Sounds like the OP's problem is not so much the protocol itself, as the long tail of developers using it who have no idea what it can actually do. There are de

Sounds like the OP's problem is not so much the protocol itself, as the long tail of developers using it who have no idea what it can actually do. There are developers who do use most/all of HTTP. I'm one. I think I've used most of the obscure features he mentions, including URL parameters and all those status codes (excepting 402 Payment Required, which I've never had a need for, but I do know it exists). Most of the features he mentions aren't very useful for browser interaction, but really shine for APIs. If you're trying to write an HTTP API, and you haven't at least got to grips with all the status codes and methods, you should and take the time to understand them all and when they should be used. It's a real joy to use an API that uses methods and statuses properly. If in doubt, read the Github API docs - their API is (mostly) very good in this regard.