Why a New Protocol?
Protocols are the invisible layer of the internet - not the computers, not the hardware, but the shared set of expectations of everything that connects so that they can interoperate. They are often described by published documents, they may have chunks of code which make them work, but it's best to think of them as Languages.
As George Orwell's book 1984 reminded so poignantly - the ability to conceive of ideas is entirely dependent on what language you have at your disposal to do so. This is why physically drawing something with a pencil, or arranging words in space on post-it notes, is so helpful - it increases your 'vocabulary' for manipulating concepts.
New meanings are also needed when old meanings get too ambiguous. The very concept of "data" has become besieged with so many meanings. Do you think "data" can be changed? Predict the results of a poll of IT pros, if we took it. On the other hand, how many of you think an announcement can be 'taken back'? An email recalled? Each word conveys shades of meaning. And some are more correct than others, when applied to what a system is doing.
Web protocols are usually very technology centered - "It can't be helped", is the current thinking, apparently. But the core protocol method of Antares - announce - is something that is relatable as a person. Announcing means telling others. You already know generally what this does and why you'd want to call it. Sure there are computers along the way, (multiplexing WebSockets, etc.), but you know others are involved as you are typing announce(), vs whatever feeling you get when you type $.post() . Similar vocabulary choices have been made where possible, including Epics - stories of many chapters that unfold over time, because it is believed that a good fit here preempts a hundred misunderstandings down the line.
Note for non-native English speakers: I'm interested in your input, if the concepts I'm using to name things in Antares don't sit squarely well in your native language. Let's produce some language-specific builds!
The goal of Antares is to be the richest and most natural vocabulary for specifying time-changing distributed systems, and that goal sees no borders of country or language. The fact that it is expressed as a JavaScript DSL, and is a set of messages conveyed by DDP over WebSockets, is just an implementation detail.