One loop, five steps
The same five steps whether you're making an app, a song, a game or a plan. No account needed — sign in only if you want a Build to follow you to another device.
Say it
In your own words. No form to fill in — messy is fine.
Shape it
See what it really is before any plan shows up. You only get asked something if it would actually change what gets built.
Make it
Turn it into something real — open an Engine if a focused tool helps, or take it to the AI already in your corner, like ChatGPT or Claude.
Try it
Use the real thing yourself. If it doesn't work for you, it isn't done.
Go again
Continue the Build, save something useful to your Library, or start the next one.
Where each step happens
Four places, always the same four.
Create
Where ideas begin. Say what you want to make.
Engines
Focused tools for when one part of the work needs real help.
Builds
Things you're actively making. Come back and continue.
Library
Things you saved and may want again.
The five steps above work for anything. If what you're making is software and you want to run the whole build-and-ship workflow yourself, here is the exact method, step by step.
Read the technical workflow (7 steps)
A low-cost build machine is a checklist, not a purchase. Commands vary by system — treat these as templates and use each tool's official install page.
- An OS you're comfortable in (an old laptop with Linux works fine).
- A code editor (VS Code) and a terminal you're not afraid of.
- Git, plus a GitHub account for backup and deploys.
- Node (or the runtime your builds need) — template: install from the official site, then `node --version`.
- Claude Code or the AI builder you trust, signed in.
- A browser for testing, and a deploy platform (Vercel's free tier is enough).
- Secrets live in local files that never enter git — never in code, never in prompts.
- One folder where every repository lives, so nothing gets lost.
Say the idea in the planner, choose an engine in the Engine Room, or continue one that started on iDontCry. One creation at a time.
- The idea goes in however it comes out — the system reads it back before anything is planned.
- A creation that starts anywhere carries its record everywhere: no retyping between engines.
The step most projects skip. Before any prompt exists, you can read what's being made, who it serves, the smallest outcome, whether software is even needed, and what's deliberately excluded.
- Correct anything wrong — the plan re-reads, it doesn't re-interview.
- The software-necessity call is honest: some ideas should be tested on paper first, and the plan says so.
Every creation exports the same portable pack.
- creation-brief.md — idea, interpretation, specification, acceptance test, and the builder prompt, human-readable.
- creation.json — the validated record, re-importable later.
- The builder prompt alone copies to the clipboard when that's all you need.
Open the right repository (or an empty folder for a standalone build), start a fresh Claude Code session, paste the prompt, and let it work.
- The prompt carries the working method: inspect first, smallest stack, mobile-first, test for real, stop only at safety gates.
- Your Builder Defaults decide how far it goes: prototype, commit, or commit-and-push.
The builder's report is a claim, not a verdict. Check it yourself.
- Use the real product — phone width and desktop, mouse and keyboard.
- Read the git diff; confirm only the intended repository changed.
- The acceptance test from the Build Pack is the checklist.
Export the finished creation, keep the prompt and acceptance tests with it, and start the next idea. The loop is the product.
- Builder Defaults persist, so the next prompt starts right.
- When an engine's output was weak, that's a bug in the engine — improve it before the next run.
Made through the Ring
Pushed live from inside an Engine, not a mockup.
Circuit
One lap, one tap — catch the green light as the dot laps the ring. Yellow pays less, red ends the run; moving gates and asteroids join the climb.
MineDoku
Mine the numbers that don't belong — every row and column adds to its target. Surface Dig to The Core, plus Lantern memory digs and Cave-In.
SurfDoku
The beach remix — kiddie pool to double red flag, plus Riptide. Same brain, different weather.
Part of Open Mirror LLC. Kids should build with a parent or trusted adult.