@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
1−:- ~[comments+&]
21;>
32# What is an Urbit ID?
43
@@ -6,7 +5,7 @@ An Urbit ID is like an account on the Urbit network. You can’t use Urbit witho
65
76Every active Urbit ID has a number of properties:
87
9−- `@p` (pronounced pat-pee) - A permanent, unique identifier, e.g. ~zod or ~midlev-mindyr.
8+- `@p` (pronounced pat-pee) - A permanent, unique identifier, e.g. `~zod` or `~midlev-mindyr`.
109 This often functions like a username or email address.
1110 Every `@p` is equivalent to a number ≥ 0 and > 256¹⁶, with longer `@p`s giving larger numbers.
1211 The length of a `@p` indicates what class of ID it is.
@@ -15,13 +14,42 @@ Every active Urbit ID has a number of properties:
1514- Public and Private Keys - These allow you to cryptographically prove your ownership of an ID.
1615 This is a bit like having a password for an account, or signing a document.
1716 All messages on Urbit are automatically signed and verified, so you know they’re authentic.
18− [Read More](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/keys.html)
1917
2018- Ship - A ship is an Urbit computer, which is always tied to the Urbit ID it was booted with.
2119 When you boot Urbit for the first time, you provide your keys and we call this booting a “ship”.
2220 When you use this computer on the network, you are “piloting” your “ship”.
2321 Your ship stores all your data and apps.
2422
23+## Azimuth Points
24+
25+An [Azimuth point](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/azimuth.html) is an Urbit ID which is secured on the Ethereum blockchain.
26+Azimuth points are NFTs, governed by the Azimuth smart contracts.
27+Owning an Azimuth point lets you reset your [keys](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/keys.html),
28+spawn new IDs, and transfer ownership to someone else, among other things.
29+
30+When Ethereum got popular and transactions became very expensive a
31+[Layer 2 solution](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/l2.html)
32+was developed (commonly called "L2"), which allows Azimuth points to be spawned, transferred,
33+etc. basically for free.
34+
35+### Spawning and Sponsoring
36+
37+By thinking about possible combinations of syllables, we can predict every Urbit ID that might exist.
38+But galaxies, stars, and planets, being Azimuth points, don't come into existence until
39+a transaction is posted to Azimuth which explicitly "spawns" that point.
40+
41+All 256 galaxies have already been spawned. Those galaxies can spawn stars.
42+Those stars can spawn planets. Planets can't spawn anything, but all Azimuth points can
43+create moons, which is sometimes called "spawning" even though it's not done through Azimuth.
44+
45+By default, a galaxy will sponsor any stars it spawns, and a star will sponsor any planets it spawns.
46+This means helping route network traffic between the sponsee and other ships, providing OTA (over the air)
47+software updates, and potentially providing other services.
48+
49+A sponsee (star or planet) may choose to leave their sponsor and find another one. Conversely,
50+a sponsor (galaxy or star) may choose to de-sponsor their sponsee or sponsor additional points
51+which they didn't spawn. This lets the network hierarchy adjust itself in case someone misbehaves.
52+
2553## Classes of Urbit ID
2654
2755There are 5 classes of Urbit ID:
@@ -32,40 +60,59 @@ There are 5 classes of Urbit ID:
3260[Comet](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/comet.html).
3361
3462Galaxies, stars, and planets are [Azimuth points](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/azimuth.html),
35−and work very similarly.
63+and are therefore very similar anatomically, although they have different roles.
3664Moons and comets are a bit different.
3765
66+### Galaxies (e.g. `~bus`)
3867
39−### Azimuth Points
68+Galaxies are the rarest and highest ranking class of ID, as there are only 256 of them.
69+Together, they form the Galactic Senate.
70+Galaxies help route communication on the network, and each one can spawn 255 stars.
4071
41−An [Azimuth point](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/azimuth.html) is just an Urbit ID which is secured on the Ethereum blockchain.
42−Galaxies, stars, and planets are NFTs, governed by the Azimuth smart contract.
43−Owning an Azimuth point lets you reset your keys, spawn new IDs, and transfer ownership
44−to someone else, among other things.
72+[Read More](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/galaxy.html)
4573
46−When Ethereum got popular and transactions became very expensive, a
47−[Layer 2 solution]((/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/l2.html))
48−was developed (commonly called "L2"), which allows Azimuth points to be spawned, transferred,
49−etc. basically for free.
74+### Stars (e.g. `~batbus`)
75+
76+Stars are fairly scarce and valuable—a natural fit for businesses, communities, or other organizations.
77+Each star can spawn 65,535 planets, and provides network routing, software updates,
78+and other services for the planets it sponsors.
79+Stars can also choose to de-sponsor planets which abuse the network.
80+Stars are NFTs, but they can be exchanged 1:1 for WSTR at [star.market](https://star.market/),
81+and you can trade fractional amounts of WSTR for ETH [on Uniswap V3](https://info.uniswap.org/#/pools/0x7f4a0822a6e3c085df795a8d78acbcd36f210ebf).
82+
83+[Read More](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/star.html)
84+
85+### Planets (e.g. `~midlev-mindyr`)
5086
51−### Moons
87+There are about 4.3 billion potential planets, so while they are not unlimited, they are
88+widely accessible for the average user. Most people pilot a planet or a moon when using Urbit.
89+As planets are the lowest rank of Azimuth point, they cannot spawn other points. Like galaxies
90+and stars, however, they can create moons.
91+
92+[Read More](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/planet.html)
93+
94+### Moons (e.g. `~poster-hoster-midlev-mindyr` (`~midlev^mindyr` for short))
5295
5396Moons are created, owned, and controlled by a parent ID, either a galaxy, star, or planet.
5497Moons are free and easy to create, and each Azimuth point can create about 4 billion.
5598Moons can use the Urbit network just like any other ID, but they are inextricably linked to their parents.
99+
56100[Read More](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/moon.html)
57101
58−### Comets
102+### Comets (e.g. `~dirbec-morfeb-ritlys-timsef--padnum-mapnep-nolfel-binzod` (`~dirbec_binzod` for short))
59103
60104Comets are essentially unlimited, and can be created for free by anyone.
61105They're good for new people exploring the network, operating somewhat anonymously,
62−and testing things out. However, the keys for a comet can't be changed, so they are
106+and testing things out. However, the keys for a comet can't be changed, so it's not
63107not a viable long-term ID. Also, since anyone can boot a comet, comets might be viewed
64108with distrust in some contexts.
65109
66−# Further Reading:
110+[Read More](/~/scry/docs/usr/astrolabe/comet.html)
111+
112+# Further Reading
67113
68114- [A more technical overview](https://urbit.org/using/id/overview)
69115- From the Operator’s Guide:
70116 [Which ID should I buy?](https://operators.urbit.org/guides/which-id-should-i-buy)
71117- [Azimuth FAQ](https://azimuth.network/#faq)
118+- [Understanding Urbit ID](https://urbit.org/understanding-urbit/urbit-id)