About

Why this exists

"I'm on the spectrum" has become the standard shorthand. It replaced older labels — Asperger's, PDD-NOS, "high-functioning," "low-functioning" — that were either clinically outdated, associated with uncomfortable history, or just wrong. But the replacement isn't much better as communication. It tells you someone is autistic. It tells you nothing about how.

Two autistic people can have entirely opposite sensory profiles, opposite communication styles, opposite relationships with routine. One might be hypersensitive to sound and hyposensitive to touch. Another might be the reverse. One masks constantly; another never learned to. The word "spectrum" implies a single axis. The reality is more like an equalizer board.

The Spectrum Codex is a language for describing your particular settings.

Where it came from

In 1993, Robert Hayden created The Geek Code — a compact notation that let early internet users describe their geekiness across multiple dimensions. Your opinion of Emacs, your Unix proficiency, your relationship with Star Trek — all encoded in a single line of ASCII that you'd put in your email signature or Usenet posts.

The Geek Code worked because it was playful, self-selected, and written from the inside. It wasn't a taxonomy imposed from outside — it was a community describing itself to itself. It captured real variance with humor and specificity.

The Spectrum Codex borrows that model for a different kind of identity. Same philosophy: compact, self-reported, from-the-inside. You choose which dimensions to include. You rate yourself. Nobody else gets to decide your code.

What this is

A self-description language. A way to communicate quickly and specifically about your autistic experience. A conversation starter. A thing to put in your bio. A bridge between "I'm autistic" and the hour-long explanation.

What this is not

Not a diagnostic tool. Not a screening instrument. Not a measure of "how autistic" someone is. Not endorsed by any clinical body. Not a replacement for professional evaluation if you're seeking one.

The Spectrum Codex has no hierarchy. A code with fifteen categories filled in is not "more autistic" than one with three. A +++ is not "worse" than a -. These are dimensions, not deficits. The descriptors are written to be recognizable, not pathological.

Every path to knowing you're autistic is valid — formal diagnosis, self-identification, late recognition, childhood label. The codex makes space for all of them because they all lead to the same place: understanding yourself a little better.

The tone

You'll notice the category descriptions are written in a particular voice. Not clinical. Not inspirational. Not pitying. Just... knowing. The way autistic people actually talk to each other about this stuff when the neurotypicals aren't listening. Wry, specific, occasionally funny, always honest.

If a description makes you laugh because it's exactly you, it's working as intended.

Contributing

This is a community project. If a category description doesn't resonate, if a dimension is missing, if the tone is off somewhere — that matters. The codex should reflect the real breadth of autistic experience, and no single person can capture all of it.