Valour
Purpose and Design
Valour is an open-source chat client created by @SpikeViperYT[1]. The platform is built upon the ideals of community, privacy, and expandability. The platform, which underwent fast development after the deletion of the discord server SpookVooper, aims to provide better community experiences with community-owner-oriented features.
The platform sports features such as communities (known as planets), direct messaging, and more. The app is built with an in-built windowing system, allowing multiple chats to be opened at once. This feature is aimed at assisting moderators and power users who feel limited by a single screen.
Architecture
Valour is built using Blazor, currently based on the .Net 8 framework by Microsoft. Valour is compiled into webassembly and currently supports installation as a Progressive Web Application. The platform uses PostgreSQL for database operations and SignalR for realtime updates.
For content delivery, Cloudflare's R2 is used with a caching layer for a simple CDN. Valour supports all file types to be sent through chat, including embedded video and music.
Valour in early alpha
First image support in Valour
!["First multi-user message within a channel!"[2]](/images/thumb/e/e0/Valour_Screenshot4.jpg/122px-Valour_Screenshot4.jpg)
"First multi-user message within a channel!"[2]
Early multi-window testing
Original tablet support
!["First multi-user message within a channel!"[2]](/index.php/File:Valour_Screenshot4.jpg)
#AbusedByDiscord campaign
On January 11th 2021, Spike Viper's Discord server was removed by the moderation team.
Several tweets [3][4][5] were made with the hashtag #AbusedByDiscord and Spike rallied his community to spread it on Twitter.
A video was released[6] ("My Community was #AbusedByDiscord"), which presents three main theories on why their server was removed:
- The moderation team at Discord would prefer to reduce their workload (from dealing with the issues being reported from their server) by just removing the server permanently.
- They started building an alternative chat platform ("Valour") and subsequently got banned. Though it is noted that their Valour Discord server was not banned. (Editor's Note: This is definitely not a valid theory as both Revolt and Fosscord continue to operate Discord servers without any issue.)
- Discord had some sort of connection with the doxxer.
This campaign was used to help promote this platform, shortly after Spike also livestreamed Valour development with an overlay "#abusedbydiscord"[7].
- ↑ @SpikeViperYT https://mobile.twitter.com/SpikeViperYT
- ↑ @ValourApp: "First multi-user message within a channel!" https://mobile.twitter.com/ValourApp/status/1349719918976016387
- ↑ @SpikeViperYT: Now that we have been #abusedbydiscord it's time to get serious about working on Valour! https://mobile.twitter.com/SpikeViperYT/status/1348777122270212096
- ↑ @SpikeViperYT: After beginning to program my own chat client, @discord deleted my community of over 5000 members without warning. This is after earlier last year removing my partnership over reporting a doxxer. This behavior is unacceptable and I will be making a video covering the situation. https://mobile.twitter.com/SpikeViperYT/status/1348751831296581644
- ↑ @SpikeViperYT: I was #abusedbydiscord and I want other people targeted and treated unfairly by the platform to speak out https://mobile.twitter.com/SpikeViperYT/status/1348752896767234052
- ↑ YouTube: "My Community was #AbusedByDiscord" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucwD326UeHo
- ↑ @Valour: "Speedrunning creating a chat system" @SpikeViperYT working hard as possible to get #Valour up as soon as possible! https://mobile.twitter.com/ValourApp/status/1348798101163794434