Post by @mcc@mastodon.social

2026-10-24 22:12 UTC

@violet@estradiol.city @Farbs@mastodon.social In a web browser, the only way to perform networking is to contact a server. This means all network connections must be "outgoing". You have to contact a specific public IP address. This means a web app cannot *receive* connections. Web apps has no way to open a listening socket, and if they did, consumer browser connections are usually behind something called a "NAT". Everyone in your house shares one public IP, incoming connections bounce off the NAT like an umbrella.

Replies (2)

@mcc@mastodon.social 2026-10-24 22:14

@violet@estradiol.city @Farbs@mastodon.social There are both good reasons that a browser implementer would find "web apps can accept incoming connections" scary, and good reasons that someone making a P2P app, mesh app, or game would want web apps in browser tabs to connect to other browser tabs directly instead of having to channel all data through a central server. Central servers are expensive to run. Central servers can become chokepoints that corporations like Facebook can use to control peoples' expression.

Open ##5318685
@violet@estradiol.city 2026-10-24 22:21

@mcc@mastodon.social @Farbs@mastodon.social i know, but i didn't understand what the nerfing or the microphone permission was about tbh i'm of the opinion that javascript web apps shouldn't exist, i can't think of a reason to make a web app instead of simple html pages or native programs

Open ##5318692