Truth Machine / Reference implementation

Reference Instance

How this repository governs its own specification using the architecture it defines.

The reference instance applies Truth Machine semantics to one domain: the Truth Machine project and its current specification.

It is intentionally concrete. Its packet schemas and Git workflow are examples that can be tested, not a universal runtime for other domains.

Account map

Path	Meaning
`reference/current.toml`	Typed selection of current accepted records
`reference/evidence/`	Source claims and exact-revision implementation reviews
`reference/records/`	Immutable reviewed project and specification accounts
`reference/changes/`	Exact transitions against canonical revisions
`reference/publications/`	Frozen public release and delivery records after publication
`scripts/truth_state.py`	Offline, read-only governed reader
`schemas/`	Reference packet and result schemas

Local commit gate

Truth Machine uses a versioned local pre-commit hook rather than remote CI. Activate it once per checkout:

task hooks:install

The hook refuses a partially staged or untracked worktree, selects the correct accepted or proposal read mode, and runs the complete test, schema, generated- artifact, site, and patch-hygiene contract. task check:staged invokes the same gate directly. A deliberate Git hook bypass is not verification evidence for exact review.

Accepted bootstrap

The 0.1.0 transition was accepted as TMC-0001 on 2026-08-09 against canonical seed revision cc03fe06a40ee80076887d4fad36d512a8f086c2. It introduced the first accepted selection across all four reference domains.

Exact proposal review used:

python3 scripts/truth_state.py --worktree --allow-proposed

That mode validated proposed records without making them current. Accepted canonical origin/main now must pass:

python3 scripts/truth_state.py

Domains

The initial reference account declares four domains:

foundation — project identity, scope, ownership, and maturity;
core-specification — the normative 0.1 semantic requirements;
conformance-model — bounded claims, schemas, fixtures, and assessment;
publication-contract — canonical sources and derived human/AI forms.

No publication record exists merely because the site can build. TMP-0001 freezes the first accepted artifact, records its hashes, identifies its operations-owned deployment and rollback, and preserves the independently verified public state. An accepted packet remains immutable; a later artifact or lifecycle observation receives a new packet that may identify the exact packet it supersedes.

Why self-hosting is not self-proof

The repository cannot establish conformance by declaring itself conformant. Its reader and tests provide evidence. Its accepted change supplies authority. Its publication record supplies release identity. A conformance report must still assess each requirement and state public audit limits.