showstack

<!-- one file. Open it from anywhere, including file:// -->
<input id="q" placeholder="6454"><pre id="out"></pre>
<script type="module">
const data = await (await fetch('https://showstack-inky.vercel.app/api/v1/protocols.json')).json()
q.oninput = () => {
  const n = +q.value
  out.textContent = data
    .filter(p => (p.default_ports ?? []).some(x => x.number === n))
    .map(p => `${p.name} — ${p.summary}`).join('\n\n') || 'nothing on that port'
}
</script>

Cache the JSON in a service worker or just save the file with the data inlined, and it works with the network unplugged.

const [hw, sw] = await Promise.all([
  fetch('https://showstack-inky.vercel.app/api/v1/hardware.json').then(r => r.json()),
  fetch('https://showstack-inky.vercel.app/api/v1/software.json').then(r => r.json()),
])
const speaks = e => new Set((e.speaks ?? []).map(s => s.protocol))

const a = hw.find(x => x.id === 'grandma3-full-size')
const b = sw.find(x => x.id === 'disguise-designer')
const shared = [...speaks(a)].filter(p => speaks(b).has(p))

console.log(shared)  // the protocols both ends actually claim

Add a confidence filter and you can separate "documented by the vendor" from "somebody on a forum said so", which is usually the difference that matters.

# Python, inside TouchDesigner, a console plugin, or a check script
import json, urllib.request

url = "https://showstack-inky.vercel.app/api/v1/protocols.json"
protocols = json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(url))
sacn = next(p for p in protocols if p["id"] == "sacn")

print(sacn["universe_model"])   # how universes are numbered
for g in sacn.get("gotchas", []):
    print("!", g)             # the things that bite, printed at load-in

Print the gotchas into the show log on startup. It costs nothing and it puts the warning where somebody will read it.

// Google Apps Script, bound to a sheet
function refresh() {
  const rows = JSON.parse(UrlFetchApp.fetch(
    'https://showstack-inky.vercel.app/api/v1/hardware.json').getContentText())
    .map(h => [h.name, h.vendor, h.category, h.form_factor ?? '',
               (h.speaks ?? []).map(s => s.protocol).join(', ')])
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSheet()
  sheet.clear()
  sheet.getRange(1, 1, rows.length, 5).setValues(rows)
}

Set it on a weekly trigger. The sheet stays current and nobody has to remember to update it.

// Node — no dependency beyond the runtime
import data from 'showstack/showstack.json' with { type: 'json' }

export const lookupPort = (n) =>
  data.protocols
    .filter(p => (p.default_ports ?? []).some(x => x.number === n))
    .map(p => ({ id: p.id, name: p.name, roles:
      p.default_ports.filter(x => x.number === n).map(x => x.role) }))

// bundled, so the surface works on an isolated show network

If you build one, say so on the repo and it goes on the list.

// A tool definition — the model calls this instead of guessing
{
  name: 'showstack_lookup',
  description: 'Look up a live-entertainment protocol, standard, ' +
    'software or hardware entry. Returns cited data, never a guess.',
  input_schema: {
    type: 'object',
    properties: {
      collection: { type: 'string',
        enum: ['protocols', 'standards', 'software', 'hardware', 'terms'] },
      id: { type: 'string', description: 'the slug, e.g. "sacn"' },
    },
    required: ['collection', 'id'],
  },
}

Every entry carries its sources, so a model using this can cite rather than assert — which is the specific failure mode described on the AI page.

const terms = await (await fetch('https://showstack-inky.vercel.app/api/v1/terms.json')).json()

const deck = terms
  .filter(t => t.domain === 'lighting')
  .map(t => ({ front: t.en, back: t.zh_hant ?? t.definition, tag: t.domain }))

// export as CSV for Anki, or render straight onto a page
console.log(deck.map(c => `"${c.front}","${c.back}"`).join('\n'))

CC BY 4.0 means you can print it, sell the printout, and put it on a classroom wall. Attribution is the only condition.

curl -s https://showstack-inky.vercel.app/api/v1/gaps.json | jq -r '
  .[] | select(.collection=="hardware")
      | "\(.id): missing \(.missing | join(", "))"' | head

# then edit one file in the browser:
# https://github.com/deliseph/showstack/edit/main/data/hardware/<id>.yaml

Every entry has an Edit this entry link at the bottom. One file, one field, one pull request, and your handle goes on it.