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Stardust

Community Sharing

Free hub for sharing device profiles, UI layouts, color themes, effect presets, patch presets — anything users want to give away.

💭 v1.x bridge

What it does

The free community sharing hub. Users upload reusable content; other users browse and install. No payment processing — purely free, contribution-based.

This is distinct from the Marketplace (which handles paid content via Lemon Squeezy). Same UI, same backend — different “free” vs “paid” filters.

What’s shareable

Anything that’s a JSON config + optional asset bundle:

Content typeFormatWhat it is
Device profileJSONMapping of a hardware device’s controls
UI layoutJSONLive Mode widget arrangement
Color themeJSON (CSS variable map)Dark / light / custom palettes
Effect presetJSONSettings for built-in EQ / reverb / compressor
Patch presetJSON + VST state blobA single sound configuration
Sample packSFZ + WAV filesRecorded sounds for the Custom Sampler

Browse / install flow

  1. In Stardust, Settings → Community opens the hub browser
  2. Browse by content type, sort by popularity / recency / rating
  3. Click a listing → detail page with description, screenshots, requirements
  4. Click “Install” → downloads + installs automatically
  5. Item appears in the relevant in-app location (device profile in Device Profiles list, layout in Layout templates, etc.)

Why bother with sharing?

Specific examples:

  • “I just bought a Roland RD-2000 but Stardust doesn’t ship a profile for it” — install community profile, done
  • “I want a dark theme that matches my band’s aesthetic” — install community theme
  • “I’m setting up a worship rig and want a layout designed for that workflow” — install community layout
  • “I love this MD’s go-to organ patch sound” — install community patch

Multiplies the value of Stardust by the size of the community.

Attribution and licensing

Each shared item declares:

  • Author (linked to their profile)
  • License (CC0, CC-BY, CC-BY-SA, MIT, custom)
  • Version (semver)

Stardust enforces attribution requirements on install (e.g. CC-BY items show author credit in the UI).

Verified creators

v1.0+: a verified-creator program for users who consistently produce high-quality content. Verified items get a badge in browse listings.

Verification is lightweight — just identity confirmation via email + GitHub, plus a community vouching system.

Free vs paid

The same hub UI shows free and paid content side-by-side, with clear price indicators. Users can filter “Free only” if preferred.

For content creators:

  • Free — share via the hub, get attribution, build reputation
  • Paid — see Marketplace for the payment side

A creator can publish a free item AND a “premium” version with more samples / better quality / commercial support.

Backend infrastructure

Same backend as the marketplace (see Marketplace):

  • API service (Rust or Node), hosted on Fly.io / Railway
  • Postgres for users / listings / ratings
  • S3 / Cloudflare R2 for asset storage
  • License verification (account-bound downloads — even free items require an account)
  • Search / filtering / sorting

Tag-based discovery

Items tagged for discovery:

  • Genre tags (musical theatre, rock, electronic, worship, jazz, etc.)
  • Show tags (“Hadestown”, “Sondheim”, “Disney”)
  • Device tags (RD-2000, Nord, Yamaha)
  • Style tags (vintage, modern, dark, bright)

Phase status

PhaseWhat’s available
v0.5Free hub: device profiles, themes, layouts (small initial scope)
v1.0Patch presets, effect presets, sample packs
v1.0+Verified creator program, ratings, reviews