Signers
A signer is whatever holds your private key and produces signed Nostr events on demand. Shosho supports several different signers — pick whichever fits your platform and how protective you want to be of your key.
Pasting your private into Shosho
Logging in with your private key means pasting it into Shosho. Shosho keeps it secured on your device and never sends it anywhere. This is very easy but requires you to trust that Shosho is not doing anything untowards with your key. So, we offer many alternatives:
Using a Nostr browser extension
A Nostr browser extension installs into Chrome, Firefox, Brave, or Edge and holds your private key inside the extension. When you visit Shosho.live, the site detects the extension and offers to sign you in with it. The extension prompts you to approve each signing request; your key never enters Shosho or any other site.
Using Nostr Connect
Nostr Connect is a remote signer, accessed over Nostr itself. Shosho sends signing requests to your remote signer, which holds the keys. You can connect Shosho to a remote signer by scanning the QR code in Shosho, or by pasting in the nostrconnect:// string.
Using Amber (Android)
Amber is a separate Android app whose only job is to hold your keys and sign events. Shosho asks Amber to sign; your private key never enters Shosho.
Comparison
| Where is the private key | Who signs | Works on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Private Key | Shosho, on the device | Shosho | Web, iOS, Android |
| Browser Extension | The extension in your browser | The extension | Web only |
| Nostr Connect | The remote signer app or service | The remote signer | Web, iOS, Android |
| Amber | Amber app, on the same device | Amber | Android only |