2026-06-08 13:55:27 +02:00
# research/
Exploration results for the problem and solution space.
Each exploration uses a `yymmdd-` prefix on the markdown file or subdirectory
when multiple files or sources are involved. Findings here inform `spec/` and
`SCOPE.md` ; they do not directly authorize implementation until promoted.
## Active Explorations
| Date | Path | Summary |
|------|------|---------|
2026-06-08 14:05:59 +02:00
| 2026-06-08 | `260608-yawex-prior-art/` | yawex 0.7.4 Perl wiki prior art; federation design seeds |
2026-06-08 14:43:13 +02:00
| 2026-06-08 | `260608-c2-wiki-origins/` | Ward Cunningham & WikiWikiWeb origins; terms and use cases |
| 2026-06-08 | `260608-federation-concepts/` | Federated Wiki, git/ActivityPub/Xanadu federation models |
2026-06-14 01:24:45 +02:00
| 2026-06-08 | `260608-wikiengines-overview/` | Wiki engine landscape survey (Perplexity-assisted) |
| 2026-06-13 | `260613-xwiki-deep-dive/` | XWiki impl, extension interfaces, ecosystem; UC-38/39 |
| 2026-06-13 | `260613-twiki-deep-dive/` | TWiki impl, plugin API, ecosystem; UC-40/41 |
| 2026-06-13 | `260613-foswiki-deep-dive/` | Foswiki store abstraction, extension API; UC-42/43 |
2026-06-14 02:14:04 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-xanadu-deep-dive/` | Project Xanadu — EDL/reference-not-copy, transclusion, addressing; UC-44/45/46 |
research: Roam Research deep dive (block-graph DataScript DB, transclusion, datalog, Roam Depot extension API); UC-50/51/52
The modern bookend to the Xanadu/ZigZag dives: where those are unbuilt
ideals, Roam shipped fine-grained addressing (:block/uid), live
transclusion (block embeds), bidirectional links, and a queryable
structured space (DataScript datoms + Datalog). Studied as a candidate
DB-backed/API-attached shard (XWiki family) and as a concrete
engine-hosts-adapter surface (Roam Depot onload/onunload over
window.roamAlphaAPI). Added UC-50 (attach block-graph DB shard, block<->page
mapping), UC-51 (adopt native span IDs as portable span addresses), UC-52
(delegate derived views to a shard's native query engine); enriched
UC-32/34/35/38. Boundary: Roam is one candidate shard mapped into the
Markdown-first page model, not a substrate and not the federation layer.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 11:36:50 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-zigzag-deep-dive/` | ZigZag/zzstructure — information space as orthogonal dimensions; UC-47/48/49 |
research: Obsidian deep dive (file-over-app vaults, plugin API, ecosystem-popularity signal); UC-53/54/55/56
The most INTENT-aligned tool yet and the file-backed counterpart to Roam:
file-over-app vaults (plain .md folders, files canonical, MetadataCache a
derived index), in-file git-diffable addressing/structure (^block-id,
wikilink embeds, YAML frontmatter), and a plugin API (Plugin onload/onunload
over App.vault/metadataCache/workspace) that doubles as an adapter host —
so a vault is dual-attachable (file-store direct or in-app plugin). Mined
the plugin download rankings as demand evidence per the research brief:
#1 is drawings (Excalidraw, non-Markdown content), query-as-DB
(Dataview/Tasks) is top-tier but an add-on, Git is top-7 (bolt-on history),
Remotely Save shows sync-to-anywhere demand. Added UC-53 (attach local
vault w/ live concurrent native editor), UC-54 (query-defined dynamic
page), UC-55 (non-Markdown content types), UC-56 (outbound publish of a
projection); enriched UC-15/28/34/36/40/51/52. Boundary: a vault is one
file-backed candidate shard, not the federation layer and not a file-sync
target.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 12:51:22 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-roam-deep-dive/` | Roam Research — block-graph DataScript DB, transclusion, datalog, Roam Depot extension API; UC-50/51/52 |
research: Notion deep dive (closed block-DB SaaS, external REST API only, database-as-pages); UC-57/58/59
The closed/hosted/schema-rich extreme: everything is a block (UUID id,
type, properties, ordered child content, single parent), pages are blocks
and database rows are pages with a schema, Postgres-backed hosted SaaS.
Databases add typed properties + relations + rollups + formulas across
many views = the apex of wiki-page-as-structured-record. Extension model
has no in-app plugin runtime; the only extensibility is the external REST
API (+ webhooks 2026) inside a tight envelope (~3 rps, eventual
consistency, recursive child fetch, scoped/revocable per-page grants).
Adds the third attachment mode (external-API-only) alongside file-store
(Obsidian/TWiki) and in-engine host (Roam/XWiki); Notion enforces no
silent remote mutation via scoped grants. Added UC-57 (attach closed
external-API-only shard w/ operational envelope + scoped grant), UC-58
(typed database w/ schema+relations+views, no flattening), UC-59
(lossy-aware translation w/ fidelity report); enriched
UC-31/34/36/39/50/51/52/54/56. Boundary: one external-API candidate shard,
best as projection/mirror/overlay/backup, not a substrate and not the
federation layer.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 13:44:09 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-obsidian-deep-dive/` | Obsidian — file-over-app vaults, plugin API, ecosystem-popularity → UC signal; UC-53/54/55/56 |
synthesis: shard spectrum across nine systems; fold into SHARD-WP-0002 (T11 eleven spectra, new T16)
Cross-dive synthesis (research/260614-shard-spectrum-synthesis/) reading
the two Nelson conceptual systems, four engines, and three modern tools
across each other: a shard family matrix and eleven capability spectra
(addressing, content identity, structure, history, native query,
translation, attachment mode, operational envelope, access grant, write
granularity, content types) — positions anchored at both ends by a real
system, federation ops degrading by position. Through-lines:
files-canonical/index-derived wins; fine-grained addressing is adoptable;
transclusion=clone=embed is one primitive; structure/history federate iff
in-text; attach mode is a per-binding choice; Notion proves the platform
can enforce no-silent-mutation.
Folded into SHARD-WP-0002: T11 reframed around the eleven spectra; T12
page model stretched four ways (prose + typed records + non-Markdown
assets + query-defined); T13 adds Notion supplement; T14 rewritten as the
three-mode attachment taxonomy (file-store / in-engine-host /
external-API); T15 adds lossy-with-fidelity-report; new T16 (addressing,
content identity, dimensional/query navigation). UC coverage UC-34-43 ->
UC-34-59. Workplan now 16 tasks. No new UCs (synthesis only).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 14:01:49 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-notion-deep-dive/` | Notion — closed block-DB SaaS, external REST API only, database-as-pages; UC-57/58/59 |
research: shard-spectrum synthesis v3 (folds SHARD-WP-0003 batch)
Extends the capability model to the nine WP-0003 engines (~23 systems total).
Per-shard spectra 13 -> 14 (adds provenance granularity); refines merge-model
(+fork/journal-replay, +coexist-with-rank), attachment-mode (+git-IS-store,
+container, +direct-DB, +REST/file-store-hybrid, +external-API payload-format
facet), native-query (+SPARQL/RDF far-end), history (+DB-rows, +partial),
structure (+typed-graph, +inline-embedded objects), content-opacity
(+lossy-exportable), write-granularity (+story-item, +section-anchor).
Headline: new federation-model taxonomy (S2.5) -- federation is plural
(fork+journal / VCS-replication+ping / query-time graph join / feed
aggregation / activity streams / engine-mirror), a selectable/composable
coordination-layer axis feeding SHARD-WP-0002 T1-T6. Folds UC-68-82 into the
workplan; no new UCs, no INTENT boundary change.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 21:35:43 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-shard-spectrum-synthesis/` | Synthesis (v3) — shard family matrix + **fourteen** capability spectra across ~23 systems + **federation-model taxonomy** (fork+journal / VCS-replication+ping / query-join / engine-mirror); feeds SHARD-WP-0002 T1– T6 + T11– T16 |
research: Logseq deep dive (block-graph on plain Markdown files, in-file block IDs, derived Datalog index); UC-62/63
Occupies the point the other modern tools leave empty: block-graph
semantics (UUID-addressable, embeddable, queryable blocks) stored as plain
Markdown/Org files on disk, with a DataScript graph derived from the files
(files canonical, index derived). The bridge between Roam (block-DB) and
Obsidian (file-over-app). Headline finding: Logseq resolves the
addressing-spectrum tension — block-level addressing that is also
git-diffable in-file text (id:: property) — and proves a file-backed shard
can serve rich Datalog queries via a derived index. Also: file->SQLite
"DB graph" migration is a live UC-43 (substrate swap under stable
identity); whiteboards = non-Markdown content; dual-attachable (file-store
direct with a Logseq format profile, or in-app plugin). Added UC-62
(attach block-graph-on-plain-files shard), UC-63 (serve structured
queries over a file shard via a derived index shard-wiki builds — converse
of UC-52); enriched UC-32/34/43/50/51/52/55. Catalog now 63 UCs.
Architecture for SHARD-WP-0002 T11/T14/T16: Logseq format profile,
derived-query-index capability, substrate-migration tolerance, in-file
block addressing as the T16 span-address target.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 15:27:37 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-joplin-deep-dive/` | Joplin — SQLite-local/Markdown-on-sync, interchange-format attach, E2EE content opacity; UC-60/61 |
research: local-first workspaces cohort deep dive (Anytype/AFFiNE/AppFlowy) — CRDT substrate; UC-64/65
Combined cohort memo for the three open-source local-first all-in-one
workspaces, studied together because they share the trait none of the
prior eleven systems had: the store is a CRDT (Anytype any-sync, AFFiNE
Yjs/y-octo, AppFlowy Yrs). The cohort thesis: CRDT changes the adapter
math — the backend performs conflict-free merge itself (shard-wiki must
not impose git/text merge; speak the CRDT via a replica or stay
projection/overlay), history is a CRDT update log (supplement not git),
and the attach surface is a replica or self-host sync endpoint, with
Anytype adding P2P (no single endpoint) + E2EE (opaque). Added UC-64
(CRDT-synced shard with native merge), UC-65 (P2P/decentralized shard,
no single canonical endpoint); enriched UC-36/47/48/51/55/57/58/61.
Catalog now 65 UCs. Architecture for SHARD-WP-0002 T11/T14: merge-model
capability (proposed 13th spectrum: none/git/native-CRDT), CRDT-replica
substrate + P2P/no-central-endpoint attach mode, endpoint-model
capability, MCP as an integration surface. Boundary: CRDT local-first
candidate shards — attach a replica/projection as pages, respect native
merge, never re-drive their sync; not substrates and not the federation
layer.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 16:21:08 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-logseq-deep-dive/` | Logseq — block-graph on plain Markdown files, in-file block IDs, derived Datalog index; UC-62/63 |
research: Trilium (TriliumNext) deep dive (note cloning/DAG hierarchy, attribute inheritance, HTML-native); UC-66/67
SQLite-local PKB whose standout is note cloning — a single note can sit in
multiple tree locations at once via the note (identity) vs branch
(placement) split, so the hierarchy is a DAG, not a tree, with no single
canonical path. The identity-not-equal-placement model is the clean way to
represent a page in multiple locations/shards and the namespace-level form
of the clone/reference primitive. Also: attributes (labels + typed
relations) are inherited + templated, so metadata is computed (own +
inherited + template), not a flat bag; content opacity is per-item
(per-note encryption / protected notes), refining the proposed 12th
spectrum; HTML-native (CKEditor, lossy to Markdown); dual extension
surface (scripting code notes + ETAPI token REST). TriliumNext is the
active community fork of zadam's Trilium (TWiki->Foswiki pattern). Added
UC-66 (DAG hierarchy / note cloning), UC-67 (inherited/templated
attributes, effective vs own); enriched UC-15/22/34/38/42/61. Catalog now
67 UCs. Architecture for SHARD-WP-0002 T11/T12/T14/T15/T16: DAG namespace
+ identity/placement split, computed/inherited metadata, per-item content
opacity, HTML source model, scripting + ETAPI host surfaces.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 16:44:49 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-localfirst-workspaces-deep-dive/` | Anytype · AFFiNE · AppFlowy — CRDT local-first workspaces (any-sync/Yjs/Yrs), native merge, P2P/E2EE; UC-64/65 |
research: Wiki.js deep dive (storage-module engine, DB<->Git Markdown, GraphQL); UC-68/69
The closest existing engine to shard-wiki's own design: DB-canonical
(Postgres/MySQL/SQLite) but with a pluggable storage-module abstraction
that bidirectionally syncs clean Markdown (+ YAML frontmatter) to Git
(also FS/S3/Azure), each provider acting as backup or source of truth.
Two big findings: (1) the storage-module interface is concrete
adapter-contract prior art alongside Foswiki::Store, and the closer one
(medium = Markdown in Git); (2) the engine-maintained bidirectional Git
mirror is the ideal file-store attach (clean MD + git history) and, being
bidirectional, makes git commit a write path (overlay/patch as a commit,
no API). Also GraphQL API (introspection = capability discovery;
selective fields = efficient projection) and authn-delegated auth modules
+ path-based rule ACL. Added UC-68 (engine-maintained bidirectional Git
mirror, write-by-commit), UC-69 (typed/introspectable API for schema
discovery + selective projection); enriched UC-06/36/38/40/42/57. Catalog
now 69 UCs. Architecture for SHARD-WP-0002 T11/T14: storage-module
abstraction as 2nd adapter-contract prior art, engine-maintained Git
mirror as attach+write surface, GraphQL introspection for capability
discovery.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-14 17:50:27 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-trilium-deep-dive/` | Trilium/TriliumNext — note cloning (DAG hierarchy), attribute inheritance/templates, HTML-native, scripting+ETAPI; UC-66/67 |
2026-06-14 19:01:13 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-wikijs-deep-dive/` | Wiki.js — storage-module engine (DB↔Git Markdown), GraphQL API, pluggable modules ≈ adapter-contract prior art; UC-68/69 |
2026-06-14 19:31:08 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-federated-wiki-deep-dive/` | Federated Wiki — fork-with-provenance, per-page semantic-action journal (story=replay), neighborhood/roster + chorus; prior art for our coordination journal / overlay / union pillars; UC-70/71/72 |
2026-06-14 19:40:46 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-wikibase-deep-dive/` | Wikibase/Wikidata — typed entity-statement knowledge graph (claim+qualifiers+refs+rank), SPARQL/RDF + federated SERVICE, opaque stable IDs, statement-level provenance; structure & query far-end; UC-73/74/75 |
2026-06-14 19:46:37 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-forge-wikis-deep-dive/` | Gitea · GitLab · GitHub wikis — a wiki is a separate `.wiki.git` of Markdown; git-clone universal, wiki API capability-varying (GitHub git-only); git IS the store (resolves UC-68 race); the home case; UC-76/77 |
2026-06-14 20:40:29 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-tiddlywiki-deep-dive/` | TiddlyWiki — entire wiki (content + app) in one self-contained HTML file = whole-file write-granularity extreme; Node `.tid` file-per-tiddler substrate (git-diffable); tiddler/field records, filter-expression query; UC-78 |
2026-06-14 20:50:09 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-ikiwiki-deep-dive/` | ikiwiki — wiki compiler: git-canonical Markdown source → static HTML (derived publish/projection); git-distributed clone federation + XML-RPC pinger (third federation flavor); UC-79 |
2026-06-14 20:54:40 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-quip-deep-dive/` | Salesforce Quip — closed-SaaS live docs + embedded spreadsheets/live apps; REST + lossy HTML import/export; Salesforce enterprise ACL; external-API payload-format facet + inline-object page model; UC-80 |
2026-06-14 20:59:20 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-mojomojo-deep-dive/` | MojoMojo — Perl Catalyst/DBIx::Class DB-backed wiki; pages + history in SQL tables, no file store/API → direct-DB-read binding; DB version rows as history source; UC-81 |
2026-06-14 21:14:26 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-oddmuse-deep-dive/` | Oddmuse — single Perl CGI, plain-text `page/` files + `keep/` revisions, no DB; the minimal file-store floor / graceful-degradation baseline; partial-history honesty; UC-82 |
2026-06-14 22:43:30 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-usemodwiki-deep-dive/` | UseModWiki — flat-file ancestor (Wikipedia's MediaWiki Phase I); CamelCase linking; lineage grounding for the minimal file-store floor; enrichment-only (reinforces UC-82, UC-25) |
2026-06-14 23:08:13 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-literate-programming-deep-dive/` | Literate programming (Knuth's WEB / weave / tangle) — one source → N co-equal derived projections (docs + code); named-chunk transclusion; splits replication- vs derivation-projection; SHARD-WP-0004 T1; UC-83 |
2026-06-14 23:38:56 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-jupyter-deep-dive/` | Jupyter Notebooks — `.ipynb` JSON cells + embedded computed outputs with fragile execution provenance; derived output stored *inside* the source; non-Markdown/lossy; kernel = capability; SHARD-WP-0004 T3; UC-84 |
2026-06-14 23:45:45 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-glamorous-toolkit-deep-dive/` | Glamorous Toolkit (moldable development on Pharo) — `gtView` open set of co-equal type-keyed computed views (none canonical) = moldable view registry; Lepiter live notebook over git files; SHARD-WP-0004 T7; enrichment-only (UC-47/48/54) |
2026-06-14 23:54:48 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-mathematica-deep-dive/` | Mathematica Notebooks — the original computational notebook (`.nb` = a Wolfram expression); nestable cell groups, structured re-evaluable outputs, `Manipulate` live widgets, CDF; confirms UC-84 notebook shape is a genus; SHARD-WP-0004 T2; enrichment-only (reinforces UC-84; UC-54/55) |
2026-06-14 23:57:57 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-squeak-pharo-deep-dive/` | Squeak & Pharo (image-based Smalltalk) — the live-object image (purest "live" end); image-is-not-a-store boundary (export→files only); Pharo Tonel/Iceberg externalizes code to git text; names the live↔snapshot projection axis; SHARD-WP-0004 **T6 + T8** (merged); boundary/enrichment-only, no new UC |
2026-06-15 00:04:16 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-processing-deep-dive/` | Processing / p5.js — program-as-page rendered live at view time (no cached output); adds materialization-timing + continuity facets to projection; execute-in-viewer = capability+trust; SHARD-WP-0004 T4; enrichment-only (UC-54/55) |
2026-06-15 00:12:03 +02:00
| 2026-06-14 | `260614-strudel-deep-dive/` | Strudel.cc (TidalCycles JS) live-coding REPL — code as live time-based audio performance; the far live end (no faithful static form; static = source + marked recording); honesty test for graceful degradation; SHARD-WP-0004 T5; enrichment-only (UC-54/55) |
| 2026-06-15 | `260614-computational-page-model-synthesis/` | **SHARD-WP-0004 synthesis** — *the computational page model* : source canonical / everything rendered is a projection; two axes (replication↔derivation, live↔snapshot); four computational page shapes; recommendation — executable content in scope as page-model+projection, out of scope as an execution platform (no INTENT amendment); feeds SHARD-WP-0002 T11– T16 |