New to Blossom Explorer? Here's what all the terms mean, in plain English.
A decentralized network for sharing information — kind of like how email works across many providers, but for social data and files. Nobody owns it, and your account can't be deactivated by a company.
You connect to Nostr using a browser extension, similar to how you'd log in with Google — except you control your own identity.
A file storage system built on top of Nostr. You upload files to a Blossom server, and they're associated with your Nostr account. Think of it like Dropbox or Google Drive, but decentralized.
A server in the Nostr network that stores and forwards messages. Blossom Explorer uses relays to publish file directories and audit snapshots. Multiple relays can hold copies of the same data for redundancy.
Like how a cell tower carries your calls — relays carry your data across the Nostr network.
Your public identity on Nostr — like an email address. It starts with npub1... and is safe to share with anyone. People use it to look up your files or send you messages.
npub1hs5a237906ahqv5jux... — you can share this freely.
The secret that proves you own your Nostr account — like a password, but more powerful. Never share this with anyone. If someone gets your nsec, they can impersonate you.
nsec1l7ru3myyytnc6fc6... — treat this like the key to your house.
A small browser add-on (like Nos2x or Alby) that securely holds your Nostr keys and signs actions on your behalf. Instead of pasting your secret key into websites, the extension handles authentication safely.
Similar to how password managers auto-fill logins — but for Nostr identity.
Any file you've uploaded to a Blossom server — images, documents, videos, anything. "Blob" is just the technical name for a stored file.
A unique digital fingerprint for a file. Every file has exactly one hash, and even a tiny change to the file produces a completely different hash. This is how Blossom detects if a file has been modified.
Think of it like a tamper-evident seal on a jar — if the seal is broken (hash changed), you know something was altered.
A record of which files you have and where they're located. Published to Nostr relays so others can browse your shared files without needing your login.
Like a table of contents for your file storage.
Copying your files from one Blossom server to another for backup or faster access in different regions.
The process of checking whether your files have changed since the last time they were recorded. An audit compares current file fingerprints against a saved snapshot.
A saved record of all your file fingerprints at a specific point in time. Creating a snapshot is like taking a photo of your files — you can compare later to see if anything changed.
A trusted third party who creates snapshots of your files and later checks them for changes. The auditor doesn't need access to your account — they only see file names and fingerprints.
A view showing exactly what changed between two versions of a file. Added lines are highlighted in green, removed lines in red.
Like "track changes" in a word processor, but for any text file.
A file that was detected to have a different fingerprint than the snapshot. The file name is the same, but the contents may have been replaced or edited.
A file that wasn't in the previous snapshot — it was added after the baseline was recorded.
A file that existed in the snapshot but is no longer found on the server.