hello,
I would like to try to write a delta.chat client for kaios. Is it possible to implement this only with html5 / js?
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no, because the core needs access to tcp sockets to speak imap and smtp.
I like you’re idea, though.
Isn’t there any way to make native kaios apps or is it only 100% html5 apps?
Also is there a way to run web-assembly on kaios? (when it only supports webapps that could be a solution to run the core faster than when we were to compile it to asm.js)
Looks like native apps for kaiOS require a special partnership (https://www.kaiostech.com/mwc-2018-kai-announces-partnerships-with-mobile-industry-giants/)
It’s possible to make a deltachat client in only html5 but it requires the use of a ebsocket to tcp proxy and without web-assembly it will be painfully slow especially on low-end devices.
So I’ll say we should contact kaiOS and ask them whether merlinux (the company that manages deltachat) could become a partner and develop a native application with a html5 frontend.
I think we can use tcp https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Archive/B2G_OS/API/TPC_Socket_API
and till kaios 2.4 it was possible to execute from the javascript shell scripts
but I’am not a pro only a hobby coder
there is also an active group that does not share all the “interest of kaios”
I’am not a pro only a hobby coder
That’s not a big problem, we can help you to get started and maybe make use of having a company (merlinux) on our side to get needed privileges.
But at the moment we’re really busy with releasing for our current platforms, so I can’t promise anything quick.
I really like the idea of DeltaChat on lowend devices (this could also be interesting for activists in need of cheap burner phones) because it enables more people to enjoy decentralized messaging.
That API requires privileges so we need to verify the app or use rooted devices to develop it.
@strukturart Do you have a KaiOS device to test stuff?
You gave me an idea…
When we use a phone that was “banana hacked” we could install a deltachat backend there and communicate with it over local websocket. (Its just a linux bellow so that schould work)
Maybe that is possible.
If you want you can start coding an frontend with dummy data (to design how the app should look and feel).
We plan to make an websocket+json/protobuff api to the core soon anyway.
So we can work on something that works on jailbroken/rooted devices first and then sometime in the future we can still ask KaiOS how we can bring it officially on their devices.
kaios 3 has web-assembly. based on firefox 84. I think current os will be more compatible.
I know, though wasm itself might miss a few features that we need, also the WhatsApp app on kaiOS uses a native lib signal (https://github.com/kaiostech/api-daemon) so it might be to slow using wasm for the crypto?
Also I’d need to buy a new device for testing as it does not look like kaiOS 3 is coming to the current Nokia devices…
The current limiting factor is the time we can throw at the project. In the meanwhile I tested the native binary as local Webserver for the web app thing and it works fine, the thing is just that I don’t had the time yet to implement the remaining api methods. So the plan is there, just not enough time currently to realise it.