Standards arrive after enthusiasm
Excitement moves first.
Rules follow.
Early builders work without a map
Tools are improvised.
Compatibility is assumed, then questioned.
Assumptions feel efficient
They reduce hesitation.
They also hide debt.
Debt accumulates silently
Workarounds stack.
Documentation thins.
Interoperability sounds technical but acts social
Teams choose who they can collaborate with.
Choices narrow without announcement.
Shared formats create shared futures
Assets move.
People move with them.
On “compatibility”
The word suggests harmony.
In practice, it sets borders.
Platforms reward alignment before excellence
Being compatible comes first.
Being remarkable comes later.
Alignment reduces risk
Demos run.
Support tickets shrink.
Risk shifts to experimentation
Edge ideas wait.
Waiting edits ambition.
Standards turn preferences into defaults
Buttons appear where expected.
Gestures repeat.
Defaults teach behavior
Users learn quickly.
Alternatives feel wrong.
Creativity survives inside constraints
Not outside them.
Against them.
Constraint focuses effort
Teams choose battles.
Energy concentrates.
Local ecosystems feel standards differently
Hardware availability matters.
Language matters.
Seoul optimizes for speed
Short cycles.
Fast feedback.
Documentation becomes a quiet gatekeeper
Those who read advance.
Those who don’t stall.
Reading is unpaid labor
Time is invested.
Competence compounds.
External bodies stabilize expectations
They provide shared reference points.
They do not end debate.
Over time, standards feel inevitable
Alternatives fade.
Histories compress.
Inevitability reduces curiosity
Questions quiet.
Exploration relocates.
The field keeps moving anyway
New layers appear.
Old rules stretch.
Builds continue, quietly shaped.