v8 · Specimen 2026 · the hollow and the dot
The field is the object.
Where v3 had a plane and v7 had channels, v8 has a sculpted field — one continuous pillow of white that contains components as features of itself. Pockets are hollowed into the field; pucks rise out of them when active. A single warm-orange indicator dot, placed in the field next to the active control, says "this is on." No multi-color palette, no faux materials, no chrome — only the field, the pucks that live in it, and the dot that names what's active.
The Field
white as an object · not a backdropThe field is one continuous pillowy region of white, with its own ambient shadow. The page background sits a tone darker (--field-2), which lets the field read as a lifted thing, not a backdrop. Every control is a feature of the field — a hollow, a puck, or a dot positioned in the field's space.
Pockets & Pucks
the two structural pieces · everything composes from theseEvery interactive control in v8 is composed from two pieces. A pocket is a recessed region of the field — soft inset shadow, no directional light. A puck is a piece that sits in a pocket or extrudes above it. Active state is signaled by extrusion. Position in space is the only language we need.
Soft shadows. No directional key light. Ambient illumination — the field reads as an object resting in even daylight, not under a studio spotlight. This is the v3 → v8 progression: from "object on a plane lit from the corner" to "field IS the object, evenly lit, with sculpted features."
Mechanisms
click them — they respondThe track is a pocket in the field. The knob is a white puck riding inside. When ON, the entire track fills warm orange and the knob slides to the right — the universal "this is on" gesture from the screenshots.
Five round pockets in a long pill. Click any cell — it rises out of its pocket, and a small orange dot appears above it in the field. The dot belongs to the field, not the cell. (Iconic Braun rocker idiom.)
A white puck sitting in a circular pocket. A small orange dot marks the puck's current position (rotates with the puck). When the knob is the active focus, a second orange dot floats above it in the field. Position and activity are two separate signals.
The strip is a pocket. The active segment is a puck rising out of it, with an orange dot above it in the field.
Off: a flush key sitting in a shallow pocket. On: extruded puck + orange dot above. Two states, no in-between.
The track is a long shallow pocket. The puck travels along it. Orange fills behind the puck to show traveled distance.
Primitives
inherited, in v8's sculpted registerComposition
density and the sculpted field, togetherThe acceptance test for v8 is whether the pillowy field can carry the architect's actual work — a programming table with 200 rooms, equipment lists, status, code, NSF. The answer is yes, when the table is laid into the field as print, not as another sculptural element. The field stays calm. The data does its job.
| Room | Code | NSF | Qty | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Examination Room — Standard | EXAM-103 | 168 | 12 | Approved | |
| Cardiac Cath Procedure Room | CATH-201 | 650 | 2 | In review | |
| Echocardiography Room | ECHO-205 | 220 | 4 | Blocked | |
| Patient Consultation Room | CONS-104 | 120 | 6 | Draft |
The second card has the orange dot above it — the universal "this is the active room" indicator. The code badge inverts to orange to reinforce the focus.
Before · After
a single controlGradient, emoji, soft radius, hover-lift. Decorative.
A puck resting on the field. Filled orange to read as primary. Press depresses into a shallow pocket; release returns.