The Homework Board

Default Grove vault schedule is always "Surprise" — everyone receives the bloom at the same random time. Countdown clock exists but nobody knows who sent it. Group anticipates together. Strong retention mechanic. Needs: full UX flow for Surprise mode, notification design, how countdown displays when sender is hidden.

Can storage be pooled across a group? One person pays, everyone in the group gets access. Shared capacity bar visible to all members. Needs: pricing tiers, shared bar visual, whether multiple people can contribute to the same pool, what happens if the payer stops paying.

"Pressed" = permanent, added to your Pressed Flowers collection. "Compost" = organic decay — photos lose resolution over time, text is last to go. Emotional stakes: the bloom is something you could lose. Needs: compost window duration (~1yr free?), decay mechanics, "Compost Soon" filter UX, whether sender knows the outcome, storage tier integration.

Recipients rename gardeners in their own settings — "Judy Blue" becomes "Grandma" everywhere (seeds, filters, notifications, popup cards). Like renaming a phone contact. Gardeners can't see the nickname. Needs: settings UX, where the name appears, privacy rules, personal avatars.

Four roles: Original Gardener → Lead Gardener → Gardener → Recipient. A grandparent assigns a daughter as Lead Gardener so future grandkids (even unborn) can be added later. Critical for legacy vaults that outlive their creator. Needs: permission model UX, succession flow, storage ownership on transfer.

ux-mockup.html (Visual Concept v5) is a strong reference starting point — 7 screens showing the full planting flow arc. Key elements worth keeping: button patterns, seed depth layers (Near / Mid / Far), vault-opening sphere, and the flow from Home Timeline → Vault → Content Type → Vault Selection → Bloom Timing → Sealed Confirmation. Needs a rebuild using current design decisions, updated vault types, and in-vault dandelion rendering (in-vault style from ux-vaults.html). Reference the existing file, don't start from scratch.

The entire vault stays sealed until you physically arrive — not just one seed, the whole jar. Childhood home, engagement spot, family's country of origin. Different from location-triggered seeds (which are one seed inside an otherwise-accessible vault). Needs: GPS UX, sealed jar visual treatment, re-lock mechanics, arrival notification design.

Define the full sonic identity of DandyLine — what does planting a seed sound like? What does a vault opening sound like? Explore a palette of micro-interactions: swooshes (navigation/transitions), whispers (intimate/personal moments), chimes (bloom delivery, celebration), pops (taps, confirmations). Needs: sound direction/mood board, trigger mapping across key moments, and decision on opt-in vs. ambient-on approach.

What does the Roots map actually look like? Visual direction already set: organic and calm, not utilitarian — soft terrain textures, glowing underground root systems, floating seed markers, warm light pulses for emotional intensity. Needs: full map UI design, how locations are represented as pins vs. clusters, zoom behavior, seed density at a single location, and the entry point into the map from the main nav.

Location needs to be a clearly available option when first planting a seed — both in the planting flow settings and as a nav entry point in the app. Model: if location services are on, auto-grab GPS and suggest nearby places (user confirms or adjusts). Manual search/type always available. Always skippable — location is never required. Needs: planting flow UI update to include location picker, nav placement decision for Roots access.

Location seeds have two sub-states that need subtle visual distinction on the popup card. "Sprouted Here" = GPS auto-captured, memory was born at this place (the wormhole experience). "Rooted Here" = manually assigned, memory was intentionally dedicated to this place. Both remain purple. Needs: icon variation exploration (root-anchor vs. dedicated-pin feel), sub-label placement on the popup card, and a subtle info icon or hover tooltip that explains the difference without interrupting the emotional moment.

Design a beautiful, branded storage bar (like iPhone storage) that shows users their full memory health at a glance. Three preservation states: Purple (pressed/hard storage — permanent, protected), Brown/Amber (composting tier — compressed, accessible but degrading), and a third color for shared vault content someone else is paying to preserve. Should also break down by content type (photo, video, voice, text) within each state. Needs: color system decision, layout, entry point in the app, emotional tone (feels like care, not a dashboard).

A pressed seed needs a distinct visual signal that it's permanently protected — precious, locked in time. Explore: a subtle crystalline shimmer or frost overlay on the orb, a small sparkle animation that fires once on pressing then settles to a steady glow, a slightly different interior texture vs. standard sealed seeds. Should feel unmistakably different but not loud. Also needs: "Already preserved by [name]" indicator on shared seeds so vault members can see what's already safe and avoid paying to duplicate storage of the same memory.

"Buy a jar" = purchase a vault that permanently preserves everything inside it, no subscription required. Ideal for Legacy vaults and milestone collections. Also giftable — a grandparent could buy a preserved jar for a grandchild. Paired idea: vault compost notification — when a vault's payer stops paying, all members get notified that seeds are at risk, can see which seeds are already pressed by someone vs. unclaimed, and anyone can rescue an at-risk seed into their own storage. Needs: one-time vs. fixed-term purchase options, notification design, "Keeper" recognition for the volunteer contributor who funds the vault, and product pricing model.

The Security Architecture Brief v2 (DandyLine_Security_Architecture_Brief_v2.docx) needs a full sweep to reflect decisions made since it was last updated. Key new areas that likely have implications: the preservation state model (pressed / composting / degraded tiers), shared vault storage economics (one payer, many beneficiaries), the buy-a-jar permanent storage concept, compost notification mechanics, and the volunteer Keeper model. Do not update in isolation — review the full doc first, cross-reference all product notes from 04.07.26 onward, then update comprehensively.

brand-seeds.html and the vault UX pages need updates to reflect the new preservation state design decisions. Specifically: the crystallized/shimmer visual for pressed seeds, the brown/amber composting tier appearance, the third "shared access" color state, and the "already preserved by [name]" indicator on shared seeds. The brand standards keep evolving as product decisions are made — this sweep should happen after Homework #13 (pressed seed visual) is resolved so changes can be applied consistently across all pages at once.

Once a seed blooms, recipients should be able to download individual media files (standard, likely free). But what about bulk export? If someone wants to export an entire legacy jar — all the photos, videos, voice notes from their grandmother — that's a different beast. Large vault exports generate significant retrieval costs from cold storage and could be a paid feature. Core mechanics to define: single-file download UX, expiring signed link behavior (the download link should expire — how long? 24hrs? 72hrs?), bulk vault export flow (async job + email link when ready), and whether bulk export is free or paid. Added 04.09.26.

Some users will want to turn a vault — especially a legacy jar or milestone collection — into something physical: a printed photo book, a bound archive, a keepsake. Competitors like Chatbooks and Artifact Uprising do this as a primary business model. For DandyLine this would be an add-on product: "Turn this vault into a photo book." Options are a direct partnership with a print vendor (they handle fulfillment, we handle the content handoff) or a native DandyLine export format optimized for print. Needs: partner research, export format design, revenue model (we take a cut? or flat fee?), and UX for triggering a print order from within a vault. Added 04.09.26.

This is one of the most consequential product questions DandyLine will face. When a gardener dies: (1) their unsealed future blooms must still bloom on schedule — the scheduler can't just stop; (2) their whole garden (pressed flowers, vaults, seeds) needs to go somewhere; (3) someone needs to be able to access or export everything. Competitors in the "digital estate" space include GoodTrust and Everplans — there's a whole category here. DandyLine's angle is different and more emotionally rich. Options to explore: designate a digital executor in advance (like a trusted contact), pre-paid legacy export purchase (one-time fee that funds a full archive delivery after death), or subscription tier that includes estate planning. Big infrastructure question: in a zero-knowledge encryption model, how do we pre-authorize a digital executor to decrypt the garden without compromising security during life? Added 04.09.26.

A new vault type (or major Roots mode): a community jar anchored to a physical location. When someone arrives at the location, a geofence notification fires — "Our roots run deep here. Want to garden?" — and they can join and contribute. All contributors can see what others planted (some open, some time-locked). Every seed shows provenance: taken here vs. tagged here vs. manually placed. Key distinction from #06 (Location-Locked): that vault can't be OPENED until you arrive. This vault can't be CONTRIBUTED TO unless you're there — or the creator allows otherwise. Jar-level location rules: creator chooses soft mode (anyone can contribute from anywhere) vs. hard mode (GPS must be live, only media captured at this exact location allowed — no imports, no uploads from other places). Hard mode creates a "window in time" — the jar feels like a living record of a place. Needs: new vault type definition (or Roots sub-mode), arrival notification UX, join-the-jar flow, contribution rule settings, provenance labeling on seeds, and how this integrates with the Roots Map (#09). Added 04.09.26.

Journey seeds trickle in at randomized intervals after someone hits a milestone — not all at once. Creates the feeling that someone just thought of you in real time, even if the seed was planted years ago. Time as the medium applied to delivery itself. Low seed volume is invisible — sparse pools feel as meaningful as full ones. Re-engagement is earned. Needs: max seeds per milestone (suggested 3–5), delivery window (suggested 1–4 weeks), spacing logic (randomized, not fixed schedule), curation logic (tone variety, media type variety), and notification copy that makes each arrival feel handpicked — not algorithmic. The notification copy is especially high-value creative work. Added 04.09.26.

What happens to a seed that never gets a delivery date — especially if the planter dies? Options to evaluate: (1) Mandatory default — planter must set at least a fallback date at creation, even if vague. (2) System-assigned default — DandyLine assigns a default window (e.g., 5 years) if nothing is set. (3) Open default — unscheduled seeds are accessible immediately. (4) Compost default — unscheduled seeds begin composting after X years if never claimed or scheduled. For Legacy specifically: if no date is set and the planter dies, the Legacy Guardian should be prompted to set the delivery date when they activate the legacy — the vault doesn't auto-fire without human confirmation. This connects to the Pressed vs. Compost mechanic (#03) and the fuzzy dates system (#26). Needs: decision on default behavior per vault type, and Guardian activation flow for Legacy. Added 04.09.26.

When a planter sets a bloom date far in the future around an event they can't pinpoint exactly (child's graduation, estimated ~2038), they set an approximate date and get prompted later to confirm the exact date as it approaches. Mechanism: set estimated date → system sends periodic reminders as it gets closer → if confirmed, fires on confirmed date → if never confirmed (including if planter has died), fires on the original estimated date. Also: a single Milestone vault can hold seeds across multiple related milestones (high school, college graduation). The vault has a default date but individual seeds can override to their own date within the same vault. Needs: reminder cadence design, UI for updating an estimated date, and how this interacts with posthumous delivery if the planter dies before confirming. Added 04.09.26.

Default: a planter can always access their own seeds even when they're scheduled/locked for others. Optional toggle: "Surprise me too" — hides the seed from the planter themselves until it blooms. Use cases: the Grove Hatch Family vault where everyone gets surprised at the same time including the planter; a personal sobriety journey vault where you want to rediscover what you captured. When a seed is self-locked, the planter can still see: the date it was planted, that they planted it, and optionally the title (toggleable). Title visibility and Gardener name visibility should each be separately controllable — default is both visible (builds anticipation), but planter can hide either. Gardener name should always default to visible because it's a point of emotional connection and enticement. Needs: toggle UX design, decision on what metadata is always visible vs. optionally hidden, and whether self-locked seeds can still be recalled (yes — but recalling breaks the surprise). Added 04.09.26.

A user should be able to change a vault's type after creation — within reason. Real example: a solo parent builds a Personal vault (blue) contributing to it for years, then wants to gift it to their child on their 18th birthday. A Personal vault showing up as the gift feels wrong — it should become a Milestone vault (green). The conversion flow: system prompts "Do you want to transfer your seeds into a different vault type? Here are your options." It then sorts seeds — some may transfer cleanly, some may not comply with the new vault's rules (e.g., hard-location seeds moving to a non-location vault). Seeds that can't transfer are flagged separately. The owner keeps access as the original Gardener after gifting. The recipient (the child) sees a Milestone vault, sees what's already bloomed, sees countdowns for future unlocks. Key rules to define: which vault type conversions are allowed (Personal → Milestone, Personal → Grove, etc.), what triggers a conversion prompt vs. an error, what happens to non-compliant seeds, and whether partial conversion is allowed. The gifting flow is its own mechanic — separate from conversion but often paired with it. Added 04.09.26.

DandyLine has its own vocabulary (Sprouted Here, Rooted Here, Pressed, Compost, Bloom, Gardener, etc.) that users need to learn without feeling overwhelmed. The design principle: teach vocabulary through light, optional discovery — never through mandatory tutorials. Key pattern: a small info icon (ⓘ or a more DandyLine-fitting symbol — not the eye/visibility icon, which means something else) appears next to any term that needs explanation. Tap it for a one-sentence definition that appears inline and disappears. Used sparingly — only on terms that are genuinely unique to DandyLine, not obvious UI labels. Broader question to resolve during UX build: what is the right icon? And how do we balance this across the whole app so it never feels like there are "little eyes everywhere"? Consider: icons only appear on first encounter with a term, then fade out once the user has seen the definition. Needs: icon decision, list of all DandyLine-specific terms that need a tooltip, and a rule for when to show vs. hide the icon. Added 04.09.26.

When a user opens or selects a jar, there should be a brief description visible — not just the title, contributor count, and seed count. The owner can write a custom description when creating the jar, but if they don't, a default kicks in. Defaults should feel alive, not generic. Options: a single rotating default per vault type, or 2–3 curated variations the system cycles through. Also locked: two copy lines for Roots arrival/join moments — "Plant something true to this place." (arrival notification, before joining) and "This jar holds what this place has held." (invitation or jar open screen). Hard-rule jars (strict GPS enforcement) get firmer copy like "Only what was captured here belongs here." Needs: default description copy written for all 6 vault types, UI placement in the jar view, and settings panel for owner to write/edit custom description when building a jar. Added 04.09.26.

Ashley raised a critical question while designing the Roots vault: do visibility and join settings exist for ALL vault types, not just Roots? The current design doesn't address this. Three distinct settings need to be defined and applied across all vault types: (1) Discovery — who can see the vault exists? Options: fully private, visible by name to invited people only, open/searchable. (2) Join access — who can become a member? Options: open, request-to-join (owner approval required), invite-only. (3) Contribution rules — who can plant seeds? (Mostly relevant for Grove + Roots, but applies to any shared vault.) For Roots these are especially rich because of the geofence dimension — discoverable-but-invite-only is a unique mode where the vault appears when you arrive, but you must request permission to join. Needs: decision on whether all 3 settings apply to all vault types or only select ones, UI for the settings panel, and how this surfaces in the vault chooser flow. Added 04.09.26.

Monetization isn't just storage upgrades. There's a whole category of things someone might want to purchase from DandyLine beyond "more GB": Buy-a-Jar (already defined), bulk export packages, physical photo books, digital estate / legacy planning, gifted vaults, and probably things we haven't thought of yet. The question is whether these live inside the main app experience, in a separate "Shop" or product hub, or as one-off purchase flows triggered by specific moments (e.g., a bloom prompts "Want to turn this vault into a photo book?"). Needs: full map of purchasable product categories, pricing model thinking, UX for how purchases are surfaced (contextual vs. shop model), and how this interacts with App Store billing rules (Apple/Google take 15–30% of in-app purchases). Added 04.09.26.

The current founder story captures the preservation angle well, but a new dimension emerged in session: the raw, everyday capture problem. Not just "I want to send this forward" — but "my kid just said the most hilarious, heartbreaking, perfect thing and I have nowhere to put it right now." The example: a funny thing a child said in their sleep, or an unexpectedly deep/embarrassing question they asked out of nowhere. You caught it in the moment. No video. No recording. Just your memory. And that memory will fade. Everyone — parent or not — has this feeling. The founder story should gain a beat that names this specific pain: the preciousness of a fleeting moment that has nowhere to go except a notes app nobody looks at. Keep examples vague and universal (avoid specific holidays or religious references). Also tie in the "personal vault as a joke archive" angle — even a solo vault set to Surprise scheduling, full of things-you-never-want-to-forget, is a deeply relatable use case. Added 04.09.26.

When a new user creates a vault, they shouldn't start from a blank box. Vault Templates are pre-named, pre-configured starting points with a mood, a suggested schedule rule, and example seed ideas built in — so a user instantly understands what kind of vault they're making. Needs: a full library of template archetypes to develop. Starting examples to build upon: (1) The Joke Vault — a Grove or personal vault where everything is set to "Surprise" scheduling. Anyone in the Grove can drop in a funny meme screenshot, a voice memo of Dad's worst dad joke, a typed-out text of something ridiculous a friend said, or a video clip of a chaotic accidental moment. Nobody knows when it blooms. Pure joy. (2) Kids Vault — a parent-curated space for things a child says, does, or becomes. (3) Legacy Vault — messages from someone important, sealed for a future moment. (4) Journey Vault — a shared travel or milestone vault that fills over time and blooms at the end. (5) Future Self Vault — notes, photos, and voice memos to your own future self. Goal: when someone sees these templates at onboarding, they immediately picture themselves using one. Vault Templates are also a marketing asset — each archetype is its own story to tell. Added 04.09.26.

Before DandyLine is shared with anyone outside Ashley — family, close friends, or a first 100-person beta — a simple, warm onboarding guide needs to exist. This is not a terms of service wall. It's a human-written doc or in-app screen that covers: (1) What DandyLine is and what they're being invited into ("you're a founding Grove member, not just a tester"). (2) How to install it — step-by-step with visuals showing the "Add to Home Screen" flow for both iOS (Share icon → Add to Home Screen) and Android (three-dot menu → Add to Home Screen / Install App). Android note: PWA install works better on Android than iOS — notifications, home screen icon, and full-screen mode all work more smoothly. (3) What beta means — the app is real and functional, but it's early. Things may change. Feedback is welcome and shapes the product. (4) Data safety promise — their media (photos, videos, notes) is stored securely in the cloud. They can export everything at any time. If DandyLine ever shuts down, Ashley personally commits to delivering all their vault content back to them as a downloadable archive — nothing will be lost. (5) What NOT to expect yet — no App Store listing, no public sharing, invite-only. This guide doubles as the legal-lite coverage layer for the family/beta period before formal terms of service are written. Keep it warm, on-brand, and short enough that Grandma reads it. Added 04.09.26.

DandyLine's data portability promise means content should always be downloadable — but the rules around who can download what, and when, likely vary by vault type. The core tension: private family vaults feel open and trusting (anyone in the Grove can save content), but community or semi-public vaults may need creator-level controls to feel safe. This is NOT an MVP problem — don't add complexity to the first build. But it needs to be thought through before any community vault feature ships. Starting framework: (1) Personal vault — full download always, it's just yours. (2) Family/Grove vault — open by default, lead gardener can optionally restrict. (3) Community vault — restricted by default, lead gardener can open it. (4) Legacy vault — timed download; content may only become downloadable after the bloom. Key design constraint: this should never hit the user as a wall of settings on upload. Think contextual defaults that feel obvious, not a permission grid. Also consider: screenshots are always possible anyway — so download restrictions are about friction and intent signaling, not true prevention. Note the Snapchat parallel: people save before posting precisely because they don't trust platforms to preserve original quality. DandyLine's download default should always preserve original quality — that's the differentiator. Added 04.09.26.

From day one, capture how every user arrived. This data is invaluable for pitching, fundraising, and understanding growth loops. Three layers to build: (1) Automatic attribution — if someone signs up through a vault invite link, that's tracked automatically (who invited them, which vault). This covers most early users and requires no extra input. (2) Referral links — every gardener gets a unique shareable link (dandyline.app/invite/ashley). When someone signs up through it, the referrer is logged. No relying on user memory. (3) Self-reported at signup — a single optional question: "How did you find DandyLine?" Options: Invited to a vault / Shared by a friend / Founder invite / Saw it somewhere. Keep it one tap, never required. The goal is to know: organic vs. invited, and who the super-sharers are (people like Ashley's sister who could bring in many users at once). Build the invite link system in Phase 1 — it also solves the Grove invite UX problem at the same time. Data to store per user: source (vault_invite / referral_link / direct / self_reported), referrer_id, referral_vault_id, signup_date. Added 04.09.26.

A live counter showing how many gardeners exist in the world. Low technical effort (a single database count query), high emotional and marketing value. Like Kickstarter's backer count — it signals momentum, builds social proof, and makes early testers feel like they're part of something. Could live on: the landing page ("Join X gardeners already tending their vaults"), the founder dashboard (private growth view), or even inside the app as a subtle community signal. Framing ideas: "X Gardeners worldwide" / "X Groves in bloom" / "X seeds planted and waiting." Also consider: a founder-only dashboard view showing gardener count over time (a growth curve), vault count, seeds planted, blooms delivered. This data tells the founder story when pitching. Extremely cheap to build — just a counter query on the users table. Add to the founder dashboard and landing page simultaneously. Added 04.09.26.

Two complementary use cases that tell a powerful, specific story — worth developing as a targeted campaign or landing page, not a core brand narrative. **Direction 1 — The Deployed Gardener (Outbound):** A service member preparing to ship out plants a vault of seeds before they leave — scheduled to bloom on birthdays, holidays, first days of school, milestones. They may not have reliable internet access while deployed, but the seeds are already planted and will bloom on schedule regardless. The dandelion framing writes itself: you blow the seeds before the wind carries you away, and they land when they're meant to. Message to the family: I was here. I thought of you. I planned for this moment even when I couldn't be in it. **Direction 2 — The Family at Home (Inbound):** The family preserving the life happening while their person is away — capturing the moments their loved one is missing — so when they return, there's a vault of everything they missed, ready to bloom all at once or over time. A "here's what you came home to" experience. **The dandelion hook:** The dandelion is actually the official flower of military children — children raised to bloom wherever the wind carries them. This can be a marketing hook for this specific audience without needing to be the central brand story for everyone. **Potential partners:** USAA, Blue Star Families, Military OneSource, National Military Family Association. **What needs developing:** A campaign concept (which direction leads, or do both?), a landing page story, a specific vault template ("Deployment Vault"), and a pitch to at least one military-adjacent organization. Added 04.09.26.

What happens when a contributor's relationship changes (divorce, death) before bloom? Can a seed be recalled? What if a contributor was invited but never planted? Does the recipient see individual seed counts per contributor, or one unified bloom?

Where exactly is the line? A solo parent planting for a child's 18th = Personal or Milestone? A grandparent at 78 planting for a grandchild = Personal or Legacy? The vault chooser needs decision logic — not just descriptions, but decision questions the user answers.

Milestone may be Personal + occasion context. If so, collapsing them simplifies the product without losing features. Also: the "five friends" story currently in Milestone is actually Grove — needs a real Milestone replacement example (one planter, one recipient, one occasion).

If the planter has died, who confirms delivery should happen? Is there a "legacy guardian" who holds a key? How is identity verified at bloom? What happens to the vault if the account lapses? The posthumous delivery screen must not feel like a notification.

When someone hits Day 30 of sobriety, how many seeds do they receive? From whom? Curated or random? Can they receive multiple? How does DandyLine verify a Journey milestone without violating privacy? If self-reported, what prevents abuse? Does the honor system work here?

The vault chooser needs decision logic, not just descriptions. "Is someone else planting with you? → Grove. Is this for a specific event? → Milestone." Also: what is the minimum viable planting ritual? How long should it take? What confirms to the planter that this moment has been honored?