experiments in a post-browser web
Restore README, archive design vision to notes/research
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# Peek
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A web user agent for using the web where, when, and how you want.
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Peek is a web user agent application designed for using the web where, when and how you want.
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Peek is not a browser. It's a workbench for experimenting with task-aligned interfaces for the web - making it easy to create new UI shapes for the web that fit your needs in the moment.
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Today's browsers are one-size-fits-all applications, cramming the vast universe of user needs across an unimaginably large web into in an unmodifiable tabbed-window design.
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**Status:** Concept preview. Not safe for daily use. No security audit.
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Peek is a web user agent that is a workbench for experimenting with task alignment - making it easy to create new user interface shapes for the web which fit our need in the moment.
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We often use the web with a specific goal in mind - that goal should drive the design of the interface of the web user agent.
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<img width="969" alt="settings screenshot" src="settings-screenshot.png">
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## Important notes
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___PEEK IS NOT A WEB BROWSER___
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Peek is not a web browser, and will never be a browser in the way you are probably familiar with: There are no tabs, and no windows in the tabbed-browser-like sense of them. Peek likely does not have many other of many details we are used to in web browsers, but do not notice until they are missing. Peek may be most useful to you if you view it as an entirely different type of application than a traditional web browser.
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___PEEK IS A CONCEPT PREVIEW___
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Peek is not safe for daily use yet! It is a proof of concept. Do not use it for anything critical. Peek does not have the same security approach as traditional web browsers, and its security model and security user interface have not yet been determined. Peek has not had a security audit.
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## Features
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- **Peeks** - Keyboard-activated modal web pages (`Opt+0-9`)
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- **Slides** - Gesture-activated pages that slide in from screen edges (`Opt+arrows`)
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- **Scripts** - Background page monitors that extract and track data
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- **Commands** - Command palette for opening pages and executing actions
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- **Groups** - Tag-based page organization (like Firefox Panorama)
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- **Sync** - Cross-device sync between desktop, mobile, and server
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You can use Peek in a few ways, with more coming:
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- Peeks - Keyboard-activated modal chromeless web pages for quickly glancing at or interacting with pages
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- Slides - Keyboard- or gesture-activated modal chromeless web pages which slide in from any screen edges
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- Scripts - Scripts periodically executed against a web page in the background which extract data for you to route to other pages or applications, or to aggregate, store and process later
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In progress, or thinking about:
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- Commands - a graphical command entry palette (GCLI) for opening pages or executing commands against them
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- Groups - a way to categorize, recall and interact with groups of pages
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- "native" web apps - using Peek as a way to "install" web pages on the local device, as separate applications instead of just separate processes
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- "Peeklets" HUD - select parts of pages to add to collection which are rendered as an overlay, toggled by shortcut
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### Usage
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- Settings
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* In app, `Cmd/Ctrl+r,` or launch app to open settings, or click tray icon
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* Configure Peeks/Slides/Scripts in settings
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- Peeks
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* `Opt+0-9` to open Peeks
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- Slides
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* `Opt+←→↑↓` to open Slides
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### Peeks
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Peeks are keyboard activated modal chromeless web pages mapped to `Opt+0-9` and closed on blur, the `Escape` key or `cmd/ctrl+w`.
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### Slides
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Slides are gesture activated modal chromeless web pages which slide in from left/right/bottom/top, and closed on blur, the `Escape` key or `cmd/ctrl+w`.
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### Scripts
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Scripts periodically load a web page in the background and extract data matching a CSS selector, stores it, and notify the user when the resulting data changes.
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Ok, so not really "scripts" yet. But safe and effective enough for now.
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## Design
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Many user tasks on the web are either transient, chained or persistent, data oriented, or some mix of those. Neither the document-oriented nor application-centric web meets those needs. Traditional browser makers can't meet those needs well, for many reasons.
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Characteristics of how we use the web, that are not addressed in contemporary web browsers:
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- transient
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- chained
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- persistent
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- data-centric
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- archival / evidential
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Some thoughts driving the design of Peek:
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- Web user agents should be bounded by the user, not browser vendor business models
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- Windows and tabs should have died a long time ago, a mixed metaphor constraining the ability of the web to grow/thrive/change and meet user needs
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- Security user interface must be a clear articulation of risks and trade-offs, and users should own the decisions
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### Escape IZUI
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TODO: articulate the escape-to-leave aspect, eg you can peek from *other* applications and ESC to go back to exactly where you were without breaking the task flow.
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## Quick Start
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Escape is an inverted zooming user interface (IZUI) design for a flexible window manager that makes possible a web user agent application than can have multiple entry points and a heterogeneous windowing ecosystem.
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```bash
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# Requirements: Node.js 24+
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nvm use 24
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IZUI vs ZUI
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# Install and run
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yarn install
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yarn debug # Development mode with devtools
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yarn start # Normal mode
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```
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* ZUIs navigate by starting from a known root and user navigates by zooming ever further in, and then back out
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* Escape can enter a window stack at any point, and via a variety of methods, often from outside the application
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* Instead of navigating by zooming in, all interfaces can zoom out to go back, using the Escape key
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* This design allows unbounded and diverse entry points, but with predictable behavior
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* Regardless of the entry point, the user always has a consistent path to familiar ground
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See [DEVELOPMENT.md](DEVELOPMENT.md) for full development guide.
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Escape navigation model
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* navigation base can start at any level in stack
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* forward navigations are added on top of stack
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* backwards navigations walk the stack in reverse up the tree to the root
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## Architecture
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## Architecture / Implementation
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Peek supports multiple backends sharing the same renderer code:
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About this space:
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- Web pages can themselves be navigators of the web
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- Embrace the app-ness of the web platform, as a way to efficiently access the document-ness
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- Decouple html+js+css from http+dns+ssl - not entirely, but that trust+security model is not a required starting point
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- Javascript is ok here
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Peek is designed to be modular and configurable around the idea that parts of it
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can run in different environments.
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For example:
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- Planning on a mobile app which syncs and runs your peeks/slides/scripts
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- I'd like to have a decentralized compute option for running your scripts outside of your clients and syncing the data
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- Want cloud storage for all config and data, esp infinite history, so can do fun things with it
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### Feature extensibility
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An extensibility model for achieving "personal web workbench" requires a few things:
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- UI extensibility requires OS-level window features beyond what the web allows today (also a baby step towards a minimal OS user interface)
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- Data harvest/transform/process/publish requires a method of moving data between features (web apps) *locally*, cf Web Actions/Intents/Applets, MCP, pubsub, MQTT etc
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- Portable ways of accessing network, storage and compute, which address
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The current implementation has only a few sketches of that world implemented, and has gone through a few iterations:
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- first proof of concept was all Electron - so, privileged JS
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- second experiment moved each feature to a separate web app running in own window scope, with access to smallest possible custom API, with one main web app loading and orchestrating the others, using pubsub for cross-app communication
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- third and current implementation bundles all features into one web app, with access to smallest possible custom API for platform-level capabilities
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The web app is loaded into custom scheme of `peek`, which provides access to a few special apis noted in the next section, allows cross-origin network access and other things.
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This is not ideal, as the extensibility vector is contributions to core, which too tightly bounds experimentation and innovation.
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However it's pretty portable given the small custom API surface area.
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It would be nice, but not required, to have some alignment with the WebExtension spec - blur your eyes and they're in a similar direction.
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### Peek API
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Initially the prototype was all Electron. But that's not interesting, and doesn't
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really tell us anything about constraints of the web itself.
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So instead I asked this question: What's the minimum capability set that a web app would
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need to build the features I need?
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The answer, so far, is giving `peek` apps the following APIs:
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- window open/close
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- global hotkey registration
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- pubsub messaging
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Custom window api might be able to away entirely, by passing window.open features, working on that.
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### Desktop App
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Proof of concept is Electron. By far the best option today for cross-platform desktop apps which need a web rendering engine. There's really nothing else remotely suited (yet).
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User interface:
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- the built-in features are all modal chromeless web pages at this point
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- settings UI uses custom sidebar navigation with dark mode support
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TODO
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- Need to look at whether could library-ize some of what Agregore implemented for non-HTTP protocol support.
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- Min browser might be interesting as a forkable base to work from and contribute to, if they're open to it. At least, should look more at the architecture.
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## Contribution
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- in proto stage
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- all dragons, no promises
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## Development
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```
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peek/
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├── app/ # Renderer (backend-agnostic)
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├── extensions/ # Built-in extensions
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├── backend/
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│ ├── electron/ # Desktop (primary)
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│ ├── tauri/ # Desktop (Rust alternative)
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│ ├── tauri-mobile/ # iOS/Android
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│ └── server/ # Sync server (Node.js/Hono)
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└── docs/ # Documentation
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yarn install
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yarn debug
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```
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## Documentation
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### Mobile
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| Doc | Description |
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|-----|-------------|
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| [DEVELOPMENT.md](DEVELOPMENT.md) | Development setup, commands, architecture |
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| [docs/api.md](docs/api.md) | Peek API reference (`window.app`) |
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| [docs/extensions.md](docs/extensions.md) | Extension development |
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| [docs/datastore.md](docs/datastore.md) | Data storage and schema |
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| [docs/sync.md](docs/sync.md) | Cross-device sync |
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| [docs/MOBILE.md](docs/MOBILE.md) | Mobile development |
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- Quick access to Script output and manual runs, as widgets (or output from cloud runners?)
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- Peeks still totes useful here - on mobile is more like "quick dial" features
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## Design Philosophy
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### Cloud
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- Web pages can be navigators of the web
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- User tasks on the web are transient, chained, persistent, or data-oriented - none well-served by tabbed browsers
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- The "Escape IZUI" pattern: enter at any point, ESC always returns to familiar ground
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- Minimum viable API surface for web apps to access platform capabilities
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- Going full crypto payments for distributed compute on this one.
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See [notes/extensibility.md](notes/extensibility.md) for detailed design notes.
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## Papercut / use-case log
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## Contributing
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Core high level actions
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- open a web page on top/bottom/left/right
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- keep web pages persistent in the background
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- quickly open a web page modally, and close it
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Concept stage - contributions welcome but expect dragons.
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Misc specific
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- open bandcamp in a window, move over to 2nd display, accidently close it while moving around between other windows
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- recent books or recipes from newsletters i subscribe to (but probably didn't read)
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- extract a table from a page periodically, send it somewhere as csv or whatever (chained actions)
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- collect microformats, metadata, events
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- web page w/ some locations as an input to a map (creates overlay) "map this page"
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- be able to see where a book/etc recommendation came from
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- save a tweet, with URL / image / relevant text, but not whole page webrecorder style
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- "watch local event listings, rate against my music listening patterns and send me shows i might be interested in going to"
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Content scripts
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- extract+log shazams
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- extract+log spotify playlist
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Calculators (variant of script + cmd?)
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- page -> table
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- page -> summary
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- page -> microsummaries
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- page -> dates
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- page -> events
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Workflow deconstructing a "why" task flavour of bookmarking
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- save https://www.criterionchannel.com/hong-kong-in-new-york
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- extract the movies
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- get reference metadata for each (?!)
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- add to "to watch list", with pointer back to source url
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## Groups
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- panorama/tabcandy-ish
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- all browser history
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- smart groups vs curated groups
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- autoclustering on topic/date
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- escape from a new page enters default group?
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Groups + Cmds
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- top/bottom inputs for filtering/grouping/etc
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- implemented is a cmd input?
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- cmds for opening/searching/finding/viewing/filtering/piping
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- cmds for moving pages into groups
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- groups -> {x} (eg export/pipe) could depend on the chaining/piping bit (see below)
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Architecture
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- internally is tags?
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- static vs dynamic groups tho?
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Publishing
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- publishing groups as internal/public feeds?
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- to pinboard?
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## History view/search
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A lot of groups work depends on history being in place, and being accessable and annotate-able.
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ideally use chromium history
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## License
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storage+access
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- check out Agregore history viewing approach
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- check out state of electron+webext
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- other way of accessing underlying chromium history?
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features
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- awesomebar algo scoring
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- adaptive matching
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## Chaining / piping
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investigate: vague thought re chaining:
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- dynamic interstitial representations
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- mime type detection?
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- eg image previews
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- or a table of data
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- previews of cmds?
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interfaces
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- horizontal vs vertical chains
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- back/forward navigation?
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- each step is a cmd+preview?
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- dynamic cmd+previews?
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import/export/undo/redo
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- record/replay?
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- save a chain as a compound action (cmd)?
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architecture
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- look at web actions/intents/applets
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- xml pipeline language
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## Mobile
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- some of the features don't make sense as-is on mobile
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- but maybe quick access on mobile to slides/peeks would be nice
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- and seeing output of content scripts, or ability to re-run locally on demand
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- needs some sync facility (inevitable anyway)
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MIT
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## Use-cases
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Peeks
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- translate
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- calendar
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- ai chat
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- currency conversion
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- everytimezone
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- tldraw
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Slides
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- music: Soundcloud, Hypem
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- stock prices
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- notepad
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- todo list
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Scripts
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- weather change, eg upcoming weather
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- crypto prices
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Cmd - web
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- open url
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- web search
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- image search
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- conversions?
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- ddg !actions
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Cmd - system
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- search browser history
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- set peeks/slides
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- open settings
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- restart app
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- llm prompts
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Future
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- address something to switch between
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- pipe from/to?
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Publishing high level
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- author web content
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- pull in bits from the web
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- share preview for feedback
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- publish (or at least get output)
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Publishing examples
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- writing an event recap
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Publishing: event recap post
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- make a new markdown doc
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- sections titled for each video title
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- each video's embed code in each section
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- navigate around the document for review and updates
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- need to easily preview rendered content
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- share preview link
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- publish (somewhere?)
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Music
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- commands
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- views
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- last.fm of my own, to POSSE out
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## Unfiled
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markdown hot reload previewer w/ toc
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- markdown support, with sidebar nav
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- reader mode
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- hot reload for file:// (other?)
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- add side-by-side view
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- once md and side-by-side, add side-by-side so the md is the nav, content is the preview
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- what's the cmd chain for this?
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content types + chaining
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- cmd: view as… table, feed, markdown, data points, named entities
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- chain: static archive, publish, save, share (os), mailto
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- cmd params, eg {url}, which can themselves autocomplete (eg history)
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multiprotocol
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- at
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- ipfs/ipns
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- pragmatic addressing+rendering for data (r/d/masl + mime handlers)
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broader patterns (chatting w/ luke)
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- why do we have to copy/paste?
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- devtools and ide are divorced
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chainframe/framechain
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- (web intents/applets/actions) + (webxdc/miniapps/tiles/farcasterframes)
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Small examples of agency
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- users can move, resize, change things to their requirements
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- eg, browsers restrict min-height of a window, but i should be able make as short as i like
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## History
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In working on Firefox and related things at Mozilla from 2006 - 2019, there were a few specific initiatives which best aligned with my needs as a user on the web:
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- The Awesomebar: infinite history + personalized local search index
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- Ubiquity: Natural language commands + chaining
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- Jetpack: The Mozilla Labs version - web-platfrom-centric extensibility
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- Panorama: née TabCandy, web pages as groups instead of tabs in windows
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A few others which were in the right direction but didn't achieve their optimal form:
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- Greasemonkey
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- Microsummaries
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- Contacts extension
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The first version of the Peek application has some bits of each of these, and the original Peek browser extension.
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### Peek browser extension
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Peek was a browser extension that let you quickly peek at your favorite web pages without breaking your flow - loading pages mapped to keyboard shortcuts into a modal window with no controls, closable via the `Escape` key.
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However, as browser extension APIs became increasingly limited, it was not possible to create a decent user experience and I abandoned it. You can access the extension in this repo [in the extension directory](/autonome/peek/extension/).
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The only way to create the ideal user experience for a web user agent that *Does What I Want* is to make it a browser-ish application, and that's what Peek is now.
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+343
notes/research/design-vision.md
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notes/research/design-vision.md
···
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# Peek Design Vision
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Design thinking, use cases, and research notes extracted from early README.
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## Core Design Philosophy
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Many user tasks on the web are either transient, chained or persistent, data oriented, or some mix of those. Neither the document-oriented nor application-centric web meets those needs. Traditional browser makers can't meet those needs well, for many reasons.
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Characteristics of how we use the web, that are not addressed in contemporary web browsers:
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- transient
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- chained
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- persistent
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- data-centric
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- archival / evidential
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Some thoughts driving the design of Peek:
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- Web user agents should be bounded by the user, not browser vendor business models
20
+
- Windows and tabs should have died a long time ago, a mixed metaphor constraining the ability of the web to grow/thrive/change and meet user needs
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+
- Security user interface must be a clear articulation of risks and trade-offs, and users should own the decisions
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## Escape IZUI
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TODO: articulate the escape-to-leave aspect, eg you can peek from *other* applications and ESC to go back to exactly where you were without breaking the task flow.
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+
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+
Escape is an inverted zooming user interface (IZUI) design for a flexible window manager that makes possible a web user agent application than can have multiple entry points and a heterogeneous windowing ecosystem.
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+
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### IZUI vs ZUI
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+
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+
* ZUIs navigate by starting from a known root and user navigates by zooming ever further in, and then back out
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+
* Escape can enter a window stack at any point, and via a variety of methods, often from outside the application
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* Instead of navigating by zooming in, all interfaces can zoom out to go back, using the Escape key
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* This design allows unbounded and diverse entry points, but with predictable behavior
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* Regardless of the entry point, the user always has a consistent path to familiar ground
36
+
37
+
### Escape navigation model
38
+
* navigation base can start at any level in stack
39
+
* forward navigations are added on top of stack
40
+
* backwards navigations walk the stack in reverse up the tree to the root
41
+
42
+
## Architecture Principles
43
+
44
+
About this space:
45
+
46
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- Web pages can themselves be navigators of the web
47
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- Embrace the app-ness of the web platform, as a way to efficiently access the document-ness
48
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- Decouple html+js+css from http+dns+ssl - not entirely, but that trust+security model is not a required starting point
49
+
- Javascript is ok here
50
+
51
+
Peek is designed to be modular and configurable around the idea that parts of it can run in different environments.
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+
53
+
For example:
54
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- Planning on a mobile app which syncs and runs your peeks/slides/scripts
55
+
- I'd like to have a decentralized compute option for running your scripts outside of your clients and syncing the data
56
+
- Want cloud storage for all config and data, esp infinite history, so can do fun things with it
57
+
58
+
## Feature Extensibility
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+
60
+
An extensibility model for achieving "personal web workbench" requires a few things:
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- UI extensibility requires OS-level window features beyond what the web allows today (also a baby step towards a minimal OS user interface)
62
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- Data harvest/transform/process/publish requires a method of moving data between features (web apps) *locally*, cf Web Actions/Intents/Applets, MCP, pubsub, MQTT etc
63
+
- Portable ways of accessing network, storage and compute, which address
64
+
65
+
The current implementation has only a few sketches of that world implemented, and has gone through a few iterations:
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- first proof of concept was all Electron - so, privileged JS
67
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- second experiment moved each feature to a separate web app running in own window scope, with access to smallest possible custom API, with one main web app loading and orchestrating the others, using pubsub for cross-app communication
68
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- third and current implementation bundles all features into one web app, with access to smallest possible custom API for platform-level capabilities
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The web app is loaded into custom scheme of `peek`, which provides access to a few special apis noted in the next section, allows cross-origin network access and other things.
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This is not ideal, as the extensibility vector is contributions to core, which too tightly bounds experimentation and innovation.
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However it's pretty portable given the small custom API surface area.
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+
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It would be nice, but not required, to have some alignment with the WebExtension spec - blur your eyes and they're in a similar direction.
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+
78
+
## Peek API Design
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80
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Initially the prototype was all Electron. But that's not interesting, and doesn't really tell us anything about constraints of the web itself.
81
+
82
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So instead I asked this question: What's the minimum capability set that a web app would need to build the features I need?
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+
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The answer, so far, is giving `peek` apps the following APIs:
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+
86
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- window open/close
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- global hotkey registration
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+
- pubsub messaging
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+
90
+
Custom window api might be able to away entirely, by passing window.open features, working on that.
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+
92
+
## Desktop App Notes
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+
94
+
Proof of concept is Electron. By far the best option today for cross-platform desktop apps which need a web rendering engine. There's really nothing else remotely suited (yet).
95
+
96
+
User interface:
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+
- the built-in features are all modal chromeless web pages at this point
98
+
- settings UI uses custom sidebar navigation with dark mode support
99
+
100
+
TODO:
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- Need to look at whether could library-ize some of what Agregore implemented for non-HTTP protocol support.
102
+
- Min browser might be interesting as a forkable base to work from and contribute to, if they're open to it. At least, should look more at the architecture.
103
+
104
+
## Mobile Vision
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+
106
+
- Quick access to Script output and manual runs, as widgets (or output from cloud runners?)
107
+
- Peeks still totes useful here - on mobile is more like "quick dial" features
108
+
- some of the features don't make sense as-is on mobile
109
+
- but maybe quick access on mobile to slides/peeks would be nice
110
+
- and seeing output of content scripts, or ability to re-run locally on demand
111
+
- needs some sync facility (inevitable anyway)
112
+
113
+
## Cloud Vision
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+
115
+
- Going full crypto payments for distributed compute on this one.
116
+
117
+
---
118
+
119
+
## Use Cases & Papercuts
120
+
121
+
### Core High Level Actions
122
+
- open a web page on top/bottom/left/right
123
+
- keep web pages persistent in the background
124
+
- quickly open a web page modally, and close it
125
+
126
+
### Specific Use Cases
127
+
128
+
- open bandcamp in a window, move over to 2nd display, accidently close it while moving around between other windows
129
+
- recent books or recipes from newsletters i subscribe to (but probably didn't read)
130
+
- extract a table from a page periodically, send it somewhere as csv or whatever (chained actions)
131
+
- collect microformats, metadata, events
132
+
- web page w/ some locations as an input to a map (creates overlay) "map this page"
133
+
- be able to see where a book/etc recommendation came from
134
+
- save a tweet, with URL / image / relevant text, but not whole page webrecorder style
135
+
- "watch local event listings, rate against my music listening patterns and send me shows i might be interested in going to"
136
+
137
+
### Content Scripts
138
+
- extract+log shazams
139
+
- extract+log spotify playlist
140
+
141
+
### Calculators (variant of script + cmd?)
142
+
- page -> table
143
+
- page -> summary
144
+
- page -> microsummaries
145
+
- page -> dates
146
+
- page -> events
147
+
148
+
### Workflow: Deconstructing a "why" Task Flavor of Bookmarking
149
+
- save https://www.criterionchannel.com/hong-kong-in-new-york
150
+
- extract the movies
151
+
- get reference metadata for each (?!)
152
+
- add to "to watch list", with pointer back to source url
153
+
154
+
---
155
+
156
+
## Groups Design
157
+
158
+
- panorama/tabcandy-ish
159
+
- all browser history
160
+
- smart groups vs curated groups
161
+
- autoclustering on topic/date
162
+
- escape from a new page enters default group?
163
+
164
+
### Groups + Cmds
165
+
- top/bottom inputs for filtering/grouping/etc
166
+
- implemented is a cmd input?
167
+
- cmds for opening/searching/finding/viewing/filtering/piping
168
+
- cmds for moving pages into groups
169
+
- groups -> {x} (eg export/pipe) could depend on the chaining/piping bit (see below)
170
+
171
+
### Architecture
172
+
- internally is tags?
173
+
- static vs dynamic groups tho?
174
+
175
+
### Publishing
176
+
- publishing groups as internal/public feeds?
177
+
- to pinboard?
178
+
179
+
---
180
+
181
+
## History View/Search
182
+
183
+
A lot of groups work depends on history being in place, and being accessable and annotate-able.
184
+
185
+
ideally use chromium history
186
+
187
+
### Storage+Access
188
+
- check out Agregore history viewing approach
189
+
- check out state of electron+webext
190
+
- other way of accessing underlying chromium history?
191
+
192
+
### Features
193
+
- awesomebar algo scoring
194
+
- adaptive matching
195
+
196
+
---
197
+
198
+
## Chaining / Piping
199
+
200
+
investigate: vague thought re chaining:
201
+
- dynamic interstitial representations
202
+
- mime type detection?
203
+
- eg image previews
204
+
- or a table of data
205
+
- previews of cmds?
206
+
207
+
### Interfaces
208
+
- horizontal vs vertical chains
209
+
- back/forward navigation?
210
+
- each step is a cmd+preview?
211
+
- dynamic cmd+previews?
212
+
213
+
### Import/Export/Undo/Redo
214
+
- record/replay?
215
+
- save a chain as a compound action (cmd)?
216
+
217
+
### Architecture
218
+
- look at web actions/intents/applets
219
+
- xml pipeline language
220
+
221
+
---
222
+
223
+
## Feature Use Cases
224
+
225
+
### Peeks
226
+
- translate
227
+
- calendar
228
+
- ai chat
229
+
- currency conversion
230
+
- everytimezone
231
+
- tldraw
232
+
233
+
### Slides
234
+
- music: Soundcloud, Hypem
235
+
- stock prices
236
+
- notepad
237
+
- todo list
238
+
239
+
### Scripts
240
+
- weather change, eg upcoming weather
241
+
- crypto prices
242
+
243
+
### Cmd - Web
244
+
- open url
245
+
- web search
246
+
- image search
247
+
- conversions?
248
+
- ddg !actions
249
+
250
+
### Cmd - System
251
+
- search browser history
252
+
- set peeks/slides
253
+
- open settings
254
+
- restart app
255
+
- llm prompts
256
+
257
+
### Future
258
+
- address something to switch between
259
+
- pipe from/to?
260
+
261
+
---
262
+
263
+
## Publishing
264
+
265
+
### High Level
266
+
- author web content
267
+
- pull in bits from the web
268
+
- share preview for feedback
269
+
- publish (or at least get output)
270
+
271
+
### Example: Event Recap Post
272
+
- make a new markdown doc
273
+
- sections titled for each video title
274
+
- each video's embed code in each section
275
+
- navigate around the document for review and updates
276
+
- need to easily preview rendered content
277
+
- share preview link
278
+
- publish (somewhere?)
279
+
280
+
### Music
281
+
- commands
282
+
- views
283
+
- last.fm of my own, to POSSE out
284
+
285
+
---
286
+
287
+
## Unfiled Ideas
288
+
289
+
### Markdown Hot Reload Previewer w/ TOC
290
+
- markdown support, with sidebar nav
291
+
- reader mode
292
+
- hot reload for file:// (other?)
293
+
- add side-by-side view
294
+
- once md and side-by-side, add side-by-side so the md is the nav, content is the preview
295
+
- what's the cmd chain for this?
296
+
297
+
### Content Types + Chaining
298
+
- cmd: view as… table, feed, markdown, data points, named entities
299
+
- chain: static archive, publish, save, share (os), mailto
300
+
- cmd params, eg {url}, which can themselves autocomplete (eg history)
301
+
302
+
### Multiprotocol
303
+
- at
304
+
- ipfs/ipns
305
+
- pragmatic addressing+rendering for data (r/d/masl + mime handlers)
306
+
307
+
### Broader Patterns (chatting w/ luke)
308
+
- why do we have to copy/paste?
309
+
- devtools and ide are divorced
310
+
311
+
### Chainframe/Framechain
312
+
- (web intents/applets/actions) + (webxdc/miniapps/tiles/farcasterframes)
313
+
314
+
### Small Examples of Agency
315
+
- users can move, resize, change things to their requirements
316
+
- eg, browsers restrict min-height of a window, but i should be able make as short as i like
317
+
318
+
---
319
+
320
+
## Project History
321
+
322
+
In working on Firefox and related things at Mozilla from 2006 - 2019, there were a few specific initiatives which best aligned with my needs as a user on the web:
323
+
324
+
- **The Awesomebar**: infinite history + personalized local search index
325
+
- **Ubiquity**: Natural language commands + chaining
326
+
- **Jetpack**: The Mozilla Labs version - web-platfrom-centric extensibility
327
+
- **Panorama**: née TabCandy, web pages as groups instead of tabs in windows
328
+
329
+
A few others which were in the right direction but didn't achieve their optimal form:
330
+
331
+
- Greasemonkey
332
+
- Microsummaries
333
+
- Contacts extension
334
+
335
+
The first version of the Peek application has some bits of each of these, and the original Peek browser extension.
336
+
337
+
### Peek Browser Extension
338
+
339
+
Peek was a browser extension that let you quickly peek at your favorite web pages without breaking your flow - loading pages mapped to keyboard shortcuts into a modal window with no controls, closable via the `Escape` key.
340
+
341
+
However, as browser extension APIs became increasingly limited, it was not possible to create a decent user experience and I abandoned it. You can access the extension in this repo [in the extension directory](/autonome/peek/extension/).
342
+
343
+
The only way to create the ideal user experience for a web user agent that *Does What I Want* is to make it a browser-ish application, and that's what Peek is now.