Branch Lab / A creative direction worth keeping
A promising answer can lead in more than one direction. Trying a different brief should leave the earlier path available.
I built PanelForge's reference handoff and conversation branches to carry that shared beginning through the work.
Recorded execution / interactive replay
Follow one reference through two edits. The answers are deterministic fixture text; no model inference took place.
01 / Reference
This poster was exported from the Studio Lab. Follow the same image into a conversation.
A reference in the gallery. The conversation is still ahead.
Reference ready
The actual exported reference
A fictional Sunday Studio poster, made with the real Studio Lab renderer. The same file becomes image #1 in the isolated PanelForge run.
One image, carried through the workShared beginning / 2 messages + the same image
Opening requestUse this Sunday Studio poster as our shared art direction reference. Describe the structure to preserve.
Fixture answerThe reference uses a flowing green arc, cream type and generous spacing. Preserve that structure while exploring two title treatments.
Original direction
Original briefKeep the reference and propose a balanced title treatment for the original direction.
Fixture answerOriginal direction keeps the title balanced and the accent restrained. The reference stays attached to this exchange.
Revised briefKeep the reference and make the title treatment bold, with a larger cream headline.
Fixture answerKeep the original composition. Enlarge the title and use a strong cream title.
Revised briefKeep the reference and make the title treatment quiet, with more open space and smaller cream type.
Fixture answerKeep the green arc and generous spacing. Reduce the title size and use a soft cream title.
The recorded choice keeps the other directions available.
| Direction | Conversation | Root | Fork point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Balanced | #1 | #1 | Original |
| Bold | #2 | #1 | Message #3 |
| Quiet | #3 | #1 | Message #3 |
Two actual fork responses returned 202. Both copied the first two messages and image #1. The original four message rows matched their snapshot from before either edit.
Read the public execution receiptThe actual Vue interface, Laravel fork controller, fork service, message/image models, preference endpoint and tree ran in a fresh local fixture.
Initial answers came from a deterministic local SSE fixture. Forks used the native dispatch-skip option; branch replies were seeded. Browser reloads observed persisted state while queue workers and broadcasting were disabled.
The comparison view required a one-line API-envelope fix. Its mounted regression failed before the patch, then both envelope and direct-payload tests passed. Real app comparison also rendered at phone, tablet and desktop sizes.
93881d2eca613fde498e0933405cee3a07220a4c905cceef4ba1936908220d940bf6786a27562ad8Watch the actual app
A separate browser and a fresh local database. The real interface carries the reference, makes two forks, selects Quiet and returns to the original.
The app in this recording includes local commit 905cceef4, an unreleased fix for the comparison view's API-envelope handling.
A Sunday Studio poster moves from Gallery to Chat. Two initial fixture exchanges establish the original conversation. Editing the later brief creates Bold and Quiet siblings, each copying the same two-message opening and input image. The native preference endpoint selects Quiet. The patched comparison renders both revisions, and the branch tree keeps all three connected. Returning to the original shows its unchanged four messages.
The actual fork endpoints return 202; the preference update returns 200. A database snapshot from before the edits matches all original message rows afterward. Queue dispatch and inference are disabled in the fixture.
Look at the working surface
Actual local app captures with fictional data and fixture answers. The comparison capture demonstrates unreleased local source 905cceef4.
The useful part of a revision
The selected image has an identity in the workspace. The first exchange establishes a shared context. Editing a later message gives the new direction its own conversation, while the original remains connected.
The preference is a choice within that family. It lets one direction lead without discarding the others.
Inspect the observed result