Farcaster operates through three layers: identity, data, and application.

• Identity Layer: Managed by smart contracts called Registry Contracts on the Optimism network, this layer controls accounts and keys. It includes:

  • Id Registry: Issues "fids" (Farcaster IDs) for creating new accounts.

  • Storage Registry: Rents storage units for publishing messages.

  • Key Registry: Registers signers for social activities. Usernames can be managed either off-chain by Farcaster or on-chain through third-party services like ENS.

• Data Layer: This consists of off-chain Farcaster Hubs, which store messages and account states, enhancing performance and speed.

• Application Layer: Utilizes the data from Farcaster Hubs to build unique platform features, allowing developers to create client applications that display and interact with user data in various ways.

Key concepts include accounts (represented by unique "fids"), usernames, signers (cryptographic key pairs), messages (public updates like posts or follows), and storage (allocated for message publication, managed by paying an annual fee).

Advantages:

• Content created by users is stored off-chain on distributed Farcaster Hubs, reducing storage and distribution costs.

• The use of a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) structure in Hubs enables fast access and synchronization of user content.

• Developers can build diverse applications by tapping into the data stored in Farcaster Hubs, fostering creativity and user freedom.

Farcaster supports a variety of applications, including Alphacaster (for DAOs), Discove (for content discovery), Warpcast (a Web3 platform similar to Twitter), and Yup (for cross-posting content across different social platforms).

Farcaster operates through three layers: identity, data, and application.

• Identity Layer: Managed by smart contracts called Registry Contracts on the Optimism network, this layer controls accounts and keys. It includes:

  • Id Registry: Issues "fids" (Farcaster IDs) for creating new accounts.

  • Storage Registry: Rents storage units for publishing messages.

  • Key Registry: Registers signers for social activities. Usernames can be managed either off-chain by Farcaster or on-chain through third-party services like ENS.

• Data Layer: This consists of off-chain Farcaster Hubs, which store messages and account states, enhancing performance and speed.

• Application Layer: Utilizes the data from Farcaster Hubs to build unique platform features, allowing developers to create client applications that display and interact with user data in various ways.

Key concepts include accounts (represented by unique "fids"), usernames, signers (cryptographic key pairs), messages (public updates like posts or follows), and storage (allocated for message publication, managed by paying an annual fee).

Advantages:

• Content created by users is stored off-chain on distributed Farcaster Hubs, reducing storage and distribution costs.

• The use of a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) structure in Hubs enables fast access and synchronization of user content.

• Developers can build diverse applications by tapping into the data stored in Farcaster Hubs, fostering creativity and user freedom.

Farcaster supports a variety of applications, including Alphacaster (for DAOs), Discove (for content discovery), Warpcast (a Web3 platform similar to Twitter), and Yup (for cross-posting content across different social platforms).