A Beginner’s Guide to the Nostr Protocol

In Decaputin, owning a Head is tied to a public identity you can control: a Nostr npub.

Not an email address. Not a Decaputin username. Not an account trapped inside another social platform. An npub is the public form of a Nostr key. It lets Decaputin connect a Head to a public identity without creating yet another login system.

To claim or buy a Head, you still need to pay with Lightning sats. But the identity layer is Nostr. That is why it is worth understanding what Nostr is before you start clicking buttons.

What is Nostr?

Nostr stands for Notes and Other Stuff Transmitted by Relays.

It is an open-source, decentralized network protocol designed for social apps, public messages and online identity. It is not a single app, not a website and not a blockchain. It is a technical standard that different apps can use.

A platform is a place you join. A protocol is a language that different software can speak.

That difference matters. On a normal social platform, the company gives you the account, stores your posts, controls the database and can change the rules. On Nostr, your identity is based on cryptographic keys. Apps can use that identity, but they are not supposed to own it.

Why Nostr matters

For years, most people accepted the same bargain: free social apps in exchange for data, attention and control. The platform owns the account. The platform owns the audience. The platform owns the exit door.

Nostr starts from a different idea: your social identity should not depend on one company database.

This does not make Nostr perfect, easy or magic. It simply changes the center of gravity. Instead of asking a platform to create an account for you, you create a key. That key becomes your identity across apps that speak the Nostr protocol.

On traditional platforms, the platform is the landlord. On Nostr, the key is the address.

How Nostr works

Nostr is built on three simple pieces: keys, events and relays.

Element	What it means	Simple version
Keys	A public/private key pair that creates your identity	Your npub is public. Your nsec is secret.
Events	Signed pieces of data published on Nostr	Posts, likes, profile updates and other actions
Relays	Servers that receive, store and forward events	Message stations for Nostr apps

When you publish something on Nostr, your app creates an event and signs it with your private key. Then it sends that event to one or more relays. Other apps can read the event from those relays and verify that it was really signed by your key.

The signature is the important part. Authorship does not come from a company database. It comes from cryptography.

Keys: npub and nsec

Nostr has no normal email-and-password account system.

When you create a Nostr identity, you get two key forms:

Key	Meaning	Can you share it?
npub	Your public key, visible identity and public address	Yes
nsec	Your private key, used to sign actions and prove control	No

Your npub is what people can follow. It is also the public identity Decaputin can associate with a Head.

Your nsec is the dangerous part. It must stay private. Whoever controls your nsec can act as you. If you lose it, there is no password reset desk waiting for you.

A separate guide will explain how to create a Nostr profile, find your npub and protect your nsec: How to create a Nostr account with Primal.

Relays: where messages travel

If there is no central platform, messages still need somewhere to go. That is what relays do.

A relay is a server that receives, stores and forwards Nostr events. It does not need your password. It does not create your identity. It is not the boss of the network.

If one relay blocks something, goes offline or disappears, your key still exists. You can use other relays. This is one of the basic reasons Nostr is considered resistant to censorship: the identity is not tied to one server.

Clients: the apps you actually use

A client is the app or website you use to read and write on Nostr.

One client may look like a classic social feed. Another may focus on communities, long-form writing, live streaming, music, marketplaces or developer tools. The client controls the interface. Nostr is the protocol underneath.

This is why there is no single official Nostr app. There are many doors into the same network.

Zaps: Lightning inside the social layer

Nostr also supports zaps.

A zap is a small Bitcoin Lightning payment connected to a Nostr profile, post or event. In simple terms, it is a like with sats inside. Instead of only pressing a heart, you can send a tiny payment to the person who made something.

This is one reason Nostr is close to Bitcoin culture. It connects speech, identity and value without asking a social platform to hold the money.

You do not need to understand Lightning immediately. There will be a separate guide for paying with a Lightning wallet. For now, remember the basic shape: Nostr carries the public identity and social event; Lightning moves the sats.

Nostr vs traditional social platforms

Feature	Traditional social platforms	Nostr
Identity	Account managed by the platform	Public/private key pair
Login	Email, password, phone number or platform account	Nostr key or signer
Main app	Usually one official app	Many clients can use the same identity
Servers	Central infrastructure controlled by the company	Independent relays
Algorithm	Chosen by the platform	Depends on the client and user choices
Censorship	The platform can remove or block the account	A relay can block content, but the identity can move
Payments	Usually separate from the social layer	Zaps can connect Lightning payments to social activity

The short version: on traditional platforms, the platform is the landlord. On Nostr, the key is the address.

Where Nostr comes from

Nostr comes from the same cultural area as Bitcoin, open protocols and cypherpunk ideas: fewer central authorities, more user control, public verification and resistance to single points of failure.

The protocol was created by the Brazilian developer known as fiatjaf, who wanted a simpler alternative to both centralized social networks and heavier decentralized systems.

For a while, Nostr lived mostly among developers, Bitcoin users and people interested in censorship-resistant publishing. Then Jack Dorsey, co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, helped bring it to wider attention by funding its development with 14 BTC in 2022.

That detail matters because it tells the story well: one of the people who helped build the platform era supported a protocol that tries to move beyond it.

Which Nostr apps to try

You do not “join Nostr” by going to one official website. You enter through a client.

App / Tool	Platform	Good for
Primal	iOS, Android, Web	New users who want a familiar social feed and built-in Lightning wallet
Damus	iOS, macOS	Apple users who want a clean native Nostr client
Amethyst	Android	Android users who want more features and control
Coracle	Web	Desktop users interested in communities, relays and discovery
Alby	Browser extension	Managing Nostr login and Lightning from the browser
Amber	Android signer	Signing Nostr actions on Android without exposing the private key everywhere

For most beginners, Primal is the easiest first door. It feels familiar, works on web and mobile, and includes a Lightning wallet experience. After that, the most important thing is learning how to protect your keys.

What this means for Decaputin

Decaputin uses Nostr because a Head should be connected to a public identity that is not just another account inside Decaputin.

Your npub is the public identity. Your private key proves that you control it. When you claim or buy a Head, payment happens with Lightning sats. The ownership proof uses Nostr.

This article is only the map. The practical guides come next.

Next guides

• How to create a Nostr account with Primal
• How to pay with a Lightning wallet
• How Decaputin claims, ownership and signatures work