The MAKR Labs brand book

This book answers every question about how MAKR Labs looks, sounds and prints, by rule, by spec or by file, so nobody has to ask. It is written for Max, for a contractor building a page, for a printer setting up a job and for an agent writing copy. Every value in it renders from the code that ships, so the book and the brand cannot disagree.

How to use the book#

Each topic page opens with its rules, then the specs that make them exact, then real renders of the right and the wrong way, then the files. Every rule has an id, like BB-MARK-02, that never changes meaning: cite it in a pull request, a review comment or a brief. A retired rule keeps its id, marked with the version that retired it.

Must

Required. There is no exception without Max's written OK, recorded as a ledger row.

Never

Forbidden. The same: an exception needs Max's written OK and a ledger row.

Should

The default. A deviation needs a written reason in the pull request or in the file's notes.

May

Allowed, when it helps. Nobody has to.

Every rule says how it is checked. Most are checked by the build itself; the rest are on the checklists, so a person checks them before anything goes out.

Change control#

The book's version is the system's version. A new or changed rule is a changeset with the prefix brand: and appears on the changelog. After 1.0, changing the mark, an ink or a name is a major version. An exception to any Must or Never needs Max's written OK, recorded as a ledger row.

Who it is for#

• Contractors building a page: start with the volume dial, colour and layout, then run the contractor's checklist.
• Printers: Print has everything on one screen: the profiles, the ink builds, black, the files and the proofing rule. The spec sheet is the same on two pages.
• Agents: read the rules as Markdown first, or as JSON. Every rule with its id, its reason and how it is checked, grouped by area.
• Anyone sending a document, a post or a deck: the templates make them, and the checklists check them.

Every page#

1. BB-2

   The mark

   Four squares, M A over K R, in the four Process inks: how the mark is built, sized, spaced, locked up and never misused.

   17 rules: 12 must, 5 never

2. BB-3

   Colour

   Process: magenta, aqua, red and key, one yellow for the action, wood for MAX//OS. Every ink with its screen, print and spot values.

   13 rules: 9 must, 3 never, 1 should

3. BB-4

   Type

   Anybody for display, Schibsted Grotesk for text, Shantell Sans for lettering, Geist Mono for code: the roles, sizes and floors on screen, paper and slides.

   10 rules: 8 must, 2 never

4. BB-5

   Voice and humour

   Loud and goofy, first person, claims you can check; the joke goes beside the literal, never instead of it.

   10 rules: 7 must, 3 never

5. BB-6

   The comic grammar

   Panels are sections, captions narrate, balloons are people, SFX are caused events: how the comic layer reads at every volume.

   15 rules: 14 must, 1 never

6. BB-7

   Imagery and photos

   Proof stays untouched; every other photo prints in the inks; 3D is print-shaded blocks; icons are the shape alphabet. Alt text is always literal.

   10 rules: 8 must, 2 never

7. BB-8

   Layout and grid

   One grid per medium: the screen's twelve columns, document sheets, cards and stickers, social safe zones, the slide canvas and the email column.

   5 rules: 5 must

8. BB-9

   Motion and sound

   Every motion has a cause and settles; words never move once they land; reduced motion always wins. Sound is off until a visitor turns it on.

   8 rules: 6 must, 2 never

9. BB-10

   The volume dial

   Quiet, Studio, Press and Rave: one dial that turns the art up or down while the words stay exactly the same, and the volume every channel prints at.

   4 rules: 4 must

10. BB-11

    Print

    For printers, on one screen: the profiles, the ink builds per stock, black, spot inks, stocks, the business card and stickers, file preparation and proofing.

    12 rules: 9 must, 3 never

11. BB-12

    Templates

    Quotes, proposals, invoices, letters, the email signature, social posts and the slide deck: each made from JSON by one command.

    18 rules: 17 must, 1 never

12. BB-13

    Downloads

    Every file of the brand kit at a stable address: what it is, its format and size, its sha256, the version it was built from and the command that builds it.

13. BB-14

    Examples

    Full compositions in the brand: the home hero at each volume, a case study, cards, a poster, a one-pager, a 404, stationery, social posts and a deck.

14. BB-15

    Before it goes out

    A checklist for every audience, each item linked to its rule: a print job, a page, a social post, a document, a deck and an agent's copy.

Every rule#