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       iWhat makes gopher special
       iMarch 05th, 2018
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       i
       iFirst an apology is due to ckeen [0] who I didn't realize was all
       iover this gopher thing. He was even kind enough to link to burrow
       iin a recent phlog. Thanks to jynx for referencing him so I could
       idiscover what I was missing.
       i
       ickeen recently wrote [1] about what makes gopher special to him.
       iHe and jynx [2] nail it pretty well when they talk about the
       isimplicity, creator/consumer dynamic, and signal to noise ratio.
       iI like the intentionality of it all as well. You don't just
       iaccidentally create a gopher hole. You didn't just click a link to
       ioAuth somewhere and start posting nonsense. You chose to create an
       iaccount somewhere that offered a gopher server, or you rolled your
       iown. You sat there with the text editor crafting your message.
       iIt's simple, yes, but it's also much more complicated. 
       i
       iIn a sense, the technology itself and its relatively esoteric and
       iretro nature create a sort of gatekeeper. Gatekeeping is generally
       iused in a negative conotation these days, but I think this type of
       inatural systems gatekeeping is different. It's not prejudiced
       iagainst a people or person for identity, but for intent, will, and
       iinterest. The technology hurdles aren't that high to say you have
       ito be a coder to make it work. Cat [3], for instance, has one of
       ithe prettiest gopher holes and he does everything by hand using
       ithe simplest tools. In place of fancy coding proficiency he has
       idemonstrated excellent interest and will to build Fax Sex.
       i
       iI love nerdy communities when they're seething with excitement and
       iintention. I hate nerdy communities when they're filled with
       icriticism, angst, and envy. Gopher satisifes the first group well
       iand avoids the second. Perhaps it is as jynx says, a side effect
       iof no comments. Perhaps it's just the community by chance. Maybe
       iit's a side effect of the manual execution? You can't do
       ia drive-by trolling on gopher, after all. Once you sink in the
       itime to get set up, you're part of things.
       i
       iAt the end of the day, I guess it all boils down to content.
       iThere's a lot of people on here that are doing interesting things.
       iSometimes it's computer related and sometimes not, but that
       iexceptional drive to "do" things is contagious and I love it.
       i
       
   DIR [0] ckeen's gopher hole
  TEXT [1] ckeen - What makes gopher special for me
  TEXT [2] jynx - On the specialness of gopher
   DIR [3] Fax Sex (cat)