murm MIPs

This repository contains Murm Improvement Proposals (MIPs), the protocol documents for the Murm Protocol.

murm is a local-first protocol for signed notes, public posts, and pseudonymous publishing. Identity is based on cryptographic key pairs: a public key identifies an author, and a private key signs events. Relays store and distribute signed events, but they do not own user identity, passwords, or sessions.

Protocol Shape

The core unit of the Murm Protocol is an Event.

type Event = {
  id: string
  pubkey: string
  created_at: number
  kind: number
  tags: string[][]
  content: string
  sig: string
}

At a high level:

• id identifies the exact event payload.
• pubkey identifies the author.
• sig proves that the author signed the event.
• kind defines how clients interpret the event.
• tags carry structured references and indexable metadata.
• content carries the main event body.

Principles

• Local-first: clients can create, sign, store, and later sync events.
• Signed events: relays validate events, but do not authenticate users by login.

Current MIPs

MIP	Title	Status	Summary
MIP-01	event format	draft	Defines the base event object and structural validation rules.
MIP-02	signatures	draft	Defines canonical payloads, SHA-256 event ids, and Ed25519 signatures.
MIP-03	relay interface	draft	Defines relay operations: submit, fetch, and scan.
MIP-04	event kinds	draft	Defines initial event kinds: profile, post, comment, and reaction.
MIP-05	relay compatibility	draft	Defines the minimum relay behavior required for core compatibility.

Reading Order

Start with:

1. MIP-01 for the event shape.
2. MIP-02 for ids and signatures.
3. MIP-04 for event semantics.
4. MIP-03 for relay behavior.
5. MIP-05 for relay compatibility.

Implementation Notes

A minimal implementation should be able to:

• build valid events;
• calculate event ids;
• sign events with Ed25519;
• verify event signatures;
• submit events to a relay;
• fetch events by id;
• scan events by filters.

Private keys must stay local to clients. Relays only receive public keys, events, and signatures.

Status Values

• draft: initial proposal under discussion.
• accepted: approved for implementation.
• final: stable and implemented by compatible software.
• deprecated: no longer recommended for new implementations.

Conventions

The key words MUST, MUST NOT, SHOULD, SHOULD NOT, and MAY are used as normative terms when describing protocol requirements.