Content License — Mahanu (project content)

Plain-language terms for the creative content in this vault. This is a custom Mahanu content license, not an OSI or Creative Commons license — where a phrase is unclear, the intent in the next line governs.

The one-line intent. Transformative reuse with attribution is fine — but don't just repackage it and sell it as-is, and don't pass your work off as ours.

What this covers. The original writing (the guides, the vision and philosophy prose, brand and landing copy), the artwork, and the mascot in this project's vault. It does not cover:

The Mahanu software — every line of code under src/ and the clients, server, and tooling — which is free and open source under MIT. Self-hosting the full product is always allowed.
The ideas. The concept of a local-first, files-you-own project network is not owned by anyone — build one. These terms cover our specific expression, not the concepts.
The names, logos, and mascot as marks of origin — protected as brand and trademark (see Identity below).

You may, with attribution

Read, share, and quote it.
Adapt, remix, translate, or teach from it.
Create genuinely new, transformative works based on it.

Attribution means: credit Mahanu (mahanu.com) and link back where practical.

You may not, without our written permission

Reproduce this content in whole or in substantial part — verbatim, or with only trivial modifications — for commercial gain. That includes selling copies or merchandise; paywalling or ad-monetizing near-verbatim reposts; or packaging the content as-is into another product (including feeding it, unchanged, into a system sold or served as a substitute for the original).

The line we care about is the copyright line between a transformative work (welcome) and a substantially similar copy (ask first).

Identity is protected separately

"Mahanu," the crown wordmark, the logos, and the mascot are our brand. Even where this license lets you reuse content, do not use these marks to imply that we endorse or made your work, or as the source identifier for your own project. See the Copyright & IP Policy.

We would rather say yes than sue

We will not chase good-faith community and personal use, and we would rather grant permission than litigate. If you want to do something these terms don't clearly allow, just ask: [email protected]. For aligned uses, expect a yes.

Authorship & AI provenance

This project's content is human-authored with AI assistance. For the works published here:

written and composed by [email protected]; AI used for fact checking, finding loop holes, polishing draft art and prose; selection, arrangement, and final edit by [email protected]

We claim the rights in the human authorship and in the selection, arrangement, and editing of these works. We do not claim copyright in any portion that is purely AI-generated with no human authorship.

No warranty

The content is provided "as is," without warranty of any kind; use it at your own risk.