# First-time learner review: Appmint welcome

**Current result: COMPLETE for the required local welcome walkthrough.** Fresh signup, saved business profile/site selection and private return sign-in passed on 19 September 2026. See the fresh execution record below.

## Historical document/public-form review — 18 September

**Historical result: BLOCKED — signup form inspected; no account created and no authenticated outcome verified in that earlier review.**

- Reviewed on 18 September 2026, using only `course-content/appmint-welcome.md`, its learner-facing content, and its public product links. No source, research, author scripts, private credentials, or historical evidence used to fill missing steps.
- Frozen manuscript SHA256: `be26002edb5ab8913e7f4fd4a47aa2cb8fa2879760497c0cdd2743e7327e8040`.
- Fresh isolated Chrome profile: `/tmp/learner-appmint-welcome-260918`; 1440 × 1000 viewport. Return-login inspection used a new private browser context.
- Fictional diagnostic inputs: `learner-appmint-welcome@example.com`, organisation address `cedar-form-learner-260918`, owner Jordan Learner. These are **not an account**. The reserved-domain email is not a controlled inbox and does not satisfy the course prerequisite. Create account and Sign In were never submitted.
- [Notes recorded before diagnostic continuation](assets/appmint-welcome/pre-recovery-notes.md).

## Findings

### AM01-001 — Learner-controlled email unavailable (test-resource blocker)

**Exact step:** What you need: “Choose an email you control”; Part 1, step 1: enter that email and Continue with Email.

**Expected:** A learner-controlled email available for account creation and any subsequent email challenge.

**Actual:** No accessible learner inbox or controlled address was supplied. The public Create your account screen was reachable. This prerequisite was recorded before using a reserved-domain placeholder to inspect the next form.

**Consequence:** Cannot claim valid account creation, verification, a welcome page, saved profile, provisioned site, return sign-in, or Vibe authentication. This is an unmet testing prerequisite, not evidence of a broken product or a missing instruction.

**Screenshot:** [Signup email entry](assets/appmint-welcome/03-signup-email.png).

**Recommended correction:** Supply a learner-controlled email/inbox for the next rehearsal. No manuscript correction is required to state this prerequisite; it already does. Do not replace it with the author's example login.

**Status:** Blocked. Diagnostic inspection of fields only continued; no substitute login, hidden API, or borrowed account used. No claim that production presently requires an email-verification step.

### AM01-002 — Broad free claim conflicts with visible pricing labels (clarity concern)

**Exact step:** What you need: “Appmint and its apps are free. Account contains optional plan and billing screens; neither is a prerequisite for this course.”

**Expected:** A novice can reconcile the free course path with the product's plan labels.

**Actual:** The public page linked in step 1 displays Free, Starter, Professional and Business pricing cards and “Pay when it is load-bearing.” The screenshot visibly shows $0, $39, $159 and $399 per month with the Yearly selector selected; signup says “Free to start.” This is an apparent messaging conflict. It does **not** establish that this course, Appmint apps, or a particular action requires payment; checkout and actual billing were not tested.

**Consequence:** A learner may hesitate over whether free means free access, a limited tier, or unrestricted use, despite the useful statement that billing is not required for this course.

**Screenshot:** [Public pricing labels](assets/appmint-welcome/02-public-pricing.png).

**Recommended correction:** Reconcile the manuscript and product copy with the intended free-app policy. State the precise free entitlement and retain the explicit instruction that optional billing is unnecessary for this course; do not invent fees from labels alone.

**Status:** Observed copy inconsistency, nonblocking to form inspection. Needs product-policy clarification before changing the free claim.

## What was actually completed

| Course location | Action and observed result | Evidence |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Part 1, step 1, public entry | Opened appmint.io; upper-right Start free opened `/signup/`, headed Create your account with Email and Continue with Email. | [Home](assets/appmint-welcome/01-public-home.png), [email](assets/appmint-welcome/03-signup-email.png) |
| Part 1, step 1, diagnostic continuation | After recording AM01-001, entered the reserved-domain placeholder and used Continue with Email. Finish your account appeared. This verifies UI navigation only. | [Empty details form](assets/appmint-welcome/04-account-fields-diagnostic.png) |
| Part 1, step 2 | Entered `cedar-form-learner-260918`, moved to First name, and waited. Green availability text appeared with `.appmint.app` supplied by the UI. | [Available address](assets/appmint-welcome/05-address-availability.png) |
| Part 1, step 3, partial | First name, Last name, Password and Confirm password were present. Filling fictional names and a new random matching password enabled Create account. Did not press it; no account or password-manager exercise completed. | [Ready but not submitted](assets/appmint-welcome/06-account-ready-not-submitted.png) |
| Part 4, step 19, public form only | Opened the manuscript's Studio Manager login in a private context. Entered the diagnostic email and selected Continue with Password; the Site Name/password stage opened. Did not Sign In. | [Credential stage](assets/appmint-welcome/08-studio-credential-fields.png) |
| Part 5, step 20, public form only | Opened the manuscript's Vibe login. Email and Continue with Password led to the Site Name/password stage. Did not Sign In; Start screen unverified. | [Vibe email](assets/appmint-welcome/09-vibe-login.png), [credential stage](assets/appmint-welcome/10-vibe-credential-fields.png) |

Visible signup requirements matched the described fields: email first, then organisation address, first name, last name, password and confirmation. No additional required field was visible. Because Create account was not submitted, server acceptance, signup provisioning and any verification challenge remain unknown.

## Blocked and untouched coverage

- Step 3 account submission and step 4 welcome/sign-in-detail retention: **blocked by AM01-001**.
- Steps 5–8 welcome entries, capability cards, component orientation in the product, Learn section and Open Studio Manager: **not exercised**.
- Steps 9–14 interface tour, Setup Wizard, sidebar navigation, Account Profile editing, interests save/reload, Active Site link and return navigation: **not exercised**.
- Steps 15–18 task guide, Support → Documentation navigation, support-ticket form/cancel and bug-report form/cancel: **not exercised**. No support or bug submission sent.
- Steps 19–20 actual sign-in, profile readback and Vibe Start: **blocked**; public form inspection is not authentication success.
- Next-course links and developer background: **not used as recovery**; no further course audited.

No invitations, services, builds, purchases, deployments, support tickets or external messages were sent. The manuscript was not changed. This review is not a pass for the end-to-end tutorial; it identifies the point that needs a supplied learner resource before dependent work can be assessed.

## Fresh local learner execution — 19 September 2026

**Complete for the required local welcome walkthrough.** This run created its own fresh account through the actual marketing signup form, then operated Studio through visible controls. It used separate browser contexts for initial and return sign-in. No author account, seeded API login or fabricated browser response substituted for these actions.

Fixture: Jordan Morgan, organisation `cedar-local-mu8892bk`, email `jordan.mu8892bk@example.invalid`, initial site `cedsite`. The private password was kept out of documentation/screenshots. Local marketing4050, Studio3100 and AppEngine3300 were used. The reserved email identifies the local learner fixture; it is not claimed as an external inbox.

| Course section | Actual result | Evidence |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Part 1.1–3 | Start free → email → Finish your account; available site-name; first/last name and matching password; Create account submitted once. Welcome opened directly without an email challenge. | [Filled form](assets/welcome-local-20260919/02-signup-details.png), [created welcome](assets/welcome-local-20260919/03-welcome-created.png) |
| Part 1.4 / identity exercise | Copied the displayed Studio address and exact organisation ID; retained the unique private password and kept business display name separate from the ID. | [Welcome details](assets/welcome-local-20260919/03-welcome-created.txt) |
| Part 2.5–8 | Read both Studio/Vibe entries, all six capability cards and Learn links. Production-targeted Studio link was replaced with the equivalent local login for this local account. Embedded video remained blank; it was not required or credited as watched. | [Full welcome screenshot](assets/welcome-local-20260919/03-welcome-created.png) |
| Part 3.9 | First visit displayed the 44-stop tour. Next, Back and End exercised. | [Tour](assets/welcome-local-20260919/05-tour-first-visit.png) |
| Part 3.10–11 | Opened App Root → Setup Wizard, read sections without activating services/resetting; navigated sidebar groups and Account submenu. | [Setup](assets/welcome-local-20260919/06-setup-wizard.png) |
| Part 3.12–13 | Entered Cedar & Form, selected the four supplied interests, saved until No Changes, then fully reloaded. Name and exact four selected pills persisted. | [Four interests before save](assets/welcome-local-20260919/07-profile-ready.png), [name after reload](assets/welcome-local-20260919/08-profile-after-reload.png) |
| Part 3.14 / navigation exercise | Home initially said Nothing is loaded. Choose a site listed the provisioned cedsite; selecting it populated Active Site. Read its supplied URL. Returned via Account → Profile to check name, then App Root to find site again without browser Back. | [Site chooser](assets/welcome-local-20260919/09-choose-provisioned-site.png), [active site](assets/welcome-local-20260919/10-active-site.png), [navigation](assets/welcome-local-20260919/11-navigation-exercise.png) |
| Part 4.15–16 | Support → How do I → Invite my team opened the two-step guide; End used without invitation. Support → Documentation opened docs.appmint.io. | [Task guides](assets/welcome-local-20260919/12-task-guides.png), [invite guide](assets/welcome-local-20260919/13-invite-guide.png), [documentation](assets/welcome-local-20260919/14-documentation.png) |
| Part 4.17–18 | Opened ticket form, entered clearly labelled practice subject/description, Cancel. Opened bug form, entered practice title/description, Cancel. Initial Live Chat inspection exposed an unmounted-widget defect. It was subsequently repaired and verified with the actual local widget; see the repair addendum below. | [Ticket](assets/welcome-local-20260919/15-support-ticket-cancelled.png), [bug form](assets/welcome-local-20260919/16-bug-report-cancelled.png), [chat inspection](assets/welcome-local-20260919/17-live-chat-menu-inspection.png) |
| Part 4.19 | Created a second private context with no storage state. Entered signup email, Continue with Password; the unique organisation was identified automatically. Entered password and signed in, then navigated Account → Profile. Saved name and all four interests remained. | [Masked return login](assets/welcome-local-20260919/18-private-return-signin.png), [profile](assets/welcome-local-20260919/19-private-profile-readback.png), [screen text](assets/welcome-local-20260919/19-private-profile-readback.txt) |
| Part 5 orientation | Opened production Vibe's public login and read its controls. Entered no local credentials. Historical production authenticated screenshots remain labelled in the course; local Vibe authentication/building is outside this welcome run. | Public-login observation preserved in the [recovery checkpoint](assets/welcome-local-20260919/recovery/CHECKPOINT.md); screenshot attempt timed out and is not claimed as evidence. |

### Findings closed

- **AM01-001:** closed for the authorized local workflow by actual account creation, welcome, saved profile, provisioned site selection and independent password return sign-in. No inbox challenge appeared. External email delivery/verification was not tested and is not inferred from the reserved test address.
- **AM01-002:** course wording now distinguishes the free course/apps path from advertised optional paid platform capacity/services. Actual signup and all required local tasks completed on the free plan without payment details. No unrestricted entitlement or billing behavior is inferred from pricing labels.

The course now teaches Choose a site when no site is loaded, uses current My Account/Site Features names, describes the automatic organisation identification on the password step, and labels the local/production boundary. The first-site URL was `https://cedsite-cedar-local-mu8892bk.site.appmint.app`; no public visitor page or domain repair was performed.

No service activation, invitation, support ticket, bug report, Vibe generation, paid purchase or production login was submitted. Documentation updates require no deployment. No pending required local welcome exercise remains.


## Support entry and welcome-target repair verification — 19 September

The two observed application defects are repaired and locally verified. Studio now mounts an isolated support-chat panel. The first integration attempt exposed global chat CSS hiding Studio labels; the final iframe integration preserves the host controls and closes/reopens successfully. The actual chat client loaded Cedar’s own saved config `6aae75cb7345dcee00ad7153` from local AppEngine with HTTP200. No conversation was started, no visitor authenticated, and no chat message was attempted. The fixture's read-only app ID is not claimed as a tested sending credential or an Appmint-team connection.

A controlled503 on the local config GET produced **Live chat is unavailable. Please try again later.** Closing the panel and reopening after removing that fault loaded the real configuration again. The welcome page displayed `localhost:3100`; its primary Open link reached actual local Studio. Because the original browser had crashed, only non-secret welcome session fields were restored for this regression check, including a production-origin admin URL fixture; signup and saved profile evidence above remain the original actual executions.

[Repair details and reproducible checks](../application-fixes/welcome-support.md), [opened widget](../application-fixes/assets/welcome-support/01-live-chat-open.png), [unavailable state](../application-fixes/assets/welcome-support/02-backend-unavailable.png), [configured welcome target](../application-fixes/assets/welcome-support/03-welcome-local-target.png), [actual local destination](../application-fixes/assets/welcome-support/04-welcome-local-navigation.png), [readback](../application-fixes/assets/welcome-support/final-browser-readback.json).

The required welcome walkthrough and its observed actionable application defects are complete locally. No external support message, provider activity, deployment or production authentication was performed.