@rugk ...not really. That's a hack that web browsers implement that says "use the same protocol as is currently in use". If I host something on an HTTP server it would be inaccessible for anyone on HTTPS if it said "//example.com" (because having the TLS overhead is sometimes just annoying if all you want is to publish an Atom feed).

I agree that HTTPS should be used as much as possible, but it's really really annoying if you need to run a webserver that handles TLS, updates certificates, keeps track of the latest security vulnerabilities and migrates to the most recent TLS protocol, makes sure to use the correct ciphers and also has the full stack of intelligence to make sure that none of the pitfalls of encryption occur that would make TLS useless.

Compared to just having an open socket and delivering HTTP responses with Atom feeds.