jxs/libp2p-workshop

This repository is a hands-on workshop for building a peer-to-peer chat application. Instead of routing messages through a central server like Slack or Discord, the app you build here lets people communicate directly with each other across the internet, with no middleman involved. The project walks you through building this decentralized chat using a technology called libp2p, which is a networking toolkit designed specifically for peer-to-peer applications. Rather than the traditional client-to-server model where your app talks to a central host, libp2p lets each device act as both a client and a server, connecting directly with other devices. The workshop is structured in iterations, starting with a basic "hello world" program and building up step by step. It uses the Rust programming language, but the README emphasizes that no prior knowledge of the stack is required to participate. This workshop is aimed at developers who want to learn how peer-to-peer networking works in practice. If you are curious about how decentralized systems like blockchain networks, file-sharing tools, or distributed messaging apps handle communication without a central authority, this gives you a guided, hands-on introduction. You would go through the iterations, write some code, and see firsthand how peers discover and talk to each other directly. Before starting, you need to install a few tools: git, Rust, and Protoc (a compiler for a data format called Protocol Buffers). The README provides links and instructions for each. You also need to make sure you can compile and run the starter program, which simply prints "Hello, world!", that confirms your setup is working. From there, you follow the workshop iterations to progressively build out the chat functionality.