Naming brainstorm — graduating "cosmic-fabric" to a general-purpose router

Superseded — historical. This brainstorm is kept for the reasoning, but the decision was made outside its candidate list: the project shipped as woollama ("Web Over Ollama (and Llamas)" — she talks to llamas). The bosun/conduit/loom candidates below were not chosen. Also note router-architecture.md is now architecture.md.

The architecture (router-architecture.md) has grown beyond cosmic-fabric's original scope ("a COSMIC-native frontend for fabric"). It's now a model + tool + executor router that uses fabric as one possible pattern source. The COSMIC + fabric tie-in is too narrow.

What the name needs to do

1. Evoke routing / orchestration / coordination — not inference, not chat, not UI
2. Be one word, pronounceable, googleable — for a public open-source project
3. Stand alone without explanation — works in pip install <name> and <name> serve
4. Not collide with major existing projects — checked against the leading AI-routing tools and the common dictionary projects
5. Optionally fit the "Rigged Suite" — the user's existing brand for the adjacent tool family (lackpy is "Part of the Rigged Suite"); if cos-fab joins this suite, a name from the rigging metaphor coheres

The function in one sentence: it connects clients to AI inference and tool sources, composing them into orchestrated calls.

Candidate clusters

Cluster A — rigging / nautical (fits the Rigged Suite)

Metaphor: the user already has lackpy under "Rigged"; ship rigging is a mature metaphor for "the assembled equipment that connects sails to crew to direction." Words from rigging vocabulary that map to routing:

candidate	what it means in rigging	why it fits
boatswain / bosun	the officer in charge of the deck, equipment, and crew	literally the coordinator/router on a ship; bosun is the short, pronounceable form (bo'sn)
derrick	a tower or crane for lifting/supporting	strong vertical structure; coordinates lift + load + position
tackle	a system of pulleys for mechanical advantage; also "to handle" (a problem)	dual meaning works; very rigging
spar	a pole supporting rigging	short, technical, single-syllable
mast	the central upright supporting all rigging	central, essential, evocative
boom	a horizontal spar that extends the sail	punchy; also means "expansive growth"
halyard	the line used to raise sails	dynamic ("raising things")
windlass	a winch for raising heavy loads	distinctive; uncommon enough to own
capstan	a vertical winch with bars for crew to push	distinctive; "many hands" implication

Cluster B — fabric / weaving (preserves the user's affection for "fabric")

Metaphor: cos-fab's existing fabric-themed name. Weaving is a real metaphor for "composing many threads into a single coherent piece":

candidate	meaning	why it fits
loom	the device that weaves threads into fabric	composes; strongest evocation; risk: name collisions (Loom Inc. video)
weave / weft / warp	the act and the threads	direct; weft and warp distinct
shuttle	the part of a loom that carries thread across the warp	"carries between sides"; routing
skein	a coil of yarn	smaller scope; less obvious as routing
tapestry	a complete woven piece	the result, not the doing — weaker
lattice	a crossing structure	adjacent; geometric

Cluster C — architectural / civic (gathering metaphors)

Metaphor: the router as a place where things converge.

candidate	meaning	why it fits
atrium	central hall in a Roman house; all paths converge	beautiful; conveys gathering without grandeur
forum	Roman public square / marketplace	gathering; commerce; risk: too generic
agora	Greek equivalent of forum	distinctive sound; "agora-mcp" reads well
portico	colonnaded entrance	adjacency; less central
rotunda	circular hall	distinctive; "everything converges"

Cluster D — technical / network (the function directly)

Metaphor: pure routing.

candidate	meaning	why it fits
conduit	a channel that carries something	classic router metaphor; clean
plexus	a network of intersecting things (nerves, blood vessels)	network/intersection; medical undertone
manifold	a pipe with multiple branches	distribution + multiple paths
junction	a place where things meet	generic but clear
nexus	a connection point	DEFINITELY taken (Sonatype Nexus); skip
bridge	connects two sides	too generic

Cluster E — music / orchestra (the orchestration metaphor)

Metaphor: composing many performers into one piece.

candidate	meaning	why it fits
baton	the conductor's tool	small, sharp; conducting
score	the written composition	overloaded ("test scores")
podium	where the conductor stands	central, elevated
chord	many notes at once	composition; risk: "discord", electronic associations
ensemble	the group of performers	composes; long

My top picks

After several rounds of consideration, the names I'd actually want to own:

1. bosun ⭐ (Rigged Suite fit)

Pronounced "BOH-sn" (short for boatswain). The officer who coordinates the deck. Three reasons it works: - Literal meaning matches the function: the bosun is in charge of the ship's equipment, manages the crew, executes the captain's orders by routing them to the right hands. That's the router. - Fits the Rigged Suite naturally: lackpy and bosun both sit comfortably in the nautical/rigging family without being heavy-handed about it. - Distinctive sound: short, punchy, easy to type and pronounce; few collisions in the AI-tooling space.

Risk: people unfamiliar with the word may need a one-line explanation. The word is well-known enough that it's not obscure — and "the bosun is the coordinator" reads cleanly.

2. conduit

The cleanest pure-function name. A conduit carries something from one place to another; that's literally the router. Crisp, clean, single syllable cluster.

Risk: there's a Conduit Server for Matrix (Rust) and a few minor uses; the name has gravity but isn't owned in the AI-routing space.

3. loom

Strongest evocation among fabric-family options. A loom composes many threads into one coherent thing — exactly what the router does with models + tools + patterns. Preserves the user's stated affection for "cosmic-fabric" while generalizing.

Risk: Loom Inc. (the video tool) is a well-known SaaS; this would compete for search. Mitigation: niche audience for an AI router rarely searches for "loom" generically.

4. plexus

Distinctive, technical, evokes network intersection. Less collision risk than any of the above. Slight medical association (nerve plexus, brachial plexus) is mostly positive — it reads as "intelligent network."

5. atrium

The "place where everything converges" framing. Beautiful name, hospitable connotation. Less obviously a router than the others; might need explanation.

Recommendation

bosun if you're committed to the Rigged Suite identity for this set of tools. The naming coherence with lackpy alone is worth a lot for memorability ("the Rigged tools — lackpy and bosun"), and the literal meaning is on target.

conduit if you want each project's name to stand fully alone without brand-family scaffolding. It's the most function-true name and the easiest to explain in one sentence.

I'd not pick loom — the brand collision with Loom Inc. would make the next five years of search/SEO an uphill fight, even in a niche.

Other Rigged-suite additions to consider (for context)

If bosun lands, the suite could naturally grow: - lackpy — the inference language (existing) - bosun — the router - pinnace (a small ship's boat) — would be a CLI client - helm — would be a UI / control panel - ledger — would be observability / audit - pilot — a navigation / dispatch helper

(Names suggest themselves once you commit to the metaphor — that's an argument for nautical naming, not against.)

What's next

Pick a name. Once chosen: 1. Reserve the GitHub repo + PyPI name 2. Update router-architecture.md to use it throughout 3. Set up the bundle layout (router + forks + examples) 4. Plan the cosmic-fabric → new-name migration / coexistence