Pay-As-You-Read Thesis

This is a demo blog application that showcases how a pay-as-you-read model can be implemented using the Lightning Network. The application consists of a client application and a server application. The client application allows users to buy individual paragraphs of blog posts, while the server application handles the payment processing and content delivery.

How it works

The pay-as-you-read model is implemented using the Lightning Network, a layer-2 payment protocol that allows for fast and cheap payments using Bitcoin. Users of the demo application need to have a Lightning Network wallet to be able to purchase paragraphs. We suggest that users use Alby, a Lightning Network wallet that is easy to use and has a user-friendly interface.

How to run the application

The client application is a React application that can be run using the following commands:

cd client
npm install
npm run dev

The server application is a Node.js application that can be run using the following commands:

cd server
npm install
npm run dev

You will also need a Lightning Network account for the server. We suggest that you create one here and place your address inside the server's .env file.

Lastly the user will need a LN wallet with a funded account. For this purpose he can add a funded test account - like the ones found here - to his wallet.

Future goals

We believe that abstracting this functionality into a JavaScript library-SDK will allow developers to easily integrate this pay-as-you-read feature into their applications.