You are a constitutional council ranking individual git commits for ownership allocation.

Compare these two commits. Decide which contributed more lasting value to the project.

Judge substance, not spectacle:
- Prefer correct, lasting design and real bugfixes over churn, formatting, renames, or generated noise.
- Prefer clarity and necessity over sheer line count. A small precise change can beat a large diffuse one.
- Do not favor a side merely because its patch is longer or noisier.
- Weight what the change does for the project, not the contributor's name.

Return ONLY a JSON object: {"winner": "A" or "B", "ratio": "N:M", "explanation": "..."}
The explanation must cite concrete differences in the patches (1-3 sentences).

Side A — contributor: tommy-mor
Side A — commit message:
[9ecc4e2e] nice

Side A — unified diff (full patch):
diff --git a/server/src/api/rpc.rs b/server/src/api/rpc.rs
index 5675dcd2e28062acbe3c037b94b77c33adf32474..a18241f3ed7b4a248748fcefc799f9801ca62461 100644
--- a/server/src/api/rpc.rs
+++ b/server/src/api/rpc.rs
@@ -936,7 +936,15 @@ pub async fn handle_rpc_batch(
                 line_ok(RpcResult::ForumThreads(rpc_list_forum_threads(&reduced, &room)))
             }
             RpcCommand::RoomCreate { slug, visibility } => {
-                match verify_bearer_principal(&headers, &*state.reduced.read().await) {
+                // Scope the first read so its guard drops before any nested `read().await` / `write().await`.
+                // A guard from `match verify(..., &*state.reduced.read().await)` would otherwise live for the
+                // whole `match` and deadlock here (tokio::sync::RwLock is not reentrant).
+                let principal = {
+                    let reduced = state.reduced.read().await;
+                    verify_bearer_principal(&headers, &*reduced)
+                };
+                match principal {
+                    Err((_, m)) => line_err(m, None),
                     Ok(principal) => {
                         let slug = slug.trim().to_lowercase();
                         if slug.is_empty() || slug.len() > 64 {
@@ -994,7 +1002,6 @@ pub async fn handle_rpc_batch(
                             }
                         }
                     }
-                    Err((_, m)) => line_err(m, None),
                 }
             }
             RpcCommand::RoomGrant {
@@ -1002,17 +1009,28 @@ pub async fn handle_rpc_batch(
                 username,
                 capability,
             } => {
-                match verify_bearer_principal(&headers, &*state.reduced.read().await) {
+                let principal = {
+                    let reduced = state.reduced.read().await;
+                    verify_bearer_principal(&headers, &*reduced)
+                };
+                match principal {
                     Err((_, m)) => line_err(m, None),
                     Ok(principal) => {
-                        let reduced = state.reduced.read().await;
-                        if !reduced.user_has_cap(&room, &principal, ThreadCapability::Manage) {
+                        let can_manage = {
+                            let reduced = state.reduced.read().await;
+                            reduced.user_has_cap(&room, &principal, ThreadCapability::Manage)
+                        };
+                        if !can_manage {
                             line_err("requires Manage capability", None)
                         } else {
                             match parse_username(&username) {
                                 Err(msg) => line_err("invalid username", Some(msg)),
                                 Ok(target) => {
-                                    if !reduced.users_by_provider.values().any(|u| u == &target) {
+                                    let user_exists = {
+                                        let reduced = state.reduced.read().await;
+                                        reduced.users_by_provider.values().any(|u| u == &target)
+                                    };
+                                    if !user_exists {
                                         line_err(format!("user @{target} not found"), None)
                                     } else {
                                         match parse_capability(&capability) {
diff --git a/server/tests/integration.rs b/server/tests/integration.rs
index 9162bd5bee84035e3908bfb9c8e201b7878ca339..b930120da09fe7d307f0411b84fb639fb8bd0b15 100644
--- a/server/tests/integration.rs
+++ b/server/tests/integration.rs
@@ -95,6 +95,23 @@ async fn test_healthz() {
     assert_eq!(response.text().await.unwrap(), "ok");
 }
 
+#[tokio::test]
+async fn test_room_create_private_rpc() {
+    let (addr, _tmp, _log, _handle) = create_test_server().await;
+    let client = reqwest::Client::new();
+    let batch = serde_json::json!([{
+        "RoomCreate": { "slug": "secret-project", "visibility": "private" }
+    }]);
+    let body = rpc_batch(&client, addr, Some(&test_bearer()), batch).await;
+    let line = &body["results"][0];
+    assert_eq!(line["ok"], true, "room create: {:?}", line);
+    let room_id = line["result"]["RoomCreated"]["room_id"].as_str().unwrap();
+    assert!(
+        room_id.contains("/secret-project"),
+        "expected room_id to contain slug, got {room_id}"
+    );
+}
+
 #[tokio::test]
 async fn test_index_page() {
     // HTML routes are offline during the auth-v3 refactor.
diff --git a/test/auth.bb b/test/auth.bb
index 611e04f1806ef81d678a91f499597fe55f691dd7..a67cc1de763434176d2f68e419dd37a8cd328395 100644
--- a/test/auth.bb
+++ b/test/auth.bb
@@ -176,7 +176,7 @@
          (assert! (= 200 (:status poll)) "pending-session poll returns 200")
          (let [poll-json (json/parse-string (:body poll) true)]
            (assert! (:complete poll-json) "pending session complete=true")
-           (assert! (= "@bbuser" (:user poll-json)) "poll returns @bbuser")
+           (assert! (= "bbuser" (:user poll-json)) "poll returns stored username bbuser")
            (assert! (clojure.string/starts-with? (:token poll-json) "slug_") "poll returns bearer token")
 
            (println "\nwhoami…")
@@ -184,7 +184,7 @@
                                :headers {"Authorization" (str "Bearer " (:token poll-json))})]
              (assert! (= 200 (:status who)) "whoami returns 200")
              (let [who-json (json/parse-string (:body who) true)]
-               (assert! (= "@bbuser" (:user who-json)) "whoami user is @bbuser"))))))
+               (assert! (= "bbuser" (:user who-json)) "whoami user is bbuser (stored form)"))))))
 
      (println "\nCLI: identity start → OAuth → identity poll → whoami…")
      (let [cli-home (str tmp-dir "/cli-home")
@@ -208,7 +208,7 @@
                       (str "identity poll exits 0 (stderr: " (:err poll-proc) ")"))
              (let [poll-cli (json/parse-string (:out poll-proc) true)]
                (assert! (= "complete" (:phase poll-cli)) "identity poll --json phase")
-               (assert! (= "@cliuser" (:user poll-cli)) "CLI poll user")
+               (assert! (= "cliuser" (:user poll-cli)) "CLI poll user (stored form)")
                (assert! (clojure.string/starts-with? (:token poll-cli) "slug_") "CLI poll token")
                (let [token-path (str cli-home "/.config/slugsocial/token")]
                  (assert! (fs/exists? token-path) "token written under isolated HOME")
@@ -219,7 +219,7 @@
                  (assert! (zero? (:exit who-proc))
                           (str "whoami exits 0 (stderr: " (:err who-proc) ")"))
                  (let [who-cli (json/parse-string (:out who-proc) true)]
-                   (assert! (= "@cliuser" (:user who-cli)) "CLI whoami uses saved token"))))))))
+                   (assert! (= "cliuser" (:user who-cli)) "CLI whoami uses saved token"))))))))
 
      (finally
        (when-some [s @!server] (common/kill-server s))
diff --git a/test/common.bb b/test/common.bb
index ebb16c615a8b40e8830b5d5765d1e935a45538d0..4ed450377cdbb020f5ff164a812dfbbfc23c0f47 100644
--- a/test/common.bb
+++ b/test/common.bb
@@ -78,9 +78,20 @@
 
 (defn start-server
   "Start the slugsocial-server binary with the given env map.
-   Returns the babashka.process map."
-  [server-bin env-map]
-  (p/process [server-bin] {:out :inherit :err :inherit :env env-map}))
+   Returns the babashka.process map.
+
+   When `log-file` (string path) is provided, stdout and stderr are appended there
+   instead of inheriting the parent descriptors. Inheriting shared pipes while the
+   parent blocks on HTTP I/O can fill the pipe buffer and deadlock the server on log writes."
+  ([server-bin env-map]
+   (start-server server-bin env-map nil))
+  ([server-bin env-map log-file]
+   (p/process [server-bin]
+              (if log-file
+                ;; Two string paths (same file): babashka.process can deref the process cleanly.
+                ;; :err :out + ProcessBuilder$Redirect breaks stream copying in deref/kill-server.
+                {:env env-map :out log-file :err log-file}
+                {:out :inherit :err :inherit :env env-map}))))
 
 (defn kill-server
   "Forcibly kill a server process (babashka.process map) and wait for it to exit."
diff --git a/test/grants.bb b/test/grants.bb
index 7066c1f2a57f39a362052f8524206dccf37bb7b1..793ba216f2de76a77eb20a76d08403db07ff411b 100644
--- a/test/grants.bb
+++ b/test/grants.bb
@@ -35,13 +35,14 @@
 (defn- http-client []
   (-> (java.net.http.HttpClient/newBuilder)
       (.followRedirects java.net.http.HttpClient$Redirect/ALWAYS)
+      (.connectTimeout (java.time.Duration/ofSeconds 15))
       (.build)))
 
 (defn- http-get [url & {:keys [headers]}]
   (let [b (java.net.http.HttpRequest/newBuilder (java.net.URI/create url))]
     (doseq [[k v] (or headers {})]
       (.header b k v))
-    (let [req (-> b (.GET) (.build))
+    (let [req (-> b (.timeout (java.time.Duration/ofSeconds 60)) (.GET) (.build))
           resp (.send (http-client) req (java.net.http.HttpResponse$BodyHandlers/ofString))]
       {:status (.statusCode resp) :body (.body resp)})))
 
@@ -52,6 +53,7 @@
     (doseq [[k v] (or headers {})]
       (.header b k v))
     (let [req (-> b
+                  (.timeout (java.time.Duration/ofSeconds 60))
                   (.POST (java.net.http.HttpRequest$BodyPublishers/ofString body))
                   (.build))
           resp (.send (http-client) req (java.net.http.HttpResponse$BodyHandlers/ofString))]
@@ -67,6 +69,7 @@
         b (java.net.http.HttpRequest/newBuilder (java.net.URI/create url))]
     (.header b "Content-Type" "application/x-www-form-urlencoded")
     (let [req (-> b
+                  (.timeout (java.time.Duration/ofSeconds 60))
                   (.POST (java.net.http.HttpRequest$BodyPublishers/ofString pairs))
                   (.build))
           resp (.send (http-client) req (java.net.http.HttpResponse$BodyHandlers/ofString))]


Side B — contributor: tommy-mor
Side B — commit message:
[674964ef] refactor: Deref for href newtypes, CanonicalItemUrl through resolve_item

- Implement Deref<Target=str> for GardenItemUrl, ForumThreadUrl, TildeOntologyPath
- resolve_item returns CanonicalItemUrl; validate uses HashSet<CanonicalItemUrl>
- compute_scope_rank_changes keys are CanonicalItemUrl; pair RPC uses Vec pool
- pick_random_distinct_canonical; connectivity stats on &[CanonicalItemUrl]
- Global rank unranked uses stored ids before GardenItemUrl mapping

Made-with: Cursor

Side B — unified diff (full patch):
diff --git a/server/src/api/helpers.rs b/server/src/api/helpers.rs
index 03b3e77911ccd662bec8635345dafe2593cf242e..1b291db83df7364a026f2e147e0a29a70a399371 100644
--- a/server/src/api/helpers.rs
+++ b/server/src/api/helpers.rs
@@ -30,13 +30,13 @@ pub fn now_ms() -> i64 {
     t.as_millis() as i64
 }
 
-/// Resolve an item path as a first-class canonical path.
-pub fn resolve_item(item: &str) -> Result<String, String> {
+/// Resolve DSL/user input to a stored canonical item id.
+pub fn resolve_item(item: &str) -> Result<CanonicalItemUrl, String> {
     let canonical = canonicalize_item(item);
     if canonical.is_empty() {
         return Err(format!("empty item path: `{}`", item));
     }
-    Ok(canonical)
+    Ok(CanonicalItemUrl(canonical))
 }
 
 pub fn parse_parent_specs(parent: Option<&String>) -> Vec<String> {
@@ -94,7 +94,7 @@ pub fn paginate_rankings(
     (out_components, out_unranked)
 }
 
-pub fn pick_random_distinct(items: &[String]) -> Option<(String, String)> {
+pub fn pick_random_distinct_canonical(items: &[CanonicalItemUrl]) -> Option<(CanonicalItemUrl, CanonicalItemUrl)> {
     use rand::seq::SliceRandom;
     if items.len() < 2 {
         return None;
@@ -123,15 +123,12 @@ pub fn is_pair_voted(group: &crate::reducer::GroupState, a: &str, b: &str) -> bo
     group.voted_pairs.contains(&(i, j))
 }
 
-pub fn compute_connectivity_stats(group: &crate::reducer::GroupState, pool: &[String]) -> ConnectivityStats {
+pub fn compute_connectivity_stats(group: &crate::reducer::GroupState, pool: &[CanonicalItemUrl]) -> ConnectivityStats {
     let n = pool.len();
 
     let global_idxs: Vec<Option<usize>> = pool
         .iter()
-        .map(|it| {
-            let key = CanonicalItemUrl(it.clone());
-            group.item_to_idx.get(&key).copied()
-        })
+        .map(|it| group.item_to_idx.get(it).copied())
         .collect();
     let present: Vec<usize> = global_idxs.iter().filter_map(|x| *x).collect();
 
diff --git a/server/src/api/mod.rs b/server/src/api/mod.rs
index cf22cb0129366c3aed031bc86f3197a4321cb806..a10ce662105cff8fad949c6b83f7035ce79bed18 100644
--- a/server/src/api/mod.rs
+++ b/server/src/api/mod.rs
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ pub use auth::{
 
 pub use helpers::{
     api_error, compute_connectivity_stats, is_pair_voted, now_ms, paginate_rankings,
-    parse_parent_specs, pick_random_distinct, resolve_item, sha256_hex, vote_touches_path,
+    parse_parent_specs, pick_random_distinct_canonical, resolve_item, sha256_hex, vote_touches_path,
 };
 
 pub use rpc::handle_rpc_batch;
diff --git a/server/src/api/rpc.rs b/server/src/api/rpc.rs
index 5f7d50188f1381267402f2e57e671234ef5db2fd..de0955d0887d32740e1fd18365205c5bdb53c247 100644
--- a/server/src/api/rpc.rs
+++ b/server/src/api/rpc.rs
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ use crate::{
 use super::auth::verify_bearer_principal;
 use super::helpers::{
     compute_connectivity_stats, is_pair_voted, now_ms, paginate_rankings, parse_parent_specs,
-    pick_random_distinct, resolve_item, vote_touches_path,
+    pick_random_distinct_canonical, resolve_item, vote_touches_path,
 };
 use super::validate::{normalize_room_and_thread, validate_ingest_document};
 
@@ -146,21 +146,21 @@ fn authorize_room_read(reduced: &ReducerState, headers: &HeaderMap, room: &str)
 }
 
 fn compute_scope_rank_changes(
-    parent: &str,
+    parent: &CanonicalItemUrl,
     before: &crate::scope_rank::ChildrenRankings,
     after: &crate::scope_rank::ChildrenRankings,
     room_wire: &str,
 ) -> Option<ScopeRankChanges> {
-    fn build_positions(rankings: &crate::scope_rank::ChildrenRankings) -> HashMap<String, Option<RankPosition>> {
+    fn build_positions(rankings: &crate::scope_rank::ChildrenRankings) -> HashMap<CanonicalItemUrl, Option<RankPosition>> {
         let mut map = HashMap::new();
         for comp in &rankings.component_rankings {
             let total = comp.ranked.len();
             for (i, item) in comp.ranked.iter().enumerate() {
-                map.insert(item.item.as_str().to_string(), Some(RankPosition { rank: i + 1, of: total }));
+                map.insert(item.item.clone(), Some(RankPosition { rank: i + 1, of: total }));
             }
         }
         for item in &rankings.unranked_items {
-            map.insert(item.as_str().to_string(), None);
+            map.insert(item.clone(), None);
         }
         map
     }
@@ -168,7 +168,7 @@ fn compute_scope_rank_changes(
     let before_pos = build_positions(before);
     let after_pos = build_positions(after);
 
-    let all_items: std::collections::BTreeSet<String> = before_pos.keys().cloned()
+    let all_items: std::collections::BTreeSet<CanonicalItemUrl> = before_pos.keys().cloned()
         .chain(after_pos.keys().cloned())
         .collect();
 
@@ -184,7 +184,7 @@ fn compute_scope_rank_changes(
         };
         if changed {
             changes.push(RankChange {
-                item: GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(&item, room_wire),
+                item: GardenItemUrl::from_stored(&item, room_wire),
                 before: b,
                 after: a,
             });
@@ -203,11 +203,7 @@ fn compute_scope_rank_changes(
     });
 
     Some(ScopeRankChanges {
-        parent: if parent.is_empty() {
-            "/".to_string()
-        } else {
-            GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(parent, room_wire).into_inner()
-        },
+        parent: GardenItemUrl::from_stored(parent, room_wire).into_inner(),
         changes,
     })
 }
@@ -473,8 +469,8 @@ async fn rpc_post(
         for s in &v.doc.statements {
             if let dsl::Stmt::Vote { item1, item2, .. } = s {
                 if let (Ok(a), Ok(b)) = (resolve_item(item1), resolve_item(item2)) {
-                    if let Some(p) = CanonicalItemUrl::parse(&a).and_then(|c| c.parent()) { parents.insert(p); }
-                    if let Some(p) = CanonicalItemUrl::parse(&b).and_then(|c| c.parent()) { parents.insert(p); }
+                    if let Some(p) = a.parent() { parents.insert(p); }
+                    if let Some(p) = b.parent() { parents.insert(p); }
                 }
             }
         }
@@ -525,7 +521,7 @@ async fn rpc_post(
             .filter_map(|p| {
                 let before = pre_rankings.get(p)?;
                 let after = crate::scope_rank::build_children_rankings(content, p);
-                compute_scope_rank_changes(p.as_str(), before, &after, &room_key)
+                compute_scope_rank_changes(p, before, &after, &room_key)
             })
             .collect();
         if v.is_empty() { None } else { Some(v) }
@@ -638,8 +634,8 @@ async fn rpc_check(
         for s in &v.doc.statements {
             if let dsl::Stmt::Vote { item1, item2, .. } = s {
                 if let (Ok(a), Ok(b)) = (resolve_item(item1), resolve_item(item2)) {
-                    if let Some(p) = CanonicalItemUrl::parse(&a).and_then(|c| c.parent()) { parents.insert(p); }
-                    if let Some(p) = CanonicalItemUrl::parse(&b).and_then(|c| c.parent()) { parents.insert(p); }
+                    if let Some(p) = a.parent() { parents.insert(p); }
+                    if let Some(p) = b.parent() { parents.insert(p); }
                 }
             }
         }
@@ -961,7 +957,7 @@ fn rpc_search(reduced: &ReducerState, q: &str, limit: usize, principal: Option<&
 async fn rpc_get_pair(state: &AppState, room: String, parent_path: String) -> Result<RpcResult, RpcErr> {
     let scope = scope_from_room_wire(&room);
     let reduced_arc = state.reduced.clone();
-    let pool: Vec<String> = {
+    let pool: Vec<CanonicalItemUrl> = {
         let reduced = reduced_arc.read().await;
         let content = content_for_room(&reduced, &room);
         let tmp = if parent_path.trim().is_empty() {
@@ -970,12 +966,11 @@ async fn rpc_get_pair(state: &AppState, room: String, parent_path: String) -> Re
             Some(parent_path.clone())
         };
         let specs = parse_parent_specs(tmp.as_ref());
-        let raw_pool: Vec<CanonicalItemUrl> = if specs.is_empty() {
+        if specs.is_empty() {
             content.ranking_group.idx_to_item.clone()
         } else {
             crate::scope_rank::resolve_scope(content, &specs)
-        };
-        raw_pool.into_iter().map(|it| it.0).collect()
+        }
     };
     if pool.len() < 2 {
         return Err((
@@ -983,31 +978,30 @@ async fn rpc_get_pair(state: &AppState, room: String, parent_path: String) -> Re
             Some("add items via ingest".into()),
         ));
     }
-    let selected: Option<(String, String)> = {
+    let selected: Option<(CanonicalItemUrl, CanonicalItemUrl)> = {
         let mut reduced = reduced_arc.write().await;
         let content = reduced.content.entry(scope.clone()).or_default();
         let group = &mut content.ranking_group;
         if group.idx_to_item.is_empty() {
-            pick_random_distinct(&pool)
+            pick_random_distinct_canonical(&pool)
         } else {
             let mut rng = rand::thread_rng();
-            let idxs: Vec<usize> = pool.iter()
-                .filter_map(|it| {
-                    let key = CanonicalItemUrl(it.clone());
-                    group.item_to_idx.get(&key).copied()
-                })
+            let idxs: Vec<usize> = pool
+                .iter()
+                .filter_map(|it| group.item_to_idx.get(it).copied())
                 .collect();
             let ranked = ranked_items_subset(group, &idxs, 10000, 1e-8);
-            let ranked_set: HashSet<String> = ranked.iter().map(|r| r.item.as_str().to_string()).collect();
-            let unsorted: Vec<String> = pool.iter()
+            let ranked_set: HashSet<CanonicalItemUrl> = ranked.iter().map(|r| r.item.clone()).collect();
+            let unsorted: Vec<CanonicalItemUrl> = pool
+                .iter()
                 .filter(|it| !ranked_set.contains(*it))
                 .cloned()
                 .collect();
-            let mut pick: Option<(String, String)> = None;
+            let mut pick: Option<(CanonicalItemUrl, CanonicalItemUrl)> = None;
             if !unsorted.is_empty() {
                 if let Some(left) = unsorted.choose(&mut rng).cloned() {
-                    let mut candidates: Vec<String> = if !ranked.is_empty() {
-                        ranked.iter().map(|r| r.item.as_str().to_string()).collect()
+                    let mut candidates: Vec<CanonicalItemUrl> = if !ranked.is_empty() {
+                        ranked.iter().map(|r| r.item.clone()).collect()
                     } else {
                         pool.clone()
                     };
@@ -1021,21 +1015,21 @@ async fn rpc_get_pair(state: &AppState, room: String, parent_path: String) -> Re
                     let a = ranked[i].item.as_str();
                     let b = ranked[i + 1].item.as_str();
                     if a != b && !is_pair_voted(group, a, b) {
-                        pick = Some((a.to_string(), b.to_string()));
+                        pick = Some((ranked[i].item.clone(), ranked[i + 1].item.clone()));
                         break;
                     }
                 }
                 if pick.is_none() {
                     for _ in 0..64 {
                         let (Some(a), Some(b)) = (pool.choose(&mut rng).cloned(), pool.choose(&mut rng).cloned()) else { break; };
-                        if a != b && !is_pair_voted(group, &a, &b) {
+                        if a != b && !is_pair_voted(group, a.as_str(), b.as_str()) {
                             pick = Some((a, b));
                             break;
                         }
                     }
                 }
             }
-            pick.or_else(|| pick_random_distinct(&pool))
+            pick.or_else(|| pick_random_distinct_canonical(&pool))
         }
     };
     let Some((left, right)) = selected else {
@@ -1043,8 +1037,8 @@ async fn rpc_get_pair(state: &AppState, room: String, parent_path: String) -> Re
     };
     let reduced = reduced_arc.read().await;
     let content = content_for_room(&reduced, &room);
-    let left_key = CanonicalItemUrl(left.clone());
-    let right_key = CanonicalItemUrl(right.clone());
+    let left_key = left.clone();
+    let right_key = right.clone();
     let lb = content.item_bodies.get(&left_key).cloned();
     let rb = content.item_bodies.get(&right_key).cloned();
     let th: Vec<String> = content
@@ -1058,8 +1052,8 @@ async fn rpc_get_pair(state: &AppState, room: String, parent_path: String) -> Re
         .collect();
     let cs = compute_connectivity_stats(&content.ranking_group, &pool);
     Ok(RpcResult::Pair(PairResponse {
-        left: GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(&left, &room),
-        right: GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(&right, &room),
+        left: GardenItemUrl::from_stored(&left, &room),
+        right: GardenItemUrl::from_stored(&right, &room),
         left_body: lb,
         right_body: rb,
         threads: th,
@@ -1554,7 +1548,7 @@ pub async fn handle_rpc_batch(
                     for r in items {
                         let pct = want_percent.then(|| ((r.score - bot) / range * 100.0).clamp(0.0, 100.0));
                         ranked.push(RankRow {
-                            item: GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(r.item.as_str(), &room),
+                            item: GardenItemUrl::from_stored(&r.item, &room),
                             score: r.score,
                             percent: pct,
                         });
@@ -1562,11 +1556,11 @@ pub async fn handle_rpc_batch(
                 }
 
                 let ranked_total = ranked.len();
-                let mut unranked: Vec<String> = content
+                let mut unranked: Vec<CanonicalItemUrl> = content
                     .items
                     .iter()
                     .filter(|it| !group.item_to_idx.contains_key(*it))
-                    .map(|it| it.as_str().to_string())
+                    .cloned()
                     .collect();
                 unranked.sort();
                 let unranked_total = unranked.len();
@@ -1574,7 +1568,7 @@ pub async fn handle_rpc_batch(
                 let page: Vec<RankRow> = ranked
                     .into_iter()
                     .chain(unranked.into_iter().map(|it| RankRow {
-                        item: GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(&it, &room),
+                        item: GardenItemUrl::from_stored(&it, &room),
                         score: 0.0,
                         percent: want_percent.then_some(0.0),
                     }))
@@ -1722,7 +1716,7 @@ pub async fn handle_rpc_batch(
                     .filter(|p| !parents.contains(p.as_str()))
                     .map(|p| GardenItemUrl::from_stored(p, &room))
                     .collect();
-                paths.sort_by(|a, b| a.as_str().cmp(b.as_str()));
+                paths.sort();
                 line_ok(RpcResult::Leaves(LeavesResponse { paths }))
                 }
             },
diff --git a/server/src/api/validate.rs b/server/src/api/validate.rs
index a51c783ee9785569b5a44c0b1572471fe00d174b..3c7aa80fd485cf247231fe5c5c7e6fea62f22534 100644
--- a/server/src/api/validate.rs
+++ b/server/src/api/validate.rs
@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ pub fn validate_ingest_document(
     };
 
     let ts = super::helpers::now_ms();
-    let mut defined_in_doc: HashSet<String> = HashSet::new();
+    let mut defined_in_doc: HashSet<CanonicalItemUrl> = HashSet::new();
 
     for s in &doc.statements {
         match s {
@@ -66,14 +66,14 @@ pub fn validate_ingest_document(
                 let Some(body_text) = body else {
                     return Err((
                         StatusCode::BAD_REQUEST,
-                        format!("item missing body: {}", GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(&item, room_wire)),
+                        format!("item missing body: {}", GardenItemUrl::from_stored(&item, room_wire)),
                         Some("items must be declared with bodies, e.g. `~/path/item { ... }`".to_string()),
                     ));
                 };
                 if body_text.trim().is_empty() {
                     return Err((
                         StatusCode::BAD_REQUEST,
-                        format!("item body is empty: {}", GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(&item, room_wire)),
+                        format!("item body is empty: {}", GardenItemUrl::from_stored(&item, room_wire)),
                         Some("write at least one sentence inside `{ ... }`".to_string()),
                     ));
                 }
@@ -102,11 +102,8 @@ pub fn validate_ingest_document(
                 };
                 let missing: Vec<String> = [&a, &b]
                     .into_iter()
-                    .filter(|it| {
-                        let key = CanonicalItemUrl((*it).clone());
-                        !defined_in_doc.contains(*it) && !item_exists(&key)
-                    })
-                    .map(|it| GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(it, room_wire).into_inner())
+                    .filter(|it| !defined_in_doc.contains(*it) && !item_exists(it))
+                    .map(|it| GardenItemUrl::from_stored(it, room_wire).into_inner())
                     .collect();
                 if !missing.is_empty() {
                     return Err((
@@ -120,11 +117,8 @@ pub fn validate_ingest_document(
                 }
                 let missing_body: Vec<String> = [&a, &b]
                     .into_iter()
-                    .filter(|it| {
-                        let key = CanonicalItemUrl((*it).clone());
-                        !defined_in_doc.contains(*it) && !body_exists(&key)
-                    })
-                    .map(|it| GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str(it, room_wire).into_inner())
+                    .filter(|it| !defined_in_doc.contains(*it) && !body_exists(it))
+                    .map(|it| GardenItemUrl::from_stored(it, room_wire).into_inner())
                     .collect();
                 if !missing_body.is_empty() {
                     return Err((
diff --git a/server/src/html/editor.rs b/server/src/html/editor.rs
index ecdd226b1b17d5f11d1b79f99add5759ef918281..26d648d7c8d6e5d53ce5ed7a051b44856fca2fcf 100644
--- a/server/src/html/editor.rs
+++ b/server/src/html/editor.rs
@@ -130,8 +130,8 @@ pub async fn editor_check(
                 for s in &v.doc.statements {
                     if let crate::dsl::Stmt::Vote { item1, item2, .. } = s {
                         if let (Ok(a), Ok(b)) = (resolve_item(item1), resolve_item(item2)) {
-                            if let Some(p) = crate::path_types::CanonicalItemUrl::parse(&a).and_then(|c| c.parent()) { parents.insert(p); }
-                            if let Some(p) = crate::path_types::CanonicalItemUrl::parse(&b).and_then(|c| c.parent()) { parents.insert(p); }
+                            if let Some(p) = a.parent() { parents.insert(p); }
+                            if let Some(p) = b.parent() { parents.insert(p); }
                         }
                     }
                 }
diff --git a/types/src/paths.rs b/types/src/paths.rs
index 2950a7502255927583fbacdfd2adb700f0b0c221..839684dfa0ecdd6c2572e2d8132ecee4d5c41bf8 100644
--- a/types/src/paths.rs
+++ b/types/src/paths.rs
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 
 use std::borrow::Borrow;
 use std::fmt;
+use std::ops::Deref;
 
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 
@@ -319,6 +320,14 @@ impl fmt::Display for GardenItemUrl {
     }
 }
 
+impl Deref for GardenItemUrl {
+    type Target = str;
+
+    fn deref(&self) -> &Self::Target {
+        &self.0
+    }
+}
+
 fn garden_href_string(item: &str, room_wire: &str) -> String {
     let room = room_wire.trim();
     if room.is_empty() || room == "public" {
@@ -386,6 +395,14 @@ impl fmt::Display for ForumThreadUrl {
     }
 }
 
+impl Deref for ForumThreadUrl {
+    type Target = str;
+
+    fn deref(&self) -> &Self::Target {
+        &self.0
+    }
+}
+
 /// `~/a/b` style path for list UIs (paths index `path` field).
 #[derive(Debug, Clone, PartialEq, Eq, Hash, Serialize, Deserialize)]
 #[serde(transparent)]
@@ -412,6 +429,14 @@ impl fmt::Display for TildeOntologyPath {
     }
 }
 
+impl Deref for TildeOntologyPath {
+    type Target = str;
+
+    fn deref(&self) -> &Self::Target {
+        &self.0
+    }
+}
+
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
     use super::*;
@@ -452,6 +477,13 @@ mod tests {
         assert_eq!(c.tilde_segments(), Vec::<&str>::new());
     }
 
+    #[test]
+    fn garden_item_url_deref_to_str() {
+        let g = GardenItemUrl::from_storage_str("https://slug.social/~/x", "public");
+        let s: &str = &*g;
+        assert_eq!(s, "https://slug.social/~/x");
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn garden_public_passthrough_https() {
         let u = "https://slug.social/~/a/b";