# Product

## Register

product

## Users

A single user: **PLN / ParVagues** — a TidalCycles livecoder, performer, and
producer running his own salvage-and-release operation ("L'Armada"). Expert in the
domain (knows every orbit, sample, gig, and take); not here to be onboarded, here to
**get audio and catalog work done fast**. Context of use: long focused sessions at a
studio monitor in dim light, plus quick checks on a phone over LAN (auditioning a
master, validating a cut). Often listening *while* reading the screen — the eyes are
a second channel to the ears, never the main event.

## Product Purpose

A fleet of **internal instruments** for the ParVagues catalog: mastering A/B judges,
stem-map / boundary validators, triage and comparison screens, distribution and gig
ledgers. They turn analysis data (orbit activity, loudness, spectra, boundaries,
provenance) into something the ear and eye can **trust and act on**. Success = PLN
reaches a confident decision (ship this take, cut here, this master wins) faster, and
the tools never mislead him about what the data actually says. These are workbenches,
not a storefront; the public face is the separate ParVagues site.

## Brand Personality

**Calm, precise, quietly alive.** Instrument-grade trust first: legible meters, honest
markers, nothing shouting. Low cognitive load is the default state. ParVagues' glitch /
livecoding DNA shows up only where there's aesthetic room — a small, earned, playful
moment, never decoration that costs legibility. Voice: terse, specific, a maker talking
to himself. (Note: avoid leaning into literal terminal-cosplay — it reads as gimmick.)

## Anti-references

- **SaaS-cream landing slop** — hero-metric templates, gradient text, glassmorphism,
  tiny uppercase eyebrows, the generated-look impeccable bans. This is product UI.
- **Skeuomorphic plugin chrome** — fake-metal knobs, brushed-aluminium bezels, faux-3D.
- **Generic Bootstrap dashboard** — default components, blue primary buttons, endless
  identical card grids, no point of view.
- Consumer music-app gloss (Spotify/Apple-Music shine) is *not a goal* but not forbidden.
- Reference feel to aim at instead: **Linear / Vercel** product minimalism, **Grafana**-ish
  observatory data-viz for the timeline/heatmap work, **Ableton** dark studio precision.

## Design Principles

1. **Trust the instrument.** Every meter, number, and marker is honest and traceable.
   Surface calibration and provenance; never imply more certainty than the data has.
   (A 75-second time-base bug once hid behind a confident-looking UI — never again.)
2. **The ear leads, the screen serves.** Quiet by default; show what's relevant at the
   playhead and get out of the way. The tool must never compete with the audio for
   attention.
3. **One language across the fleet.** Samples, orbits, roles, gigs, takes, and lifecycle
   states share a single visual + semantic vocabulary, reused in every tool — learn one
   instrument and you can read them all. Low cognitive load is a *system* property.
4. **Encode meaning redundantly.** Identity and state are carried by label + shape +
   position, with color as reinforcement. Never hue alone — it keeps the dense role-coding
   legible and colour-blind safe by construction.
5. **Glitch with intent.** ParVagues character appears in small, deliberate moments
   (motion, texture, a flash of the brand magenta). If a flourish costs a millisecond of
   reading speed, it's cut.

## Accessibility & Inclusion

Single-user tool — optimize for PLN's screens (studio monitor + phone) rather than broad
WCAG certification, but keep two disciplines non-negotiable because they also make the
tools *better*:
- **Never hue alone.** Role / orbit / state / lifecycle always pair color with a label,
  glyph, or position. (Principle 4.)
- **Readable contrast.** Body text ≥4.5:1; no light-gray-for-elegance; must hold up on a
  dim monitor and a phone in daylight.
- **Reduced motion honored.** Every animation has a `prefers-reduced-motion` fallback.
