Serialization is required for remote procedure call systems and for object persistence.

The fact that this project implements its own serialization system and RPC protocol was partly just an exercise but also reflects our view that JSON is too simple and inflexible, while XML brings too much baggage. We do like msgpack though.

The aim of this project is to provide a blueprint for internet-scale networks of persistent objects. One possible application for such networks would be fully-decentralized social networking.

Meanwhile, objects require user interfaces and the quickest path to providing cross-platform interfaces is web technology. Or, to look at it another way, web-apps require back-ends.

This project contains a number of demos.

• demos/ws shows how to develop a backend for a single-page web app, using only the most basic Apache or Nginx configurations.

• demos/chat provides a realistic example.

• demos/simple demonstrates the basic mechanics of persistent objects and their links. It uses only the Serf protocol.

• Further examples show how to connect user interface elements to objects and how the object-capability model can be used to create secure multi-user apps.