Informal spec proposal to replace HTML with a simpler, strictly versioned, no-script document format capped at 1.44 MiB compressed.
Key Takeaways
Spec size would be hard-capped at 1.44 MiB (compressed tar.gz), mirroring Dillo’s floppy-disk release discipline.
Semantic versioning (e.g. 1.2.3) replaces the current rolling HTML spec, letting authors target a frozen, printable standard.
Strict formal grammar means non-conforming pages are rejected outright, no error-correction parsing.
No scripting by design; interactivity delegated to native clients via protocol links (e.g. Geo URIs for maps).
Goal is a text-first document exchange layer, not a feature clone of the Web.
Hacker News Comment Review
The strict-parse-or-reject rule drew the sharpest pushback: commenters immediately compared it to XHTML, which failed partly because it offered devs no new capabilities while adding conformance burden.
Commenters split on the no-scripting stance: one faction sees scripting as unavoidable for anything beyond static text; another points to Gemini as evidence that document-only protocols have real security and simplicity value.
The author (rodarima, Dillo contributor) replied directly, framing the project as a personal fun build rather than a standards-body effort, which reframes the viability criticism considerably.
Notable Comments
@altairprime: Reports a month of browsing with JS disabled by default; most sites remained usable, with battery life as a measurable side benefit.
@tekne: Argues scripting via WebAssembly with capability restrictions would be safer than no scripting, and avoids forcing every browser to ship a built-in map viewer.
