Chad Mazzola

Open-Source & Peer-to-Peer Software

Billions of people now rely on technology from just a small group of companies. As our lives become increasingly dependent on digital tools, we must re-examine our relationship to them. I’m interested in helping to build a diverse ecosystem of software and services that puts control back in the hands of users.

Projects

UpdatedBeautiful Web Type

An on-going project to document the very best open-source typefaces. A completely new version was released in Oct 2018.

Jan 2012–present

Mnfst.io

Trustless publishing platform using PGP-signed messages. Created with Mike Burns. This video shows a brief overview of the project.

Aug 2014–Sep 2016

Avalanche

Allows users to distribute PGP-signed photos via mesh network. Created with Mike Burns and Rebecca Meritz during a hackathon on Ekskäret.

Apr 2014

Essays

What happened to ebook innovation?

Due to pervasive DRM and closed ecosystems dominated by Amazon and Apple, the possibilities of ebooks are nowhere near fully realized.26 Aug 2018

Designing self-sustaining systems

Technology and design both share a concern for creating solutions to problems. What causes them to diverge is a matter of ethics.14 Dec 2015

Beautiful code does not make a beautiful product

If the purity of a codebase would suffer from a change that enhances the experience of users, then the code should suffer.27 Mar 2013

The advantages of design in the 21st century

A summary of the paper ‘A Cautious Prometheus? A Few Steps Toward a Philosophy of Design’ by Bruno Latour.14 Feb 2013

Design & Hacking

In order to meaningfully shape the future, design must challenge and overturn entrenched systems, not simply create new packages for yesterday’s ideas.22 Nov 2012

Don’t Make Me Wait

Web-based apps that match the speed and responsiveness of native apps are better for users, but they require more investment from product and engineering teams.08 Nov 2012

The Design of Design

An overview of several main ideas from Fred Brooks’ book The Design of Design.09 Oct 2012

Further Reading

Are.na / Dat

Information about Dat and Beaker Browser, two of the more interesting projects within the peer-to-peer world.

Are.na / ! (Pronounced Bang)

Information about additional peer-to-peer technology and projects.

Are.na / Networked Knowledge

Thoughts on the emergent effects when people come together in the right digital environments.

Are.na / Design & Ethics

Thougths on the responsibilties of building modern digital products and services.