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--- messaging_candidates:telegram [2015/07/15 23:08] – created mithat
+++ messaging_candidates:telegram [2015/07/16 01:27] – mithat
@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 ====== Telegram use notes ======
-Telegram uses an SMS-enabled phone number your account identifier. This isn't the most comfortable idea but is increasingly common with mobile-first apps and services.
+Telegram uses an SMS-enabled phone number as your identifier by default. You have the option of creating a username which others can then use to contact you with, but this (a) isn't currently possible with the desktop client, and (b) is an additional step that most users are not going to take the time to do.
-However, with Telegram things seems to go beyond just using your phone number as an identifier. It seems anyone who has your phone number can initiate a session with you. While this is how conventional telephony and SMS work, I'm not sure it's the best model for modern, secure, and private communication.
 ===== Android app =====
 To start a conversation, a user must be in your contact list. By default, you have no contacts. The app has a feature that lets you invite users to Telegram in the form of a list of contacts from your contact list. When you ask the app to send an invite, it will send them an SMS directing them to get the app.
-  * The version of the app I failes to send SMS to invitees unless Google Hangouts is your default SMS app.
+  * The version of the app I fails to send SMS to invitees unless Google Hangouts is your default SMS app.
-  * I don't know what happens after you send the invite and the user responds as I don't use Google Hangouts for SMS.
+  * It's unclear at present if the app shows you whether a user in your contact list is Telegram-enabled or whether you need to discover this by attempting a session.