Following documentation taken after two translations (Discord to Google Doc to…)
ada
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29/04/2025 16:59
the first rule is that this has to be read by other people later, so only text probably.
02 May 2025
Nickles
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02/05/2025 12:03
the first rule is that this has to be read by other people later, so only text probably.
I’m not sure if this breaks the first rule already. Does a quote count still as text? It’s probably alright for now.
Rules for the grammar, formatting, structure of text are quoted or indented for legibility
I realise that’s already a slightly woolly rule! ‘quoted OR indented’?! Which one is it? Do they mean different things? It leaves room for implications to grow.
03 May 2025
ada
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03/05/2025 11:17
I’ll match your capitalisation.
Does a quote count still as text?
I’m not sure quotes, when run through Discord, still are just plain text. Perhaps we should be recording in a Markdown format?
Rules for the grammar, formatting, structure of text are quoted or indented for legibility
I take issue with this merging of rules and block quotations, and hopefully this very message demonstrates why: is the above me quoting your statement of the rule, or me restating the rule? I do very much like this idea of a separate format for stating rules, however. Personally I lean towards the > Markdown feature being used only for quotations—perhaps it resembles online forums to me?—and us finding a new format for stating rules.
ada
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03/05/2025 11:25
Ah, a discovery! If I copy-paste my above message into a plaintext editor, I get the following output:
I’ll match your capitalisation.
> Does a quote count still as text?
I’m not sure quotes, when run through Discord, still are just plain text. Perhaps we should be recording in a Markdown format?
> Rules for the grammar, formatting, structure of text are quoted or indented for legibility
I take issue with this merging of rules and block quotations, and hopefully this very message demonstrates why: is the above me quoting your statement of the rule, or me restating the rule? I do very much like this idea of a separate format for stating rules, however. Personally I lean towards the `>` Markdown feature being used only for quotations—perhaps it resembles online forums to me?—and us finding a new format for stating rules.
So it seems as if you can recover Markdown from Discord messages! This doesn’t necessarily prove that Discord is storing our messages as Markdown however; it might instead only be converting to and from its own internal format, which could be a lossy process. This, along with many other aspects of using this proprietary platform, concerns me when it comes to the proper long-term preservation of our collaborative work here. I think there are discussions to be had regarding alternative spaces for this conversation; do any come to mind for you?
09 May 2025
Nickles
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09/05/2025 18:32
I’m fascinated now by the idea of lossy processes within this communication thread (wherever it may go (conceptually and literally)
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18:34
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In terms of alternate spaces for conversing. I wonder what would happen if we took the whole logged conversation with us into new platforms. What would happen if we copied everything when we moved, and moved frequently!
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18:34
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Like, lugging all your books when you move house
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18:35
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I’m not proposing a new rule just yet, so no markdown needed, but practically I agree that it works better than quotes. Though, what should we use if we need both a quote and a rule, as well as plain text, in a message?
Ada: I have attempted to lug our books into a new house and I already hate this house. In fairness I’ve done the equivalent of just shoving the books into a pile in the corner.
Ada: I’ve also now made it far harder for us going forward. For example, I haven’t described in text what I have just done, and unless I say in text then that will be lost to time. Are we okay with that, or will we consider adding commentary to previous messages?
Ada: … and how do you feel about a git repo?