Contribution Policy
Keep ideas open, credit clear, and commercial work intentional.
This MVP policy is plain-language guidance for community contributions. It is not a substitute for legal advice.
Contribution & Commercial Use Policy
Plain-language summary
Crooked Stack is built for open collaboration, but open does not mean ownerless.
When you submit a Spark, you keep ownership of your submitted content. Crooked Stack may display, organize, summarize, and share your public submission with attribution so the community can understand, discuss, and build around it.
Other users may add Bricks, suggest Forks, and discuss public Sparks within the Crooked Stack community. If someone creates a Fork based on your Spark, they must preserve attribution to the original Spark and visible contribution history.
Public contribution does not automatically grant anyone the right to commercially exploit another user's specific submitted content, wording, design, documentation, or recorded contribution. Public contribution also does not automatically create revenue-sharing rights, equity rights, employment, partnership, or ownership transfer.
Abstract ideas may be independently developed by others. Crooked Stack cannot guarantee that no one will create a similar idea outside the platform. What Crooked Stack does provide is traceability: Spark Codes, timestamps, creator records, Brick records, Fork records, and Build history.
If a Spark, Fork, or Build moves toward commercialization, including paid products, fundraising, brand partnerships, company formation, or use of another contributor's specific Brick as part of a commercial project, the relevant participants should create a separate Build Agreement before commercial use.
Crooked Stack may offer tools to support attribution, contribution records, Build Agreements, dispute review, and Verified Builds. Projects that do not respect attribution or contribution history may lose eligibility for platform promotion, verified status, or other Crooked Stack features.
Crooked Stack's Contribution Trail is not an absolute property certificate. It is an attribution, access, reputation, and reward layer inside the platform ecosystem.
Light Bricks may earn credit, appreciation, profile value, tips, bounties, or paid invitations. Adopted Bricks may receive credit plus possible rewards. Core Bricks used commercially and Build Team participation should be governed by separate agreements.
Do not submit trade secrets, confidential business information, unprotected patentable inventions, or anything you are not ready to share publicly. For sensitive projects, use private collaboration channels or wait for future Protected Build / Private Spark features.
Sharing Modes
Public Spark
Publicly visible and open for community Bricks, Forks, and discussion with attribution.
Protected Spark
Future feature. Only a short public summary is visible. Full details are shared by request or invitation.
Private Spark
Future feature. Visible only to invited collaborators. May require NDA or platform-mediated agreement.
Crooked Stack currently supports Public Sparks only. Protected Spark and Private Spark are planned future features for sensitive or commercially promising projects.
How contributors can benefit
Be credited
Every Spark and future Brick should carry a visible source record.
Build a creative portfolio
Contribution history can become part of a future Carpenter Profile.
Receive tips, bounties, or paid invitations
High-value contributors may be invited into paid sprints, brand challenges, or Build Rooms.
Join a Build
When a Spark moves toward real-world implementation, adopted contributors may be invited into the Build Team.
Share upside through agreement
If a Build becomes commercial, contributors and builders should clarify compensation, revenue share, equity, or licensing through a separate Build Agreement.
Contribution Levels
Light Brick
Credit. A light suggestion, reference, name, question, or small improvement is recorded with attribution.
Adopted Brick
Credit + possible reward. If a Brick is visibly adopted into a Spark, Fork, or Build direction, it may receive a tip, bounty, invitation, or other reward.
Core Brick used commercially
Separate agreement. If a core contribution is used in a commercial Build, the relevant participants should clarify usage, attribution, compensation, or licensing before commercial use.
Build Team
Compensation / revenue share / equity by agreement. People materially building the project should define roles, ownership, payment, and upside in a Build Agreement.
You keep ownership
You retain ownership of the content you submit, including Sparks, Bricks, Forks, notes, and related materials.
Public display and sharing
By submitting public content, you grant Crooked Stack permission to display, organize, summarize, and share that content with attribution to you.
Forking needs attribution
A Fork must credit the original Spark and keep a visible contribution history so people can understand where the direction came from.
No automatic revenue rights
Public contributions do not automatically create revenue-sharing, equity, employment, partnership, or compensation rights unless there is a separate written agreement.
Commercial work is separate
Commercial collaborations require a separate project-specific agreement that defines ownership, payment, responsibilities, confidentiality, and revenue terms.
Lightweight Identity and Contribution Traceability
To keep a clear contribution record for each Spark and future Brick, Crooked Stack collects a display name and email when users submit content. The display name may be shown publicly for attribution and contribution history. Email addresses are not displayed publicly and are used only for submission confirmation, contributor contact, collaboration, or rights-related communication. Users may optionally provide a social link. If provided, the social link may be displayed alongside public contributions so others can understand the contributor or initiate collaboration. Each Spark receives a unique public Spark Code to preserve its original source and connect future Bricks, Forks, and Builds back to the original Spark.