Zef

I'll drop this idea again: a pure Markdown version of the web. The Web 0.5 if you will. No fancy markup, lay-outs, popups, GDPR notices, or scary tracking. Just content. Wouldn't that be nice?

I'm suggesting Markdown over plain text to still allow things like headings, emphasis and other semantic markup (and images of course). A subset of HTML would also do. HTML 1.0?

Nov 7, 2022 at 3:15pmWeb
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
Secretly I'm already creating this, e.g. see https://silverbullet.md/changelog/ and https://silverbullet.md/changelog.md
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
Which you can browse using #SilverBullet. If you have SB running on localhost:3000 this works: http://localhost:3000/%F0%9F%92%AD_silverbullet.md/CHANGELOG
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
Leaving aside that Mastodon doesn't like URLs with emojis apparently 😅
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
Screenshot
Show threadDoug HoltonNov 7, 2022
@zef I've been able to test it out in the browser using gitpod: https://gitpod.io/#https://github.com/silverbulletmd/silverbullet Then click on the server watcher process tab and control-click on the localhost:3000 link to test it. Great work so far! You might also be interested in the Agora work by @flancian for aggregating across multiple markdown #pkm git repositories https://anagora.org/
Show threadAn AgoraNov 7, 2022
@dougholton @flancian
https://anagora.org/pkm
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
@flancian @dougholton Thanks! I’ll have look at Anagora.
Show threadIn #Flancia we'll meetNov 8, 2022

@zef @dougholton [[silver bullet]] looks very cool, congrats Zef! I'll give it a try as an editor for my garden soon. And thank you Doug for the connection :)

@agora

Show threadAn AgoraNov 8, 2022
@flancian @zef @dougholton
https://anagora.org/silver+bullet
[[silver bullet]] at anagora.org

The Agora is a free knowledge commons: anagora.org.

Show threadAn AgoraNov 7, 2022
@zef
https://anagora.org/SilverBullet
[[silverbullet]] - anagora.org

The Agora is a crowdsourced distributed knowledge graph: anagora.org.

Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
I should probably be a bit more specific when I say "the web." This would clearly not replace the entire web, I'd rather scope it to the "content web." Not web apps.
Show threadMartijn Faassen has movedNov 7, 2022
@zef this reminds me https://gemini.circumlunar.space/ in particular gemini/text
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
@faassen yeah, I bet this is not a new idea (coming out of frustration with the abysmal state of the current "content web"). However clicking that link I also realize that making it look attractive is going to be critical to its success. Green background are a put off ;)
Show threadMartijn Faassen has movedNov 7, 2022
@zef With Gemini, like the old web the rendering is up to the client. The Ariane mobile browser, now defunct I think, made things look nicer
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
@faassen right, yeah to me that should to be the model: leaving the presentation part up to the user's preference. Indeed like the good ol' browser days. Today we use reader apps or a browser's reader mode for this, but it ought to be the default.
Show threadDouglas CreagerNov 7, 2022

@zef Have you seen #Gemini?
https://gemini.circumlunar.space/

Its aims are similar to what you describe, though it pares down even more on the allowed markup. (No span-level markup within a paragraph, clients/users decide whether to automatically show image links, etc)

But I love it! It's a breath of fresh air, and I use it for my note-taking:
gemini://notes.dcreager.net/
https://notes.dcreager.net/

Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
@dcreager Yeah, @faassen just suggested it as well. I'll have a close look, thanks!
Show threadMarius Gundersen - mdg 🌻Nov 7, 2022
@zef like a markdown page, that would be really fast since there is no js to block the content from showing up? We could call it A Markdown Page (AMP) and make it a standard...
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
@gundersen Sounds like excellent branding, I'm sure it's not in use 🤡
Show threadRui CarmoNov 7, 2022
@zef The Gemini folk _nearly_ did that, then fumbled the markup choice.
Show threadmccNov 7, 2022
@zef @Migueldeicaza Gopher 2.0
Show threadcomrade porcupineNov 7, 2022
@zef sounds a bit like Gopher
Show threadJonas NordlundNov 7, 2022

@zef Yeah this sounds kinda like Gemini / smolnet stuff?

But I'm unsure why they didn't just go with Markdown indeed. Imagine being able to use existing, local, editors like Typora etc. as page editors. Heck you could upload your entire Obsidian folder to a "Markweb" server and suddenly your personal knowledge base would be online with no edits necessary.

Personal themes in such a browser would also be simple to write and it would all look coherent due to no overrides.

Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
@jono “Markweb” I like.
Show threadJyveNov 7, 2022
@zef And simple tables instead of CSS? I'm all for it.
Show threadIta RyanNov 7, 2022
@zef Yeah that's the web I wrote my first website for in the mid nineties. Although I think I was using HTML 2 which may be a bit too fancy for you. There was none of this CSS nonsense. JavaScript etc were not invented yet or at least were not in any of my books.
Basically the web back then was a huge pile of brochures.
Show threadMichael Downey 🧢Nov 7, 2022
@zef so gemini?
Show threadn3wjackNov 7, 2022
@zef Does it have blink? If not, I don't want it.
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
@n3wjack no, we have to invent a markdown notation for marquee though.
Show threadSimonNov 7, 2022
@zef afaik Gemini is a similar idea.
Show threadiscNov 7, 2022
@zef off topic, but oh my god, silver bullet looks aaaawesome! 🥳
Just learned about it, definitely something I'll set up at my home in the not-so-far future.
Show threadZefNov 7, 2022
@isc saying #SilverBullet is awesome is never off topic.
Show threadlpachecoNov 7, 2022
@zef what about calling it Gopher 2.0?
Show threadCwiiisNov 7, 2022
@zef Gopher still exists and has the benefit of being feasibly browsable on practically any computer you can get on the internet, including old 8-bit micros. I'd love to see that take off...
Show threadNerdz LordNov 8, 2022
@zef i believe that was RSS, but the ads industry killed it...
Show threadMiguelNov 21, 2022
@zef would projects like [gopher](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gopher_(protocol)) or [gemini](https://gemini.circumlunar.space/) fit that idea?
Gopher (protocol) - Wikipedia

Show threadZefNov 21, 2022
@mgdelacroix to some extent yes.
Show threadMiguelNov 21, 2022
@zef and here is me thinking that Mastodon interprets Markdown 🤦‍♂️
Show threadZefNov 21, 2022
@mgdelacroix I’m sure you can write a client that does.
Show threadMiguelNov 21, 2022
@zef SilverBullet integration maybe?
Show threadZefNov 21, 2022
@mgdelacroix https://github.com/silverbulletmd/silverbullet/issues/112
Mastodon plug · Issue #112 · silverbulletmd/silverbullet

Mastodon is picking up steam and I think SilverBullet can be an interesting client. At the minimum it would be great to compose “toot” (tweet) threads and post them straight from SilverBullet, e.g....

GitHub
Show threadMiguelNov 21, 2022
@zef should have seen that one coming!