The value of being able to build an HTTP 1.1 server is not in putting a hand-crafted server on the internet and serving traffic. It's in the experience of building the server and later applying that detailed byte-by-byte knowledge in real work. It's also in teaching young engineers that yes, they can learn something by digging into the layers that surround their own code. Part of the dysfunction of "enterprise" programming is the programmed helplessness of people who are surrounded on all sides by complex, opaque technology that turns curiosity into a liability. We are replacing a "whoa, I can see how it works!" experience with a "fuck, I guess have to leave this part to those bigcorp engineers" experience.

(I'm not agreeing with the author, just pointing out why he might care about the ability for an individual to implement the protocols the web is built on.)