Complex formatting needs a predictable downgrade into plain text

What it is

The same passage will leave rich text for SMS, logs, a search index, a terminal that does not take HTML. Headings, lists, links, and tables must become some kind of plain text there, or tags go naked or structure evaporates. A predictable rich-text downgrade gives every structure a plain-text shape stated in advance: what prefixes a heading, whether a link is “text + URL” or text only, how a table flattens. The issue is what it looks like after leaving rich text, not whether content and style are entangled while editing, and not whether paste brought dirt.

Why it happens

Downgrade is a lossy map. Without a convention, each outlet guesses: one turns <h2> into ##, one into all caps, one drops it. The hierarchy the author saw in the editor disagrees with the plain part of an email, and the person who replies misreads the structure. A link that keeps only the anchor loses the URL; only the URL loses readability. A list flattened to comma-separated text loses item boundaries. Predictability lets the author foresee “what this will become” while writing, and avoid devices that will not exist after the downgrade (color, shading).

Where it stops holding

When the outlet is still full HTML/PDF, there is nothing to downgrade; forcing plain text is the loss. User-initiated “copy as plain text” is the same map and should share one table with automatic outlets, not two rules. Round-trip editing (change the plain text, open rich text again) that cannot come back losslessly should be marked one-way; do not pretend it is a round trip. Code blocks and formulas have no honest plain equivalent; they should become an explicit “see original” or a placeholder, not mojibake.

Applying it

• Write one downgrade rule each for heading, list, link, emphasis, and table, and show it in a plain-text preview.
• Share that table across notifications, logs, and search snippets; do not let each pipe strip tags on its own.
• For structures with no honest equivalent, use an explicit placeholder rather than a silent delete.
• Verify by writing a short piece with headings, lists, and links, then reading it in SMS, a plain email, and a log. Three disagreeing shapes, or a hierarchy that does not match what the author saw, means the downgrade is still unpredictable. Then edit the plain text once and see whether the rich text is quietly damaged.

Related

• Within the group: E2.18.1 Rich text entangles content with style, and people confuse the two · E2.18.2 A toolbar that does too much exceeds what most people use · E2.18.3 Leftover styles from external paste are a common source of dirty data
• Adjacent: E2.02 Multiline text areas · E6.04 Global status messages
• Search terms: predictable rich-text downgrade · plain-text fallback · lossy mapping