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--- messaging_candidates:telegram [2015/07/15 23:08] – created mithat
+++ messaging_candidates:telegram [2015/07/16 02:34] (current) – [Android app] 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 for account creation and as your default user identifier. You have the option of creating a username which others can then use to contact you with (without revealing your phone number), but this is an additional step that most users are not going to take the time to do. It also doesn't seem possible to add usernames to your contact list--which seriously limits the utility of usernames.
-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.
+To start a conversation, you select an entry from your contact list or search for a user by their username (if she has chosen to use one). Searching by phone number doesn't seem to work. Usernames are public, and there doesn't appear to be a way to block incoming messages from specific users. There's no reason to think that you can't send messages to random numbers.
 ===== 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 contact list in the Android app is sourced from your phone's contact list. Telegram-enabled contacts appear at the top of the contact list and have a graphic next to the name. You can invite other users to sign up for Telegram, which sends them an SMS from you directing them to get the app. (The version of the app I used failed to send SMS to invitees unless Google Hangouts is the default SMS app.)
-  * The version of the app I failes 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.
+There doesn't seem to be a way to add usernames to the contact list.
+===== iOS app =====
+TODO
+===== Desktop app =====
+TODO
+===== Browser-based app =====
+TODO