An introduction to Opera Unite

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By chrismills Friday, 25. September 2009, 07:33:35

The time has come to raise the curtain on yet another exciting new Opera release. Opera Unite is a collaborative technology that uses a compact server inside the Opera desktop browser to share data and services. You can write applications - in the form of Opera Unite Services - that use this server to serve content to other Web users. In this article, Chris Mills explores the new features available under this groundbreaking new technology.

( Read the article )

By clean Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 07:36:20

In the voice of Keanu Reeves: 'Whoa!'

By dualbore Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 08:06:53

Sounds really promising.
For me it's OK to have the most common services preinstalled. Gives the user something to play with and to try out the look & feel.

By henchan Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 08:19:40

This appears to be nice technology whose premise regarding the possibilities of P2P communication I strongly agree with.
The only thing that makes me resistant to using it though is the wording of the T&C. Specifically, it is necessary to sign up for an account on Opera. I am OK with this up to a point. But what comes next is unacceptable.

From the Opera account sign up page (required to accept in order to use Unite) :
"By uploading Content to Opera’s site, you grant Opera an unrestricted, royalty-free, worldwide, irrevocable license to use, reproduce, display, perform, modify, transmit and distribute such material in any manner, including in connection with Opera's business, and you also agree that Opera is free to use any ideas, concepts, know-how or techniques that you send Opera for any purpose."

IANAL but this statement seems to be at odds with the spirit in which Unite was released. I suspect it simply fails to adequately differentiate between private P2P communication using Unite and content uploaded to Opera's web site. However, at face value it does appear that Opera would like to have unrestricted distribution rights over any content I may make available using the tool. If so, Opera is itself being more invasive than most of the third-party web apps that, I feel, are correctly critiqued in the introduction document.
There have been a few high profile cases in which a web service protagonist clarified its position after initial T&C were considered by users to be a 'land-grab'. I hope Opera will follow suit by clarifying this part of the sign up process.

By andreasbovens Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 09:37:44

henchan, we've updated the ToS: "[...] For the avoidance of doubt, this clause does not apply to the files you share as an End-User of the Opera Unite, as such files are never uploaded to Opera’s site. Opera will not make a claim to own or use those files. [...]"

By ctlance Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 09:57:20

I still need to digest most of this, but my first reaction is that this is a security nightmare.

All you guys need is a single exploit, and all those "Unite Servers" on the user machines linked together via friendlists will be Worm food. It's like a gift basket for ID/CC/data thieves. ...and as much as I trust you guys in writing secure code, nobody is perfect. Nobody. All it takes is one mistake, and even if you respond within minutes, the damage will have been done.

IT departments in corporations across the globe will squeal in delight at the thought that every of their subjects will be able to share company documents with the whole internet with the click of a button. This is every sysadmins dream.

Then there's the implication of filesharing. The music industry will rip you guys a new one if this catches on.

Furthermore, I doubt that many boxes are reachable that easily anymore. E.g.: Here in Germany, nearly all DSL lines assign a new IP every 24 hours, and most ISPs throw in a Router/Modem combo unit when you sign up with them. Which means, a prospective user would need to delve into port forwarding and maybe even a dyndns service login, which will probably blow their tiny little brains out.

Even if you guys alleviate the latter problem, the former will stay. Are you ready to have an extensive port forwarding FAQ, spanning the dozens of hardware manufacturers, hundreds of firmware versions, and billions of possible configs? Video gamers are stumped by this more often than not, and they're probably a far more tech savvy clientele than your userbase. (Edit: apparently solved by using Proxies)

Then there's the issue with leaving your PC running. Even if some people let them run even if they're away, most modern PCs will suspend to RAM or even disk if at all possible, which will make Opera either temporarily inactive, or keep the whole PC on full power while Opera is busywaiting for some unite traffic. Both options are unsatisfactory.

The concept's really cool though. Good luck with this.

Post edited Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 11:18:59

By dantesoft Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 10:50:21

http://work.chrismills.opera.com/

should be ...operaunite.com

By henchan Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 12:15:32

Andreas, thanks for your quick response. As a casual user I am personally satisfied with this as an interim position and shall start to use the tool in good faith.
I still feel that Opera would be well advised to explicitly document its responsibilities before releasing this product. Perhaps not wholly in the legal section, but the technical section ought to be beefed up to address concerns around architecture. ctlance makes some good points. In my view security represents most of their weight. There are many more non-infringing use cases than a typical file-sharing application, nevertheless the risks of litigation are not negligible. Assuming open source is out of the question, a detailed specification of what goes where would surely help to cover (y)our asses. But why not go the extra kilometer and do as Google did with Wave? Get your community to help formalise an open standard and this time take full credit for getting everything going.

By andreasbovens Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 12:16:37

Originally posted by dantesoft:

should be ...operaunite.com

Fixed!

By Till6 Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 12:21:18

There is an idea for Unite... To Make for files such interface - http://www.unet.com/

E-mail: opera@emigratefan.ru
Password: OperaUnite

Administrator password: OperaMax

By smartmenus Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 13:29:05

If I understand this correctly, a user would share all the resources (pictures, music, etc.) right from his/her computer without needing to upload them to any server. OK but this has a huge drawback - what happens when his/her PC is turned off or is offline for some reason?

By ecrisser1 Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 15:49:23

So... the browser has to be open constantly in order for Unite to be online all the time?

By chrismills Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 16:09:31

Originally posted by ecrisser1:

So... the browser has to be open constantly in order for Unite to be online all the time?

Yup, and the computer. This may seem like a disadvantage, but hey, with a conventional server the computer has to be on and you have to constantly be running the web server (be it Apache, or IIS). So it doesn't have any disadvantages to a normal server set up in that respect. What it does require is for you to just think about the way you use your browser a bit differently.

By el-isra Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 16:25:33

It sounds like the Winamp Remote service, that lets you play music remotely from a computer to another. I like the idea.

The problem is that I can't use it. It says I must not use the character "_" in my username, so I have to create another account

I hope you work on it, 'cause I can't create different accounts for every service you offer.

EDIT: Damn! The problem is not only with Unite. I can't connect to Link either. Please, I need it to be fixed.

Post edited Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 18:23:59

By opasek Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 18:19:02

Dear Opera developers,

thank you for your relentless improvments of my favorite browser.

This Opera Unite feature makes me quite nervous. You encourage people to share their content from their home PCs, that means, to leave them on all the time or a lot of time at least, while not actively using them.

If I compare this to any webserver or sharing service (like Flickr or Rapidshare), it is very energy inefficient and wasting. Just imagine the megatonnes of CO2 released becuase of millions of home PCs on all the time.

Web is currently the industry with fastest growing climate impact and I believe all web-related companies should think about what impact the technologies they produce will have. I believe Opera company is a responsible global citizen and you will address this issue.

Please try to make your technology different in this way and release it when it is fine-tuned not only in the web context (which the browser is), but also regarding wider context of your activities.

Thank you
Ondrej Pasek
climate change campaign NGO coordinator and Opera fan

By slaknetix Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 18:34:49

Originally posted by ctlance:

apparently solved by using Proxies

How is it 'solved' by using proxies when the avowed purpose of Unite is to free you from having to use third-party servers? Does the Unite user completely depend on Opera's proxy servers? If so, shouldn't Opera's claims of independence from servers be dialed back?

I think the reason Unite is taking it on the chin in the computer press is because with all the impressive material the company presents about Unite, it does not appear to address head-on the many security concerns that have been raised.

Is it true, as Opera's spokesperson claimed to Cnet, that Unite won't share private files "unless they're a hacker"? What a bizarre and nonresponsive statement, if she really made it! There are plenty of hackers. Can they get my private files?

How do I prevent unauthorized persons from posting notes? Is there really no encryption anywhere in the system? Or are these considered features to be added later?

I think Unite is a very promising product and opportunity for developers. Opera may have more of a PR and communication problem than a technical problem.

By chrismills Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 19:26:45

Originally posted by slaknetix:

How is it 'solved' by using proxies when the avowed purpose of Unite is to free you from having to use third-party servers? Does the Unite user completely depend on Opera's proxy servers? If so, shouldn't Opera's claims of independence from servers be dialed back?

Well, it frees you from having to upload your data to 3rd party servers, hence you don't need them. The proxy is a delivery mechanism for the messaging, requests, etc, but still doesn;t have anything to do with the actual sharing of the data.

Originally posted by slaknetix:

I think the reason Unite is taking it on the chin in the computer press is because with all the impressive material the company presents about Unite, it does not appear to address head-on the many security concerns that have been raised.

But it hasn't taken it on the chin at all - most press has been really positive.

Originally posted by slaknetix:

Is it true, as Opera's spokesperson claimed to Cnet, that Unite won't share private files "unless they're a hacker"? What a bizarre and nonresponsive statement, if she really made it! There are plenty of hackers. Can they get my private files?

I don't know anything about this quote - can you share the source of it?

Originally posted by slaknetix:

How do I prevent unauthorized persons from posting notes? Is there really no encryption anywhere in the system? Or are these considered features to be added later?

You simply set the security of the services to limited rather than all - the security is explained in the documentation.

By cakruege Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 19:51:59

Moderator note: This post has been removed for violating our Terms of Service.

Post edited Saturday, 20. June 2009, 12:23:10

By slaknetix Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 20:50:12

Originally posted by chrismills:

Well, it frees you from having to upload your data to 3rd party servers

The essential role of the proxy you operate is not the impression made by the marketing movie and announcements. They made it seem as though Unite has no need for servers of any kind.

Originally posted by chrismills:

I don't know anything about this [hacker] quote - can you share the source of it?

Source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10265397-2.html

I think innovations such as Unite should succeed. Opera should respond to the concerns that indeed have been raised, in coverage such as PC Mag's "Opera's Unite Is One Incredibly Bad Idea" http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2348866,00.asp -- and modify its marketing messages if needed.

By MetalFatigue Tuesday, 16. June 2009, 21:11:59

I think this can be a revolutionary technology. My major concern is with security, like a previous poster said. How are you guys addressing this?

For those not seeing the potential, let me try to explain. Do you see all the live services from microsoft (skydrive can be a good example) and web applications from google (picasa)? Well this takes it to an all new level. So maybe we will not need to use this applications and their restrictions in the future anymore, because Opera will enable a sharing, social and working ground right in your browser like this services, but in a better way, where you have full control (no more size limits, for example). Finally anyone could create (maybe hugely creatively) new services for this feature.

One Last question, just came to my mind. Was the torrent implementation in opera 9.5 a way to test some P2P communication for this feature (thinking ahead)? or are they completely independent?

By chrismills Wednesday, 17. June 2009, 06:51:28

Originally posted by slaknetix:

The essential role of the proxy you operate is not the impression made by the marketing movie and announcements. They made it seem as though Unite has no need for servers of any kind.

I think that's debatable, but still raises an issue that perhaps we should have been slightly clearer with that message. We are working on followup annoucements about security, and such things. I know the concern still standads, but you've gotta admit that PC Mag "Opera's Unite Is One Incredibly Bad Idea" article is pretty bad, misinformed journalism, almost on the verge of trolling

Originally posted by MetalFatigue:

I think this can be a revolutionary technology. My major concern is with security, like a previous poster said. How are you guys addressing this?

As I said, we will have something out to address this very soon.

Originally posted by MetalFatigue:

One Last question, just came to my mind. Was the torrent implementation in opera 9.5 a way to test some P2P communication for this feature (thinking ahead)? or are they completely independent?

Lol - they are independent. We've had a torrent implementation since about Opera 8 ;-)

By chrismills Wednesday, 17. June 2009, 06:54:00

Originally posted by cakruege:

If I need my own webserver, I install a webserver with Dyndns it's trivial to usebut in most cases I can use online space. It's free and much faster than my own asymmetric connection.If I'd like to share data privately I use an VPN.If I'd like to chat I use a multi network chat client.

You are missing the point, totally.

First, you can do all those things with a single browser, and not need to install anything else. Secondly, these initial applications are just there to give a first glimpse at how Unite works - they do not represent the limit of it's potential. Far from it in fact. Read MetalFatigue's posting, and check out the top article on http://labs.opera.com.

By ppass Wednesday, 17. June 2009, 09:38:30

I use a synchronisation software called SyncBack SE. For the time being, I sync files from 2 computers on the same home network.

I am wondering if Opera Unite can be combined with sync software such as SyncBack SE to sync 2 computers via Internet (not necesseraly on the same home network)?

If so, what is the level of security of this tool?

By ppass Wednesday, 17. June 2009, 13:01:40

I wonder what kind of security I have if I access the Internet from an UN-encrypted public wifi hotspot. I heard that anyone can see the URLs of web pages I am browsing to.

So when I connect to Opera Unite web browser through

http://home.login_name.operaunite.com/webserver/access_content/password

then the password detail is in plain letters. The page is not even secured (https). So anybody can catch the address and access my files...

Can I expect in the short term a solution with increased security such as password encryption / secure page (https)?

By MetalFatigue Wednesday, 17. June 2009, 19:50:12

Originally posted by chrismills:

Lol - they are independent. We've had a torrent implementation since about Opera 8 ;-)

I was wrong has to the version of the implementation of bittorrent, but I think you are too. It was with the release of 9.0. Maybe not internally, but us users just saw it with 9. I remember it being implemented in a newer version and it couldn't be 8, because that was the version I started using opera.

I just thought it could have been something for this because I feel the bittorrent in opera was poor feature(and still is), this would diminish this feeling...too bad lol

By DigitalRaven Friday, 19. June 2009, 06:18:12

Additional features I would like to see: level of access to users/groups that I provision to different services, whitelists and blacklists that can be mixed and matched as people need, SSL everywhere. Yes, I know there's an overhead for it, but I wouldn't use it a lot otherwise. I would start it, limited share my file, call my friend, have her get it right then, and turn it off.

If there was a way to use it without operaunite.com, either direct p2p (by ip address), or set up and host our own operaunite replacement, then we could use it on our lan networks. Awesome for gaming lans, sharing between computers on the same network, etc.

Leaving my computer on is no more of a drawback than to run any other similar service from your system. The person who mentioned environmental concerns with Unite better get their priorities straight. Focus on the computers, not the tech running on them. That argument would have never allowed the internet to grow to where it is. If they took their own advice - they wouldn't be online to post. :-)

I would love to see this become the way to create my "personal internet". Some people are screaming about security, but I don't see how this is any greater a risk than the services Unite could replace. Social networking comes with security and privacy issues also. Unite could make it personal... where my sharing consists of only the people I want - no third party intervention or whatever.

Personal chat, personal file sharing, etc. With a services gallery, Opera Unite sounds like it could be exactly what I want from the web.

In fact, the biggest issue might be my ISP's upload speed.

Great concept, great innovation, keep it up! Looking forward to seeing it when it ships.

By alrescha Friday, 19. June 2009, 21:27:14

I'd like to be able to have SSL and authenticated access for all aspects of Unite, not just media. I've no use for it unless I can whitelist who has access - right down to the homepage.

I do this already on OS X Server, but it would be great to have an easy-to-use platform for friends.

In any case, congratulations for a great idea!

A.

By jax Saturday, 20. June 2009, 11:04:09

Originally posted by opasek:

Dear Opera developers,thank you for your relentless improvments of my favorite browser.This Opera Unite feature makes me quite nervous. You encourage people to share their content from their home PCs, that means, to leave them on all the time or a lot of time at least, while not actively using them.

Now you are doubleposting, posting the same message in multiple forums. This is against forum rules, and annoying to booth. Please don't do that again.

The issue is real, I have replied to it, but please keep the discussion in one thread, and for now this thread may be the best one.

By ctlance Sunday, 21. June 2009, 15:10:32

OK, after using Unite for a while I'm pretty impressed with it.

Granted, I'd have liked to be notified in much more obvious ways about the data gathering going on (e.g the UPnP logging in the media player).

function logUPNPReport( canDirectConnect )
{
var url = 'http://xml.opera.com/unite/upnpreport/' + (canDirectConnect?'success':'failure') + '/';
doRequest( url );
}

Then there's the problem that the Flash based media player is utter tripe (at least on MacOS/PPC, for the love of all that is good please implement some sort of HTML5 solution ASAP, I don't care if it's still a draft or not, Flash is nuts on non-Windows platforms). I love listening to music, but if my instance of Opera eats up 80% of my 1.8GHz CPU just to play a friggen MP3 from the OCremix collection, this suddenly loses a lot of its appeal. I wonder whether this spectacular nonperformance is due to the instance of 9.64 running in the background, or shoddy coding in the flash applet/plugin.

The server itself is rather fragile and panics whenever my IP changes - and that happens once every 24 hours. I'm getting used to seeing the yellow triangle on the Unite icon... and there have been instances where friends were directed to the "local user gate page" in spite of opening the page from the net, which makes me a bit queasy.
As I have stated before, there is quite a big security risk in opening the machine running Opera to the net, and all these features need to be thoroughly tested and 200% bugfree. The server and javascript engine absolutely need to be walled off from the rest of the system, so that even a worst case scenario won't allow others access to my M2 mail client, the wand passwords, and chat logs - not to mention local files and/or services. This is seriously tricky business.

Since this is a beta, these concerns are to be expected though, and the future of this holds much promise. Good work guys, this is a solid and intriguing proof-of-concept demo. Good luck in improving it into an actually usable product.

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An introduction to Opera Unite