NTsocial

NTsocial 1.4.9 adds optional high-speed history synchronization, moves LoRa integration to NTsocial MeshLink, improves message navigation, and hardens image handling while keeping BLE as the required baseline.

Highlights

• Optional exact-history acceleration: Supported Android 10+ devices can use Wi-Fi Aware with nearby Android peers, while Android 13+ devices can accept a compatible Windows peer's Wi-Fi Direct offer. These paths accelerate eligible history and authorized historical attachments; they are not live-message transports, and BLE remains available.
• NTsocial MeshLink / LoRa: Radio pairing and configuration now belong to the separately installed NTsocial MeshLink app. Explicitly bound channel text and supported profile, channel, and ATaK state can use LoRa; images, audio, and PTT remain on BLE.
• Unread navigation and local discard: Public, Channels, and private conversations keep per-message unread targets so you can jump to the next unread item. Long-press and swipe a message halfway to discard it on this device only—this is not remote recall.
• More resilient image workflows: Images now require a caption and use clearer send-retry, reselect, and preview-retry states. BLE attachment transfer adds durable cataloging and missing-chunk repair while live media stays on the BLE baseline.
• Range-first BLE behavior: On compatible devices, mutual Long Range opt-in requests bidirectional Coded PHY with S=8 immediately while legacy discovery remains active in parallel. Link fallback and Bluetooth reset recovery were also strengthened.

NTsocial 1.3.0 introduces native Long Range connectivity, PTT voice calls, and the Mesh Pet feature. It also delivers a modernized private chat UI and critical fixes for profile synchronization and image quality.

Highlights

• Native Long Range & 2M PHY: Implemented Native Long Range (Coded PHY S=8) with Extended Advertising and aggressive utilization of LE 2M PHY for enhanced throughput.
• Voice & PTT: Added support for Audio Messaging and Bluetooth Push-to-Talk (PTT) voice calls.
• Mesh Pet: A new built-in companion feature where your pet grows based on your contribution to mesh relaying.
• Visual & Image Improvements: Redesigned Private Chat UI with a modern bubble layout. Optimized image compression logic to ensure screenshots and small images remain clear.
• Stability & Fixes: Resolved empty Author Card issues for remote peers, fixed persistent map state (location/zoom), and eliminated redundant data encoding overhead.

NTsocial 1.2.0 expands ATaK capabilities, improves channel handling, fixes private image messaging, and upgrades map tooling for field coordination.

Highlights

• ATaK foundation: Implemented ATaK basics for real-time geographic sharing of teams and resources.
• Channel name handling: Added compatibility and distinction for Channels with identical names.
• Private image fix: Resolved an issue where images could not be sent in private messages.
• Map imports: The map interface now supports .style files, DEM hillshading, and GPX track imports.
• Contours and objects: Added map contour lines; ATaK channels can show real-time positions for all members and support map objects for managing resources, dangers, and targets.

NTsocial 1.1.0 builds directly on the 1.0.0 launch. This update fixes several high-impact issues in image handling, synchronization, and navigation, and introduces encrypted channels, offline maps, and the first ATaK-style mission channel for teams in the field.

Bug fixes and polish

• Image orientation: Post attachments now respect the orientation stored in Google Photos, preventing sideways or upside-down images.
• Base64 garbled images: Fixed a bug where some devices would display the raw base64 string instead of the decoded image.
• Sync performance: Corrected a flaw in the message sync pipeline. In dense meshes this dramatically reduces duplicate work and improves delivery latency.
• Splash screen button layout: On certain screen sizes the primary button on the launch screen could drift off the visible area. The layout has been adjusted so the button always stays within the safe area.
• Bottom nav behavior: Removed the center “DM” button from the bottom navigation bar because its behavior was confusing. To start a private message, tap a person in the People list instead. The center slot now hosts a new “Map” button.
• Chinese channel names: Fixed a severe bug where non-encrypted channels with Chinese names could leak messages across channels due to a decoding issue with Chinese characters.

New features

• Offline maps: You can now import and view offline map files. Style files are not yet supported, so the visual experience will keep improving in upcoming releases.
• Encrypted channels: Added a dedicated encrypted channel type where messages at rest and in transit are protected with 256-bit symmetric encryption (AES-256-GCM).
• ATaK-style mission channels: Introduced an encrypted channel optimized for mountaineering and search-and-rescue teams. All members continuously share their GPS coordinates, relaying them across the mesh so the team can see everyone’s latest position even beyond direct radio range.
• Profile photos: Users can now attach a personal headshot to their identity. The original colorful QR-style geometric avatar is kept as a fallback for device recognition and anti-impersonation.
• Image viewer with pinch-to-zoom: In addition to honoring the orientation from Google Photos, tapping an image now opens a viewer where you can zoom with multi-touch gestures and inspect details.

Next steps

• Map styling and contours: Upcoming versions will focus on map rendering, including support for style files and contour overlays to meet the basics of a professional hiking map.
• Resource and hazard markers: ATaK-style channels are planned to gain GIS-like overlays so members can mark water sources, fire points, supply caches, and more. Each marker’s time and coordinates will sync to all members and render on the shared map.
• Mesh radio integration: We are exploring integration with community mesh radio projects such as Meshtastic so NTsocial can act as a companion client.

NTsocial 1.0.0 is officially live. This first production release builds on the test builds with foundational feature upgrades, stronger security, and smoother everyday experiences.

Highlights

• Image attachments: Posts now support a single image attachment. The client compresses uploads to sub-11 KB WebP files before sending; text is transmitted first to prioritize Bluetooth bandwidth, and the UI detects and loads the image once delivery finishes.
• Local storage encryption: All messages—public, channel, and direct—are encrypted with AES-256-GCM before they are written to device storage. Keys are safeguarded by Android KeyStore, preserving privacy for message history at rest.
• Granular notifications: A rebuilt notification service delivers dedicated controls for Public, Channels, and DMs. Each surface has its own toggle, and foreground awareness automatically mutes notifications for the conversation you are currently viewing.
• Internationalization support: NTsocial now ships in English, Traditional Chinese, and Japanese. Pick your preferred language during onboarding or in the profile view.
• New splash screen: A refreshed abstract illustration replaces the static entry screen, aligning the launch experience with the NTsocial brand.