# Pixel craft · portable skill

A practical craft method, source-grounded reference library, original study assets and runnable tools. Contemporary editorial pixel art, deliberate native-grid drawing and optional retro treatments remain distinct choices. Start at [SKILL.md](SKILL.md); use only the chapters needed for the current job.

## Open the working lab

From this extracted `pixel-craft` folder, invoke these commands through your agent's execution tool (Hermes: `terminal`) or your own terminal:

```text
python3 -m http.server 8765 --bind 127.0.0.1
```

Open `http://127.0.0.1:8765/demo/`. The lab is browser-native; no build, CDN, account, server service or paid provider is needed. This command starts a foreground preview, not an installed service. Stop it when finished. Do not expose the private source repository as a public docroot.

## Generate real native-grid studies

Python 3.9+ and Pillow are needed only for the generator. Use an existing suitable interpreter or a project-local environment; no global installation is required:

```text
python3 -m venv .venv
.venv/bin/python -m pip install -r requirements.txt
.venv/bin/python scripts/pixel_studio.py --suite --scale 3 --out-dir output
.venv/bin/python -m unittest discover -s tests -p test_pixel_studio.py -v
```

On Windows use `.venv\Scripts\python.exe` in place of `.venv/bin/python`; the command arguments are unchanged. Windows execution is not claimed by the current evidence.

The command writes six cases, each with a native PNG and exact integer nearest-neighbor export: warm, cool, neutral, palette-locked, intentionally incorrect, and a failure/correction pair. `suite.json` records actual dimensions, color counts and decoded-pixel readback. Existing derived files with the same names are overwritten; use a fresh output directory when preserving an earlier study.

Read [studio usage](references/studio-usage.md) for the light/material equations, palette reservation, API direction control and approximation boundaries. The images are **procedural native-grid illustrations**, not hand-pixelled works or physical render validation.

## Reference map

| Need | Read |
|---|---|
| Identify the medium; silhouettes, clusters, contours, AA and dithering | [Craft](references/craft.md) |
| Hue/value/chroma, light geometry, materials, linear light, alpha and profiles | [Color and light](references/color-light.md) |
| Build routes, editability, generation revisions, palette fitting and export | [Production](references/production.md) |
| Learn from specific visually inspected works without copying | [Inspiration atlas](references/inspiration.md) |
| Separate 1980s graphics, industrial design, synthwave and retro-sci-fi | [Style selection](references/style-selection.md) |
| VHS versus CRT versus digital glitch; processing order and safe bounds | [Retro effects](references/retro-effects.md) |
| Practical exercises and cold-brief evaluation | [Practice](references/mastery-practice.md) · [Drills and rubric](references/exercises.md) |
| Exact ProDyn host boundary | [Optional DSM adapter](adapters/prodyn.md) |
| Agent capabilities and installation | [Runtime adapters](references/adapters.md) |
| What actually ran, with limits | [Evidence](EVIDENCE.md) |
| Asset and source rights | [Notices](NOTICES.md) |

[Art brief](templates/art-brief.md) and [critique](templates/critique.md) are reusable templates. [The unfamiliar-subject transfer](assets/transfer/README.md) includes an independently briefed, right-lit heron illustration and executable source. The two source ledgers preserve exact URLs, retrieved claims/short quotes, creator/rights information, visual inspection and unresolved source limitations. Their numeric citation IDs are **ledger-local**; don't merge the numbers without an explicit mapping.

## Developer verification

The pure effects tests use Node's built-in test runner:

```text
node --test tests/effects.test.mjs
```

Browser tests require the dev-only packages in `package.json`:

```text
npm ci --ignore-scripts
npx playwright install chromium
node tests/lab.browser.mjs
```

Native tests use the Python command above. Browser checks establish the tested Chromium path, not universal device/engine performance. The demo runtime does not import these development dependencies. See the test/source documentation and `EVIDENCE.md` for exact coverage.

## Sharing and maintenance

This complete folder is the skill. Preserve its references, scripts, tests and assets when copying it to an authorized agent's skill directory. Review an existing installed version before replacement. Packaging and folder extraction do not silently install anything, change settings, grant public rights or update other agents.

Canonical source: https://github.com/cygnostik/prodyn-design-system/tree/main/skills/pixel-craft . The source repository's `scripts/package_pixel_craft.py` builds an explicit-allowlist ZIP and verifies its entries by direct byte comparison. This standalone package does not need that repository tool to run.

The private project retains the original advertisement, source-art references, full initial research, failed conversions, generation receipts and critique. Those materials are excluded from this package. No DSM logo/token/font binaries or third-party inspiration art is bundled. Read [NOTICES.md](NOTICES.md) before further distribution; this repository has no blanket public/open-source license.

To refresh the method, retain successful invariants, add only demonstrated lessons, re-run affected tests and record the precise scope of new evidence. Don't call a larger library “mastery” without stronger work.