# Web platform manual
Start a beat, save an owned cloud version, get feedback, prepare a release and continue in Desktop. This guide covers both browser music creation and the surrounding account, media and community workflows.
Documentation baseline: 2026-09-12. Describes the September 12 software checkpoints. Deployment and real-device/listening acceptance are separate; availability depends on the installed build, account permissions and rollout flags.
## Contents
- [1. Choose a starting point](#start)
- [2. Accounts, access and credits](#account)
- [3. Make and save your first beat](#first-beat)
- [4. Instruments and the mixer](#instruments)
- [Song arrangement: turn a loop into a sequence](#song)
- [5. Recording and imported audio](#recording)
- [6. Cloud projects and immutable versions](#versions)
- [7. Audio storage and recovery](#storage)
- [8. Private version review](#reviews)
- [9. Continue in Desktop](#desktop)
- [10. Your sound collections](#sounds)
- [11. Send or accept a remix invitation](#remix)
- [12. Assemble and approve a release](#release)
- [13. Web collaboration and replay](#collaboration)
- [14. Publish, discover and license work](#marketplace)
- [15. Understand your progress](#progress)
- [16. Video and generation jobs](#media)
- [17. Troubleshooting and safe handoff](#troubleshooting)
## 1. Choose a starting point
1. Open Audio Studio for drum patterns, instruments, mixing and browser recording. Start from a built-in template or your own files.
2. Open Learn for three editable MusicScript exercises. The solved-example link offers a known pattern in Studio; it does not transfer your exercise draft.
3. Use Beat Forge for a quick musical starting point. Built-in packs do not spend generation credits. Separate generation actions can have a cost; read the action before submitting.
4. Sign in before saving private cloud work. Guest browser state is not a cloud backup.
- [Audio Studio](https://gomeow.media/studio/audio)
- [Learn MusicScript](https://gomeow.media/studio/learn)
- [Beat Forge](https://gomeow.media/forge)
## 2. Accounts, access and credits
Sign in through Studio. The session supplies the API identity used for private projects, samples, reviews and progress. Signing out or session expiry clears that identity. A subscription, a Desktop license and generation credits are separate forms of access; one does not automatically prove the others.
Use Billing to inspect the current offer and balance. Follow the plan labels on individual tools: this manual deliberately does not duplicate changing prices. Some instruments and production tools are plan-gated. A visible page or parsed score is not evidence that every renderer is entitled or available.
For a failed paid job, inspect its existing status before submitting a replacement. Preserve the job identifier and error message. Retry/recovery behavior belongs to that operation; do not assume a second click is free. The platform handles terminal refunds in its job workflow, rather than treating each transient worker attempt as a new refund.
- [Billing](https://gomeow.media/studio/billing)
- [Settings](https://gomeow.media/studio/settings)
## 3. Make and save your first beat
1. Choose a template or a learning example. An example asks before replacing the current pattern and MusicScript editor; save current work before accepting.
2. Set tempo and turn drum steps on or off. Adjust velocity to vary accents instead of making every hit equally loud.
3. Press Play yourself. Browsers require a user gesture to start audio; opening a link never guarantees sound will start.
4. Add a bass or melody, then balance channel levels. Leave space for the intended vocal or lead.
5. Stop playback, name the work and save a cloud version through the cloud-project controls. Confirm that it appears in recent projects.
6. Optionally save an owned mix preview so you can identify the project by listening when returning.
Template changes, browser autosave and cloud saves have different lifecycles. A displayed pattern is not proof that source files or a new version reached the server. Keep a downloaded copy of important work.
## 4. Instruments and the mixer
Audio Studio provides step drums, bass, piano-roll sequencing, a synth and additional instrument panels. Use the instrument and plan labels shown in the installed build. Mixer gains and mutes control the mix; effects, EQ and dynamics shape it. Premium processors and instruments may require a higher account tier.
MPC pads and sample catalog imports work with decoded audio. A pad kit, a drum pattern and a MusicScript score are related starting points, not interchangeable file formats. Keep original samples and attribution when exporting or moving work.
Spectrum and loudness displays help diagnose a mix, but they do not certify release quality. Check clipping, quiet sections and transitions with actual playback before distribution.
## Song arrangement: turn a loop into a sequence
1. Stop playback and choose Enable song mode in Song arrangement.
2. Set Song bars, choose a pattern or imported-audio lane and add a clip.
3. Edit Start bar and Length, or delete a clip while stopped. Use Undo arrangement edit for the local edit history.
4. Press Play to audition the sequence, then stop and save a cloud version. Return to pattern loop when you want the looping workspace again.
Song mode uses fixed 4/4 and one tempo, up to 64 bars and 256 clips. Pattern clips share the current pattern and repeat it; they are not independent per-clip pattern variations. Imported audio plays once from its start and is trimmed to the clip length. Changing tempo stops song playback. Detailed region editing, tempo maps, plugin hosting and automation lanes belong in Desktop.
## 5. Recording and imported audio
1. Choose the intended default input in browser/system settings, then allow microphone access. The Studio MIC control opens that default device; it is not an in-app hardware input selector.
2. Use headphones or interface direct monitoring to avoid feedback. Do not assume browser monitoring has negligible latency.
3. Use MIC to enable input and REC to capture through the visible transport workflow. Stop, inspect the resulting audio and save it through the available workflow.
4. Upload audio needed by a cloud project before expecting another browser to restore it. Files left only on your computer cannot be reconstructed from a filename.
For native multichannel capture, hardware-clock punch/loop takes, device calibration and detailed comping, continue in Desktop. Browser capture and Desktop capture use different clocks and device APIs.
## 6. Cloud projects and immutable versions
A project groups named saved versions. Saving another version preserves an immutable snapshot rather than silently editing an older one. Project-history storage is limited to 256 versions and 64 MiB of serialized snapshots per account. Audio bytes have a separate quota.
1. Save a named version before a large edit or handoff.
2. Use the project list to inspect history and choose the intended version.
3. Continue a version only after saving current browser work. A confirmation, cancellation and intervening-edit check protect against a late load replacing newer work.
4. Rename or delete through the project controls. Deleting history is not an undo operation; keep exports you intend to retain.
Recent-project cards show the six most recently updated projects, a selected version and source readiness. An available reference does not certify sound parity across devices. A missing source status means recover the audio before relying on that version.
## 7. Audio storage and recovery
| Store | Limit | Important behavior |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Owned cloud audio | 16 MiB per file; 128 MiB and 256 assets per account | Identical bytes may reuse an owned asset. Saved project/review references can prevent deletion. |
| Project snapshots | 256 versions; 64 MiB per account | Separate from audio bytes. Remove unneeded history deliberately. |
| Sound collections | 20 collections; 256 entries | Notes may survive missing audio; removing notes does not free underlying audio. |
| Replay archive | 32 recordings; 128 MiB per account | A local replay is not durable until explicitly archived. |
When storage is full, remove unused content through its owning panel and retry. An asset referenced by a saved version or review may be protected from removal. Do not infer that deleting a collection or invitation deletes its underlying media.
If a source is unavailable, return to the original computer/browser and recover the actual bytes. Relabeling a different sound with the old filename is not recovery. Hash-bound collection recovery rejects different audio.
## 8. Private version review
Use the version review controls to attach a bounced mix preview and create an expiring review link. Anyone holding that link can listen and read feedback; signing in is required to comment. The editable snapshot stays private. Choose a one-, seven- or thirty-day expiry, copy the link when created, and revoke it when access should end. A review of version one does not automatically approve version two.
Respond to feedback by creating another version. Keep review notes tied to the version being discussed. Public marketplace publishing is a different action from private feedback or cloud saving.
## 9. Continue in Desktop
1. Save an immutable cloud version and check that required sources are available.
2. Choose Open version in Desktop from a recent-project card.
3. In Desktop choose Open from Web and enter the displayed one-use, expiring code.
4. Review the compatibility dialog and import the copy. Save the resulting Desktop project and collect required assets.
This handoff makes a copy. It is not automatic two-way synchronization. Some browser instruments, effects and session features can differ, so review compatibility and listen before replacing a trusted mix. A release TAR reference snapshot is not a one-click Desktop project import.
- [Desktop manual](https://gomeow.media/docs/desktop)
## 10. Your sound collections
1. Open Your sound collections and create a named collection.
2. Choose owned cloud audio, upload a file, save a catalog sample with its canonical provenance, or create a source-reference-only entry.
3. Enter credit, source URL and permitted-use notes. These are declarations, not automatic rights clearance.
4. Search by name or credit. Prepare sound download to create a private preview/download link; Add to mixer is available inside Audio Studio.
5. Export source credits when moving the sound. If audio is missing, select the original uploaded bytes and use recovery.
Source links are opened as links; the collection API does not fetch arbitrary URLs. Download history records a request, not proof that a file was saved locally. Collection deletion removes entries and notes while leaving cloud audio stored.
- [Sound collections](https://gomeow.media/studio/sounds)
## 11. Send or accept a remix invitation
1. Choose an owned saved version. Recover missing source audio first.
2. Write permitted uses and required attribution, and affirm permission to share every source with the recipient.
3. Create the invitation and share its code privately. The code is shown once, lasts seven days and allows one authenticated recipient.
4. The recipient enters the code, reviews the terms, accepts them and requests the copy.
5. Open the copied version through Continue your remix. It is saved into the recipient account; current browser work is not automatically replaced.
Each owner can retain 32 invitation records. Source transfer is capped at 32 MiB and must fit the recipient audio and snapshot quotas. Acceptance either creates the complete owned copy and claims the invitation, or rolls back. Retrying as the successful recipient returns the existing copy.
Revoking prevents new acceptance; it cannot recall an accepted copy. Deleting the source or invitation also does not delete recipient copies. Required invitation attribution, including earlier remix ancestors, is retained on later cloud saves. This is not enforcement outside the app or proof of third-party clearance.
- [Remix invitations](https://gomeow.media/studio/remixes)
## 12. Assemble and approve a release
1. Open Release workspace and choose a fixed saved project version.
2. Upload one final mix, cover artwork and optional clips. Add credits and source-rights notes.
3. Review the mix, artwork, credits and clips using the checklist. Owner approval records an attestation for that workspace revision.
4. Save changes and approve the current revision. File changes clear checklist attestations and approval; text changes clear approval.
5. Build the approved package and download the TAR. Recheck its files locally before delivery to another service.
Limits are 16 workspaces per account, 16 files and 64 MiB per workspace, 32 MiB per upload, and 128 MiB of release uploads per account. The export reserves archive overhead within 64 MiB, allowing 63 MiB for media and project data.
The package contains uploaded media, credits, a reference web snapshot, mapped source audio and a manifest. Export checks availability and hashes again. It does not publish to a distributor and does not turn an owner checklist into technical or legal certification.
- [Release workspace](https://gomeow.media/studio/releases)
## 13. Web collaboration and replay
Web collaboration is a plan-gated room workflow. Host-issued invitation codes admit an authenticated eligible account, expire after five minutes and work once. Existing members can rejoin by room ID. A host may remove an online or offline member; an unused valid invitation can grant access again.
Local mix replay requires visible unanimous consent from connected peers. Membership changes or withdrawal stop authorization. The host records its own Studio output, not remote microphones or an edit-event history. Recording is capped at ten minutes and 32 MiB; leaving the panel discards an unsaved local take.
Explicitly archive a take to preserve it privately. A linked immutable version is a chosen reference, not a reconstruction of the edits made during recording. Test with real clients before using a session for irreplaceable work.
Go Meow Server is a separate transport service with its own Desktop/SDK integration. Its browser metronome and the web platform room are not interchangeable connections.
- [Go Meow Server and live-session setup](https://gomeow.media/docs/live-sessions)
## 14. Publish, discover and license work
Publishing to the marketplace is explicit. Choose a title, metadata and the offered license terms, then inspect the published beat page. Public playback uses a watermarked preview; access to a clean master follows the purchase/authorization workflow. Buying or hearing a preview does not implicitly grant every remix or source-redistribution right.
Discovery searches public beats by title and genre with bounded pagination. Only beats with audio and preview metadata are listed, but a missing storage file can still make playback fail. Load a preview explicitly and use the beat page for producer/licensing information.
Community discovery, social profiles, charts and bracketed battles can remain unavailable while rollout flags are off. Free brackets are admin-curated from public beats; voting windows, preview identity and eligibility are enforced. Existing paid weekly battles are separate. No new feature automatically enables social rollout.
- [Discover public work](https://gomeow.media/studio/discover)
- [Marketplace](https://gomeow.media/beats)
## 15. Understand your progress
Private lasting progress records creation and publication milestones independently of content deletion. Public-preview requests are requests, not unique listeners; recorded sales are transactions, not net earnings.
Learning progress counts each verified exercise once, each release first approved by its owner once, and reported successful loads of older saved projects once per project per UTC day. A load qualifies only when its version predates the current UTC date. Reporting failure does not undo a successful restoration. These are workflow milestones, not fraud-proof analytics or quality scores.
The new completion/return counts begin with their checkpoint; missing historical events are not invented. Account deletion removes owner-linked progress.
## 16. Video and generation jobs
Use the Studio video and clip pages for cloud production workflows. Read the requested input, output and credit action before submission. Keep the job identifier, inspect status and review the resulting artifact before publishing it. An artifact download and an external publication are separate operations.
Native Desktop video editing, portable local footage and MusicScript picture plans are documented in their manuals. A browser production job does not automatically populate a Desktop edit timeline, and a video declaration does not authorize a paid generation request.
- [Video Studio](https://gomeow.media/studio/video)
- [Clip workspace](https://gomeow.media/studio/clip)
- [MusicScript reference](https://gomeow.media/docs/language)
## 17. Troubleshooting and safe handoff
| Symptom | Next action |
| --- | --- |
| No browser sound | Press Play after a user gesture; check system output, mixer mutes and browser permissions. |
| Private items disappear | Check the signed-in account and refresh. Do not paste an old account key into a different session. |
| Version reports missing audio | Recover original bytes on the original computer; check cloud storage before retrying. |
| Upload or save is full | Inspect the separate audio, snapshot, replay and release quotas; remove only unneeded owned content. |
| Late load was canceled | Finish current edits or stop playback, then request the intended version again. |
| Invitation unavailable | Check expiry, revocation and prior acceptance; ask the owner for a new invitation when necessary. |
| Discovery has not launched | The rollout flag is off; use learning/templates while the public surface remains dark. |
| Desktop sounds different | Read the compatibility report and compare a rendered reference; retain the original project. |
For support, record the build, operating system/browser, operation, public error and relevant job/version identifier. Do not include credentials, invitation codes, private audio or payment details in a public report. Keep a copy of a known-good version before debugging destructive edits.
Generated from shared/docs. Edit the source manual and run npm run docs:generate; do not edit this generated copy.