On Sun, Jan 12, 2014 at 6:53 PM, Jesse Taylor <jessetaylor84@riseup.net> wrote:
WebRTC sockets in browsers for P2P would be an interesting project;
this has been brought up here and there for various purposes, yet I
can't find many resources on this either.

interop is much better than when i last checked!
http://www.webrtc.org/interop
and WebRTC is actually working in the browser i'm using:
https://apprtc.webrtc.org

widespread use given a compelling use case is feasible, and a much
lower bar than third party application installs or Java apps require.

I am a huuuge fan and optimist for WebRTC. It has only just barely begun to be available in the latest stable versions of modern browsers, so we are still in the calm before the storm of experimentation. (A bit like WebSockets a few years ago, but the ramifications of P2P connections are, I think, more profound than adding real-time capabilities.)

One website I use to get across the power of WebRTC is Sharefest: https://www.sharefest.me/

It's file-sharing without a cloud. The central service just assigns UUIDs and does the initial signaling, but the file transfer happens P2P. Extra neat feature: the file and associated permalink stays "alive" as long as any one person has their tab open. (It warns you if you're the last person and you try to close the tab.)

As WebRTC gets mind-share and browser-share, I think you'll see a lot of effort devoted to lowering the usability and accessibility barrier to decentralized technology on the web.

-- Eric

konklone.com | @konklone