So I think that code simplification and easy adoption of in-memory data changes (such as encryption or compression) are two rather distinct goals. admit that I'm running out of ideas how to develop a framework that'd be useful for both.
I’m also wondering about code simplification vs a more general encryption/compression framework. I started with the current proposal, and I’m also looking at David Steele’s approach to encryption/compression in pgbackrest. I’m beginning to think we should do a high-level design which includes encryption/compression, and then implement it as a “simplification” without actually doing the transformations.