On publishing and the doc web…
A thread of thoughts on websites, documents, metaphors of post and page, and the aliveness of the web.
xperimental post, adapted from twitter/bluesky thread…maybe better here! TBD: sharing little excerpts with prompts…
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A series of thoughts on publishing and the "doc web", related to new explorations with Leaflet:
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There's fluid space between documents and websites — bound by a common metaphor: "the page".
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Pages can be left on a desk, stapled to a wall, bound in a book…endlessly malleable.
Pages can combine with other pages; become other things.
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Sometimes we think of pages as "posts"; a post is a page with strong identity/purpose, embedded in time.
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Sequences of pages form narratives, which can be internal, or long arcs unfolding over time…like a blog.
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Pages can be moved between contexts, between private and public spaces or homes.
There's great value in making it easy to "just" make a page, and then "just" publish it.
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Pages can be part of living organisms: documents, sites, collections that grow and evolve.
This feeling of aliveness is what makes the web feel vibrant, connected.
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Participating in the life of the web is an infinite game.
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There are countless ways to participate, from small collaborative circles, to networks of writers in conversation over years.
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Pages and posts can be self-contained, but take on new life when embedded meaningfully in larger, more durable contexts.
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The page, too, can be a space to play!
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Page-making; publishing: such acts are limited only by one's creativity, but can be amplified by one's tools.
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When a page transforms from surface to shareable artifact: a momentous turn.
When shared, pages can be made more or less legible; there's value at both ends of the spectrum.
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On the internet, docs and pages can be constantly refreshed, renewed, reinvented.
The life of a page is multiplied each time it links to, and is linked by, others.
A page that's alive, then, lives within a neighborhood, belongs to a local community as well as a wider culture.
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We have the capacity to imbue pages with more possibility, with richer life.
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