource for protesters, ESPECIALLY protesters who might be targeted by signal jamming cell phones.

Meshtastic is a totally open source project that basically enables radio wave texting. Think walkie-talkies but better and with texting. It's been catching on especially in Europe, but has been growing in popularity all over.

The devices use line-of-sight connections, but the fun part is that your messages can also piggy back other devices in the area to get a bigger reach (while your message stays encrypted). So the more devices in an area, the bigger signal you can use.

These are perfect for protests, concerts, hiking, or other situations where your cell signal might end up useless.

Most meshtastic devices connect via bluetooth to your phone, so you can text on your phone with the app, making it super easy to send & receive messages in a way you're already used to. There are also ones with their own keyboards so it's a fully contained texting device.

The system is totally open source, which means if you're techy, you can put together your own device for like $30-40 at cheapest. If you're not about soldering wires or 3D printing your own stuff, you can often grab these at $60-70 at cheapest. Some examples here. Just make sure you're getting one that is setup for the legal radio frequencies you can use in your country.

Right now a lot of the documentation is written for people who previously used ham radios, or are just techy sorts, so it get confusing fast, but it's quickly becoming more beginner user friendly and really is a great resource for people wishing to buck the system or have a backup system in case of emergencies.

Right now you can check out and see if there's anyone around you who have shared the location of their meshtastic nodes on these maps.

If you want more info, of course check out the meshtastic website, but there's also plenty of youtube tutorials that can help you out as well as the meshtastic discord where you can find a lot more help.

[dirtyfilthy]

My meshtastic t-deck. Meshtastic is a grass-roots peer-to-peer encrypted off-grid comms network. Was listed in a paper entitled "Network-Enabled Anarchy: How Militant Anarcho-Socialist Networks Use Social Media to Instigate Widespread Violence Against Political Opponents and Law Enforcement" (https://networkcontagion.us/reports/network-enabled-anarchy/), so you know it's the real deal. Get involved. Build networks for social organisation and communication that don't rely on corporations or the state. https://meshtastic.org/

FYI, you can now purchase a device even better than the above for $70 USD. (https://www.lilygo.cc/products/t-deck-plus)

[ncdweller]

The T-Deck arrived. Installed 2.6.5. No nodes found around here. No surprise. I’ll be in town this evening, might have some luck there.

That’s a Blackberry Q10 keyboard, btw. I wish I still had my Q10, I’d prefer the black version it had.

[nonenosome2]

Welp. Looks like I know the next thing I need to buy.

[n2qfd]

Back on the air.

[kf4rws-actual]

Pin layout and GPS wiring diagram.

[tinyshe]

Discover the revolutionary world of #Meshtastic, the new tech sensation that's changing the way we communicate off the grid. Move over, Flipper Zero, and welcome to a decentralized communication network that's open-source, free from big brother's watchful eye, and powered by tiny, affordable, and low-powered ESP32 microcontrollers. In this comprehensive video, we dive into everything Meshtastic can do - from encrypted messages over long-range LoRa technology to its applications in rural, mobile, or grid-down scenarios. Learn about the essentials, including how to set up your device, avoid common pitfalls, and even how to extend its range dramatically with a simple antenna upgrade. This video is your guide to understanding how Meshtastic provides a confidential and secure way to communicate, perfect for avoiding wiretapping by telecom giants. Whether you're preparing for a festival, planning a remote adventure, or needing a reliable communication tool for NGO work in areas without cell infrastructure, Meshtastic has you covered. We'll show you what's inside the LoRa 32 box, suggest upgrades for better performance, and take you through the steps to get your device up and running with the latest firmware directly from your browser. Experience an epic range test as we equip a drone with Meshtastic technology, demonstrating the true capabilities of these devices. From setting up the hardware, including choosing the right battery and case, to flashing the Meshtastic firmware and exploring practical use cases, this video is packed with valuable insights. Meshtastic is not just a gadget; it's a versatile tool for secure, encrypted, text-based communication, ideal for skiing, paragliding, camping, and more. Don't miss out on the future of communication. Dive into the Meshtastic world with us, understand its vast potentials, and see if it's the right tech for your next adventure or project. Subscribe for more in-depth tech reviews and tutorials, and join us as we explore cutting-edge technologies that empower you to communicate on your terms.

[utopicwork]

Hello, would it be too much bother to ask exactly how PierMesh is a new Internet?

Is it a new Internet in the sense that it's an alternative to IP, but still relies on extant links between computers? I've heard of -punk projects for standalone internets before, but I never really got how they could be fully independent. At some point they still rely on the same physical infrastructure that the Internet uses, which the new indie internets might not have - like are cables going to be laid to each PierMesh node or something?

Sorry if this is obvious from any of the about sections, or in the code.

Thanks for reading this super rambly ask!

Oh that's easy: the people using PierMesh will run the hardware that forms the PierMesh internet, we use LoRa transceivers (and will use some other transceivers as I free up time to implement more) which are lightweight, cheap and transmit up to 254 km over the air. That way we're not dependent on the current internet in any way but I have interop set up so we can use it if we want.

Here's more about LoRa from Meshtastic who provides the current firmware we use:

So tldr: no we don't need to run cabling (though people might want to run some light cabling in their case for easier access to the antenna) it's all done over the air

Edit: oh also by necessity I'm having to redo a lot of the network stack so there's also some differences there

[danyork]

AVFTCN 034 - The Cautionary Tale of the Death of Ello

Do you remember… Ello? For a brief time in 2014 to 2016-ish, it flared up as “the next emerging social network” and even as a “Facebook-killer”. And then it flamed out… and… in the summer of 2023, it disappeared completely as the site was taken offline. I was all in with Ello for a time! Kind of as Mastodon is today for me, Ello was where I was focused on posting and engaging. And then it…

[christanworkshop]

Tinkering With Meshtastic

Here’s something new that I just started tinkering with. Meshtastic is an open source project that enables you to use cheap LoRa radios as a long range off-grid communication platform in areas without existing or reliable communications infrastructure.

As this is still fairly new, no one anywhere remotely near me have started building a Meshtastic network yet, so I had to buy a couple of Heltec v3 LoRa boards in order to figure out how to set everything up and experiment. They cost around USD16 from AliExpress. Note that you have to check what is the LoRa frequency for your country before you order them.

First thing was to 3D print a case for it. I found a really nice case over here and the creator was very nice to share it for free for personal use. I made a slight modification to the case to use a different kind of switch.

Next was to flash the LoRa boards with Meshtastic firmware. I used the web flasher and it was pretty simple.

I also bought some 2000mah battery packs and wired it up. You can see it’s still using the tiny antenna that the boards came with. I have some bigger better antennas on order and will switch it once I get them.

That’s it, a working Meshtastic node. With a decent antenna, you can get anywhere up to over 100 km with direct line of sight, but the reach drops considerably in town, with buildings and such blocking direct line of sight. The current record is 254km for ground to ground test.

There are Meshtastic apps for iPhone, Android, Web Client, etc., and you communicate just like text messaging. It’s low bandwidth communications, so there’s no sending photos, videos or voice, it’s just text, but when nothing else works, this can be a life saver. You can learn more about Meshtastic at the links below.

Meshtastic

Meshtastic Node Map

Unofficial Guide to Meshtastic

Meshtastic Antenna Reports

The Comms Channels

ShotokuTech

[ncdweller]

My first Meshtastic message. 12.01 am. From high overhead.

Cool!

[daveio]

Meshtastic continues to absolutely slay me. This kind of range with a dinky little antenna like this? Madness.