For those unfamiliar, Gemini is a lightweight internet protocol designed for simple document sharing, and gemtext is its human-readable markup format. This site is mirrored both through the Gemini protocol and the web through HTTP/HTTPS. My workflow involves writing the pages natively as gemtext, then having Gem2Web create an HTML-formatted copy inside my web page server path. My web page server is Apache2 and my Gemini site server is Agate. You may view this site either through a regular web browser or on a Gemini client natively.
The appeal starts with philosophy: I got into Gemini and the small net protocols (lightweight alternatives to the modern web) a few years ago along with public Unix servers and tildes. These communities value simplicity over complexity, substance over style.
Practically speaking, it's incredibly easy to format in gemtext as a human writing a text-based page on the fly. This allows me to focus on the writing aspect instead of wrestling with formatting decisions. Gemtext gives you just enough structure without overwhelming options: three header levels, blockquotes, lists, and preformatted text blocks. These simple elements do an incredible amount of heavy lifting for conveying the essence of a site page.
When you strip away the complexity, you remember something fundamental: you're just reading text on a screen. The content should be the star.
Both gemtext as a format and the toolchain I use to convert it into HTML are incredibly simple. Gem2Web handles the conversion automatically, turning my gemtext source into clean, basic HTML. As a result, my web pages are basic-looking, and I like the minimalistic aesthetic.
I believe that sites are best when they focus on substance and content, not looking fancy. That's not to say CSS and advanced scripting are bad when done thoughtfully. For example, I plan to add Atkinson Hyperlegible as the default font for this site since accessibility matters. It's just not something I want to spend most of my energy on.
The benefits extend beyond aesthetics. Simple pages load fast, work on any device, and remain readable regardless of browser or connection quality. They're also more accessible and easier to maintain over time.
This dual-protocol approach has shaped how I think about writing for the web. When you know your content needs to work in both a Gemini client and a web browser, you naturally focus on what's essential. Simplicity and minimalism become features, not limitations.
In a world where websites often feel bloated and over-engineered, there's something refreshing about getting back to basics. Sometimes the best technology is the one that gets out of your way and lets you focus on what you actually want to say.