Software:Element.io
 | |
 Screenshot of Element as Riot 1.0.1 | |
| Other names | |
|---|---|
| Original author(s) | Vector Creations Limited[1] |
| Developer(s) | New Vector Ltd.[3] |
| Initial release | July 2016 (Beta) |
| Stable release | 1.7.1
/ 16 July 2020[4] |
| Preview release | 1.6.8-rc.1
/ 1 July 2020[5] |
| Written in | JavaScript, ObjectiveC, Swift, Java, Kotlin |
| Platform | Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web platform |
| Available in | 25 languages[6] |
List of languages Basque, Bulgarian, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Czech, Dutch, English (UK), English (US), Esperanto, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Korean, Latvian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Spanish, Swedish | |
| Type | VoIP communications, instant messaging, Videoconferences,[7] social media, and other App Integrations |
| License | Apache License 2.0[8] |
| Website | No URL found. Please specify a URL here or add one to Wikidata. |
Element (formerly Riot and Vector) is a free and open-source software instant messaging client based on the Matrix protocol.[9]
Element supports end-to-end encryption, groups, channels and sharing of files between users. It is available as a web application, as desktop apps for all major operating systems and as a mobile app for Android and iOS.[7][non-primary source needed]
History
Element was originally known as Vector when it was released out of beta[1][2] in 2016.[10] The app was renamed to Riot in September of the same year.[11]
In 2016 the first implementation of the Matrix end-to-end encryption was implemented and rolled out as a beta to users.[12] In May 2020, the developers announced enabling end-to-end encryption by default in Riot for new non-public conversations.[13]
In April 2019, a new application was released on the Google Play Store in response to cryptographic keys used to sign the Riot Android app being compromised.[14]
In July 2020, Riot was renamed to Element.[15]
Technology
Element is built with the Matrix React SDK,[16] which is a React-based software development kit to ease the development of Matrix clients. Element is mostly built around web technologies and also uses Electron, a software framework to create desktop applications from web applications, to distribute their desktop clients for Windows, MacOS and Linux. The Android and iOS clients are developed and distributed with their respective platform tools.
On Android the app is available both in the Google Play Store[17] and the free-software only F-Droid[18] Archives, with minor modifications. For instance the F-Droid version doesn't come with the proprietary Google Cloud Messaging plug-in.[citation needed]
Features
Element is able to bridge other communications into the app via Matrix,[9] such as IRC, Slack, Telegram and others.[citation needed] Also it integrates voice and video peer-to-peer and group chats via WebRTC.
Element supports end-to-end encryption (E2EE) of both one-to-one and group chats.[7][non-primary source needed]
Reception
In the media, Riot was sometimes perceived as an alternative to Slack,[1][2] WhatsApp[2] or other instant messaging clients.[19]
In 2017, German computer magazine Golem.de called Riot (and Matrix server) as "mature" and "feature-rich", while criticizing its key authentication at the time to be "anything but user-friendly" for many communicatees with multiple devices each. A co-founder of the project, Matthew Hodgson, assured the key verification process was a "placeholder" solution to work on.[19] In 2020, a cross-signing feature was added to the apps to make the verification process simpler.[13]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Riot wants to be like Slack, but with the flexibility of an underlying open source platform" (in en-US). TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2016/09/19/riot-wants-to-be-like-slack-but-with-the-flexibility-of-an-underlying-open-source-platform/.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Open Source und verschlüsselt: Das steckt hinter dem Slack-Rivalen Riot" (in de). t3n News. https://t3n.de/news/open-source-slack-rivalen-riot-748095/.
- ↑ https://element.io/copyright
- ↑ v1.7.1, New Vector, 2020-07-16, https://github.com/vector-im/riot-web/releases/tag/v1.7.1, retrieved 2020-07-16
- ↑ v1.6.8-rc.1, New Vector, 2020-07-01, https://github.com/vector-im/riot-web/releases/tag/v1.6.8-rc.1, retrieved 2020-07-15
- ↑ "matrix-org/matrix-react-sdk" (in en). https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-react-sdk/blob/master/README.md. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "Features | Riot". https://about.riot.im/features.html.[primary source]
- ↑ "Riot.im License". https://github.com/vector-im/riot-web/blob/master/LICENSE.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Riot: A Distributed Way of Having IRC and VOIP Client and Home Server". https://itsfoss.com/riot-desktop/.
- ↑ Riot.im (2016-06-09). "Say Hello To Vector!". https://medium.com/@RiotChat/say-hello-to-vector-2d33b23a787.[primary source]
- ↑ Riot.im (2016-09-19). "Let’s Riot!". https://medium.com/@RiotChat/lets-riot-f5b0aa99dc8e.[primary source]
- ↑ Riot.im (2016-11-21). "Riot releases end-to-end encryption: get ready to chat securely!". https://medium.com/@RiotChat/exciting-new-riot-release-get-ready-for-chatting-securely-acc93ecfe0a.[primary source]
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Hodgson, Matthew (2020-05-06). "Riot Web 1.6, RiotX Android 0.19 & Riot iOS 0.11 — E2E Encryption by Default & Cross-signing is here!!". https://blog.riot.im/e2e-encryption-by-default-cross-signing-is-here/.[primary source]
- ↑ "Riot.im Android security update". https://medium.com/@RiotChat/riot-im-android-security-update-2b3f655ad739. Retrieved 2019-05-01.[primary source]
- ↑ Le Pape, Amandine (2020-07-15). "Welcome to Element!". https://element.io/blog/welcome-to-element/.[primary source]
- ↑ "vector-im/riot-web" (in en). https://github.com/vector-im/riot-web#riot.
- ↑ "Riot.im - open team collaboration - Apps on Google Play" (in en). https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=im.vector.alpha.
- ↑ "F-Droid Site". https://f-droid.org/de/packages/im.vector.alpha/.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Echtzeitkommunikation ausprobiert: Willkommen in der Matrix" (in de-DE). Golem.de. https://www.golem.de/news/echtzeitkommunikation-ausprobiert-willkommen-in-der-matrix-1703-126197.html.
External links
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