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004: Project Name

  • Type: Product
  • Status: Accepted
  • Date: 2026-10-23 (Initial: 2026-09-25)
  • Author(s) / Deciders: João V. Farias
  • Question: What name and identifier will represent the project across repositories, package registries, and documentation?

Context

The project is an experimentation as a shell for the desktop, providing a graphical user interface to interact with the operating system, launch applications, manage windows, and customize the desktop environment.

A project name shapes discoverability, CLI/package ergonomics, and brand identity. Functional names are often more discoverable and easier to remember than abstract or metaphorical names:

  • NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
  • Vocaloid: Voice + Android
  • WISP: Widget Interface & Shell Platform

Requirements and Restrictions

  • Pronounceability and Brevity: The name SHOULD be short, easy to remember, and easy to pronounce.
  • Namespace Availability: The name SHOULD be unique and conflict-free across target repositories and documentation.

Alternatives

Initial Selection (2026-09-25)

  • lovemii: Kept the name of my earlier AGS-based shell because it was already known and carried personal meaning.

Revision and Functional Name Exploration (2026-10-22)

I explored more functional compound names, object nouns, and backronyms:

  • Window + Widget:
  • WinWidge, WidgeWin, WinWidget, WidgetWin, WiWi
  • Widget + Desktop:
  • Widtop, DeskWid, WidDesk, DeskWidget, WiDe
  • Shell + Widget:
  • SheWid, WidShell, Shelget, Wighell
  • Window + Shell:
  • WinShell, ShellWin
  • Desktop + Shell:
  • DeskShell, ShellTop, Deksh, Shelktop
  • Short / pronounceable coinages:
  • Kaido, Lumo, Vela, Orbis, Nook, Halo (likely taken)
  • Meaning-based (window, frame, layer, light):
  • Fenster (window, DE), Casement, Lumen, Panes, Sill
  • Object-words (real English nouns we could draw as a logo):
  • Wicket
  • Sash
  • Latch, Hinge, Mullion, Transom
  • Bezel
  • Dock
  • Shelf
  • Hull
  • Loom
  • Hive
  • Pod, Nest, Tile , Slate, Ledge, Prism, Lens, Lantern, Wick
  • WISK:
  • Widget Interface and Shell Kernel / Window Interface and Shell Kernel (reads as "whisky")
  • Similar-sounding acronyms (easy to pronounce, stand for something, and carry meaning by sound):
  • WHISK: Window Handling Interface Shell Kit / Widget Host Interface Shell Kit
  • WISP: Widget Interface Shell Platform / Window Interface Shell Provider
  • GIN: Graphical Interface Nucleus / GUI Interface Node
  • RUM: Reactive UI Manager / Rendering User Modules
  • ALE: Application Layer Environment / Aesthetic Layout Engine
  • MEAD: Modular Environment And Desktop / Modular Element and Application Dock
  • BREW: Base Runtime Environment for Widgets / Blended Rendering Environment for Windows
  • MALT: Modular Application Layer Toolkit
  • CASK: Composable Application Shell Kit / Container And Shell Kit
  • STOUT: Shell Toolkit Of Unified Tiles
  • LAGER: Layout And Grid Engine Runtime
  • PILS: Panel Interface Layout System
  • PORT: Panels, Ordering and Rendering Toolkit
  • PINT: Panels, Icons, Notifications and Themes
  • TONIC: Toolkit Of Native Interface Components
  • SODA: Shell Of Desktop Applications
  • CIDER: Composable Interface Desktop Environment Runtime
  • SAKE: Shell And Kernel Environment
  • FLASK: Floating Layer Application Shell Kit
  • Non-drink acronyms:
  • LARK: Layout And Rendering Kit
  • WREN: Widget Rendering ENgine / Window Rendering ENgine
  • FERN: Floating Environment Rendering Node

Decision

The decision is to keep the name lovemii for this new shell, as it is already known and used, and it has a good meaning behind it.

I have revised and chosen WISP, standing for Widget Interface & Shell Platform, as the new name for the project. It is short, easy to remember, and easy to pronounce, while referring to a thin thread of smoke associated with lightness and elegance.

Consequences

Positives

  • Short, pronounceable acronym that directly states what the platform is (Widget Interface & Shell Platform).
  • Carries a clear visual metaphor (a thin thread of smoke) for branding and iconography.

Negatives

  • Transitioning from lovemii to WISP requires updating repository references and branding assets where the old name was used.
  • Common English noun (wisp) shares search results with unrelated tools outside the Wayland desktop domain.