October 17th, 2021: Making sure Gemini doesn't fail

Like many others in Geminispace, that the discussion on perhaps extending Gemini has opened up again bothers me. I really enjoyed feeling that I was dealing with a protocol that was practically done and was now just there for us to enjoy. I am not going to deny that I too have at times been tempted to wish for at least italics in gemtext but I have come to respect how much the minimalistic nature of gemtext has come to define Gemini. Much like Twitter's original character limit was a limitation that fostered a new style of expression and creativity, Gemini too I believe is getting a flavor of its own due to the limitations of gemtext. For something this niche, why not just enjoy this unique flavor and move content that doesn't fit it to platforms better suited for it?

But what if we could have our cake and eat it too? Skyjake's most recent gemlog [1] offers an interesting solution to wanting more from Gemini. The idea that the same content could be served in multiple formats to suit the tastes of writers and readers was exciting. I began to think about how I could have a link at the bottom of an article, pointing to a Markdown version for those who were interested and even began thinking about how this would let me see first hand how writing in Gemtext affected my writings as compared to a pure Markdown version. That was until I got to the penultimate paragraph.

skyjake's gemlog: Not a Zero-Sum Game

The idea was about servers evolving to serve content depending upon, I assume, some configuration in clients that too subscribe to this model. The jump from making the most of the spec to this complexity jolted me out of being swept away by the sweet allure of Markdown. Yes, this doesn't change the protocol but that doesn't change the very real risks, as evidenced by the very next and final paragraph.

If the most popular clients begin to take this approach, then even if it's true that Geminispace isn't vulnerable to the kind of monopoly that the web is with Chrome, it creates a rift. And once a rift, one such as this which cannot be bridged appears, there's nothing to keep it from growing wider. Skyjake put it best though when they said,

> I suppose that is always a risk, especially with more popular clients putting their foot on the scale, but if that happens it signals a failure of the Gemini philosophy to attract a committed following.

I believe that makes it abundantly clear that's what's at stake here. So let's stand firm on this, reaffirm our commitment and make sure that Gemini doesn't fail and remains this simple and beautiful thing that so many of us have come to cherish.

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CC0 low-key, 2021-10-17

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