Plain text is still one of the best technologies we have
- ID
- 32088
- Status
- summarized
- Published
- 06 Oct 2026, 2:54 AM
- Fetched
- 06 Oct 2026, 7:01 AM
- Provider
- Hacker News
- Category
- dev-community
- Original URL
- https://deadparrotbbs.com/why-plain-text-is-still-one-of-the-best-technologies-we-have/
- Source URL
- https://hnrss.org/best
Summary
- Score
- 4.0
- Created
- 06 Oct 2026, 7:02 AM
- Tags
- Audience
- developerssaas_startup_founders
What happened
The post by nickb argues that plain text remains one of the most durable file formats because Unicode defines it as character codes without presentation metadata, so it can be read, searched, copied, and edited across Linux, Windows, terminals, and web servers. It notes plain text is still the basis of source code, config files, logs, and structured formats like HTML/XML/JSON/CSS, even though it cannot preserve spreadsheets, layouts, or presentations. On Hacker News, the item drew 165 points and 80 comments.
Why it matters
For builders choosing formats for notes, configs, logs, or docs, the concrete takeaway is that .txt/Markdown/JSON-style formats stay inspectable and portable without a specific app, while app-bound rich formats create future open-the-old-file risk. But the article offers no migration data, tooling change, or new standard, so treat it as a design heuristic, not a reason to replace existing document pipelines.
Discussion angle
If Markdown adds syntax and rendering conventions, does it still count as plain text for 50-year longevity, or is it a gateway back to app dependence?