BizBarrel Help & Guide

BizBarrel is organized around modes inside the main app, the Cockpit (cockpit.html). Each mode focuses on a specific type of work while sharing the same top bar: mode buttons, theme and display controls, calendar, stickies, and account tools. Public Forums live on a separate page for community reading, voting, and replies when you’re signed in.

Alpha testers: start with the Alpha Tester Guide for signup steps, what to try, and an honest list of placeholders still in progress.

Signing in, Cockpit, and saving data

Cockpit is your main workspace at cockpit.html, whether you’re signed in or just exploring. Without an account, you’ll get a trial-style experience where your data stays in the browser until you log in. Watch for on-screen notices so you know what’s being saved.

Public Forums are open for anyone to read. To reply or vote, sign in to your account and make sure the author has allowed comments.

Cockpit on your phone (companion mode)

At about 720px width and below, Cockpit switches to a companion layout — optimized for checking, capturing, reading, and replying. Desktop remains the place for deep organizing, research, and multi-pane work.

Bottom navigation: Shared (inbox) · Today · Teams · More.
Shared first: Opens to your shared inbox unless the URL includes ?mode=.
Quick capture (+): Archive note, journal, sticky, task, photo, or post (group thread, private forum, or link to public forums).
Today (lite): Timeline, journal, stickies, and tasks only — no card drag, wallpaper, or deep jump cards.
List → detail: Archive, Research, Photos, and Teams use a full-width list, then a full-width reader. Tap ← List to return.
More: Archive, Research, Photos, Private Forums, Teams, Messages, Calendar, mode help, and this guide.
Look controls: Theme and Display presets in the slim strip under the header work on mobile Cockpit too (Comfort and High contrast enlarge tap targets).

One-time welcome text explains the division; dismiss it with Got it. Use About this mode in the More menu for a short description of wherever you are.

Global Tools (Available Across Modes)

Mode bar: Switch between Dashboard, Archive, Research, Shared, Private Forums, Photo Album, and Teams.
Feature guides: In Cockpit, turn on Inspect from the mode bar to highlight controls—or open the same detailed guides from the cards below.
Blog: A separate app at blog.html for your own blogs and long-form posts — not a Cockpit mode button.
Look controls: The grouped pill in the header lets you adjust your workspace.
- Left button cycles Display (Standard → High contrast → Comfort).
- Center button cycles Theme (light → soft → dark → glass).
- Tap ? for a short explanation of how these settings layer together.
Calendar: Browse dates, open day details, and jump directly to journal entries.
Sticky notes: Capture quick ideas, expand longer ones with Show more, and use Stick-it to float a note above your workspace.
Messages: Direct messages with other members (the envelope icon in the mode bar when signed in; also available in the account gear menu).
Journal: Dated notes in a floating window. Open it from Dashboard, the calendar, or global search. Journal entries are separate from your Archive library.
Account menu (gear): Account actions when signed in. Includes My replies on forum-enabled pages and a link to this Help page.
Navigation links: Home, Public Forums, Cockpit, and Blog appear in the top nav bar. Help is always available in the page footer.

Public Forums (forums.php)

The forums page is separate from the mode bar and lists posts that authors have shared publicly.

Topics: Every view is scoped to a topic (for example “Member Shares” or “Technology”). There’s no “all topics” view — choose a topic to browse.
Sort options:
- Trending (relative) is the default. Scores are compared within the current topic so both small and busy communities surface engaging posts fairly.
- You can also sort by newest, top voted, or most replied.
Pagination: Trending shows 10 posts per page; other sorts use a larger page size.
Votes and replies: Sign in to upvote/downvote and reply (when comments are unlocked).
View lenses: Browse posts in More, Min, Max, or Table layouts. Table view includes a compact admin category picker when you select a row.
Unread replies: When you have replies waiting, a banner links to My replies (also available in the account menu).
Moderation & ownership: Authors and admins can hide posts, lock replies, pin threads, or adjust category/topic settings where permissions allow.
SEO: Individual posts can have shareable URLs using ?postid=thread-… or ?postid=note-… when indexing is enabled.

Dashboard Mode

Diverse team including a white male collaborating happily around a laptop dashboard

Your day-at-a-glance command center for “today.”

Move between days with previous / next / today or the date picker. The header shows a subtle loading state while the day refreshes.
Section cards cover Achievements, Combined Timeline, Journal, Stickies, Tasks, Archive notes, Teams, Research, and Private Forums for the selected date.
Cards get a light accent cue when that section has activity that day, respecting your theme and display preset.
Each card has an Open chip. If there’s nothing for that day, it opens the app empty; if there are items, it expands a strip of tiles below the grid.
Drag cards to reorder the grid; minimize cards you want out of the way.
Use jump links at the top to scroll to a section.
Refresh reloads the day from the server and calendar APIs.

Archive Mode

Scholar-like scene with books and knowledge organization

Your long-term note and knowledge library.

Create and organize archives, categories, and notes.
Write rich-text notes with formatting tools.
Search archive content and filter by persona.
Share notes with individuals or teams; set public forum listing and scope where supported.
Threaded comments and reply-op snapshot tools where enabled.
Switch between Tree, Book, Drawer, and Cabinet lenses.
Resizable left tree; details column for metadata, PDF export, stash, and comments.

Research Mode

Research-focused desk with references and notes

A topic-driven workspace for study and reference — a slim sibling to Archive, kept separate from your main library.

Build Topic → Subtopic → Note hierarchies stored on your account.
Open notes in read-only view; use Edit to make changes, then Save to persist.
Use Find in note from the toolbar to search within the current note.
Breadcrumb and Details panel provide context and metadata.
Sidebar lenses match Archive: Tree, Book, Drawer, Cabinet.
In Tree view, expand/collapse with ▸/▾ or by clicking the row; your current selection stays expanded.
In Cabinet, drag topic blocks to reorder; subtopics act as shelves and notes as cards.
Create, rename (F2), and delete nodes from sidebar actions.
Rich text tools include headings, lists, color, highlights, and internal note links.
Global search runs one query across archive, research, journal, and group.
Research does not include personas, sharing, public listing, or threaded comments — use Archive or Teams for those workflows.

Shared Mode

Diverse coworkers including white males collaborating and sharing documents around a table

An inbox-style feed for content shared with you — or shared by you — across individuals, teams, or public forums.

Lists archive notes, group threads, research notes, and photo albums in one reader.
Filter by direction (All, Shared by me, Shared with me), Channel (teams or forums), or author alias.
Sort by newest, trending, top voted, or most replied; switch feed lenses (Max, Min, More, Table).
Open a post to read comments; use Open in … to edit in its home mode.
My replies lists discussions where you posted a reply.

Private Forums Mode

Person drafting notes in a private workspace

Your private sandbox for forum-style posts — organize by topic, collaborate with teams, and publish when ready.

Three-pane layout: topic and lens header, private post feed, and an optional discussion reader.
Create topics, filter by topic, and manage My topics for your private boards.
Compose with New post; drafts stay private until you publish to Public Forums.
Full forum tools: votes, replies, sort options, feed lenses (Max, Min, More, Table), and My replies.
Share drafts with Teams lists so collaborators can review before go-live.

Photo Album Mode

Open photo album with printed pictures on each page

A visual knowledge archive with albums, sub-albums, and photos as tree nodes.

Tree, Book, Drawer, and Cabinet lenses; grid, masonry, timeline, map, and compare views.
Upload photos, captions, tags, GPS map, face clusters, annotations, and version history.
Build stories and slideshows; use Flip-View, batch edit, and export/share slideshow video.
Share albums like other nodes; shared albums appear in Shared mode.

Calendar

Your month-at-a-glance hub for days, journal, tasks, and cross-mode activity.

Open from the calendar icon in the mode bar on any Cockpit screen.
Month grid shows activity icons for journal, tasks, stickies, archive, and teams.
Day view lists that day's items with open-in links.
Optional background image (saved to your account when signed in).
Jump to Journal for the selected day from the calendar header.

Journal

Dated thoughts for today — separate from your long-term Archive library.

Open from the calendar icon, calendar day detail, or Dashboard journal card.
Browse notes by day with previous / next / Today.
Create, edit, save, and delete dated journal entries.
Rich-text formatting — headings, lists, color, and highlight.
Journal entries are not Archive nodes — use Archive for long-term library work.

Tasks

Day-scoped to-dos linked to the calendar — one-time or recurring.

Open from calendar day detail or the Dashboard tasks card.
Pick the task date, title, optional details, and one-time or monthly recurrence.
Mark tasks done for the day, edit, or delete from the list.
Completed and open tasks surface on the calendar and Dashboard for that date.

Sticky Notes

Quick notes you can pin, float, and check off.

Open from the pin icon in the mode bar or the Dashboard stickies card.
Create a note with a title and optional longer text.
Mark notes complete or dismiss them from the list.
Stick-it floats a note above the app — drag the header to move, grab the corner to resize.
Show more expands long notes in the list.

Teams Mode

Diverse team including a white male coordinating around a shared workspace

Team workspace, members, and sharing — spaces, boards, threads, and cross-mode collaboration.

Pick a team from the header switch; use Overview for a dashboard, Workspace for spaces/boards/threads, and Members to manage the roster.
Structure collaboration into Spaces, Boards, and Threads.
Create and edit thread content with full threaded discussion; post and manage comments, including nested replies where supported.
Threads can be listed on Public Forums with category/topic settings when allowed.
Use Tree, Book, Drawer, and Cabinet sidebar lenses for different planning styles.
Resizable sidebar; breadcrumb and details panel for the selected space, board, or thread.
Create teams with a name and optional description; your list shows every team you own or belong to.
Add members by alias; open a member profile to see their public activity where available.
When sharing from Archive, Research, Photos, or Private Forums, pick a team to grant access.
Share workspace threads and nodes with teams based on permissions.
Shared items surface in Shared mode for recipients on your teams.

Blog (blog.html)

BizBarrel Blog — publish and browse long-form posts

Your public writing space — blogs and posts separate from Archive notes and Cockpit modes.

Create one or more blogs (title, URL slug, optional tagline); list them publicly when you’re ready.
Write and publish rich-text posts; keep drafts private until you go live.
Browse public blogs and posts; follow blogs you care about when signed in.
Add an About page for your blog; manage posts from your owner tools.
Open any public blog via blog.html?blog=your-slug (and a post slug when reading a single entry).
Members can own multiple blogs; Founding Members have no create cap. Guests can read — sign in to create.

Search, AI, and other utilities

Global search helps you find notes and content across your permitted archives and modes.
AI summary tools may appear in context for eligible content — use them as drafts and verify important details.
Inspect in Cockpit highlights controls and opens the same feature guides linked from the mode cards above.

Tips for New Users

Start in Dashboard for your current day — open chips expand into browsable strips without leaving the page.
Use Archive for long-term notes; open Journal from Dashboard or the calendar for dated entries.
Browse Public Forums by topic; trending is tuned for the activity level of each topic.
Use Teams for shared spaces, threads, members, and cross-mode sharing; use Research for structured topic → subtopic → note work.
Use Shared to review anything collaborators or forums have sent your way.
Use Private Forums to draft forum posts by topic, then publish to Public Forums when ready.
Use Photo Album for visual archives; pair with Shared when albums are shared with you.
Try combining Display and Theme settings for long reading sessions — Comfort + glass is a popular combo.