Welcome

This is a handbook for the Sovereign system you are running on your own machine. It is not a sales document, a manifesto, or a deep technical specification. It is a short tour of the things you can touch: the Library, the Folio reader, the companion, the doorways, the Workshop, and the community node. It also explains what stays local and why that matters.

The Sovereign is built around a few simple commitments. Your files belong to you. Your conversations stay on your machine by default. The model that reads your books can be swapped without touching the books themselves. These ideas sound modest, but they change the shape of the relationship between you and the software you use.

Read this manual in any order. Start with the chapter that answers the question you have now. If you are new, begin with "What a Sovereign Is" and then move to "The Library and Reading." If you are setting up mail or calendar, jump to "The Doorways." If you want to know what is safe, read "Local-First and Privacy."

The system will keep changing. New surfaces will land, new doorways will appear, and new models will become available. This manual describes the state of things as you first open it. Use it as a starting point, not a final word.