======================================================================
Title:       Smallnet Protocols
Date:        2026-02-24
Tags:        
Link:        https://spool-five.com/posts/2026-02-24-smallnet_protocols/
Word Count:  260
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I'm calling the protocols discussed below "smallnet protocols", but
actually I don't know the right name for them...

The gemini protocol is great, I've been using it for five years now. I
also browse gopher quite a bit. There have also been some other small
internet protocols that have been developed over recent years, which
are captured in this "Small internet protocol roundup" page:

Small internet protocol roundup (gemini)[1]
=>[1] gemini://sdf.org/dbohdan/smolnet.gmi

Small internet protocol roundup (http)[2]
=>[2] http://dbohdan.sdf.org/smolnet/

I wanted to participate in these alternative protocols, but didn't want
to start writing whole new content for them. Instead, I created a script
to translate my gemini capsule into different formats that work with
these protocols. You can now find them at the links below.

Gopher Version[3]
=>[3] gopher://alt.spool-five.com

Spartan Version[4]
=>[4] spartan://alt.spool-five.com

Nex Version[5]
=>[5] nex://alt.spool-five.com

The Lagrange browser already implements all these protocols, which is
amazing. Converting to the different formats also wasn't too difficult,
a testament to the simplicity of gemtext formatting. I'm sure there are
some errors, but they seem to be mostly functional for now.

Links for learning more about each protocol:

Gemini[6]
=>[6] gemini://geminiprotocol.net/

Spartan[7]
=>[7] spartan://mozz.us/

Nex[8]
=>[8] nex://nightfall.city/nex/info/

Gopher[9]
=>[9] gopher://gopher.floodgap.com/0/gopher/tech/rfc1436.txt

Web links:

Gemini[10]
=>[10] https://geminiprotocol.net/

Spartan[11]
=>[11] https://portal.mozz.us/spartan/spartan.mozz.us/

Nex[12]
=>[12] https://nightfall.city/nex/info/

Gopher[13]
=>[13] https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc1436