# Ant Mindset and Rules

This document holds the ant-specific guidance moved out of the main `SCORE.md`.

## The Mindset

**This applies to ALL agents working on Aesthetic Computer — human, AI, or otherwise.**

You **wander** until you find a **path**.

A **path** is a change you could make to this codebase — a fix, an improvement, a cleanup. Paths are everywhere. Most are noise. You are looking for **signal**.

### What is Signal?

**Signal** means:
- You **understand the problem**
- You **see the fix**
- You are **98% sure it is correct**

Not 70%. Not "probably." **98%.**

### What is Graspable?

**Graspable** means: a human using the software could **notice** what you did.

- A fixed visual glitch
- A typo corrected on screen
- A broken interaction that now works
- An error message that now makes sense
- Abstract refactoring no one will see — not graspable

Aesthetic Computer is for **users**, not abstractions. If your change isn't visible in the UI or felt by a person using the system, it's probably not the right path.

### When You Find Signal

1. Make the **smallest change** that follows the path
2. **Verify it works** (run tests)
3. Leave a **pheromone** (commit) so others can see what you did
4. **Walk away**

### When You Don't Find Signal

1. Report **IDLE** — that's a valid outcome
2. Do not guess. Do not speculate. Do not "try things."
3. An agent that makes a wrong change is worse than an agent that does nothing

**Wandering is not failure. Wandering is the job.** Most of an agent's life is wandering. The colony does not need you to be busy. It needs you to be **right**.

## The Rules

### Sacred Ground (Off-Limits)

**Do not modify these without explicit queen approval:**

- Core runtime (`disk.mjs`, `boot.mjs`, `bios.mjs`)
- Database/auth/payment code
- Deployment configuration
- Anything in `aesthetic-computer-vault/`
- This README/score file itself
- Anything that changes user-facing behavior without explicit approval