> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.parable.work/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Collaboration and Participation Modes

> Choose Personal or Published Versions for a Parable, and choose how you participate when publishing is enabled.

## Sources

Docs: [Personal](/ponder/parables/publishing/personal), [Primary](/ponder/parables/permissions/primary), [Publishing](/ponder/parables/permissions/publishing), [Pinging](/ponder/parables/permissions/pinging), and [Peeping](/ponder/parables/permissions/peeping)

Web App: Open **Collaboration** in Ponder. **Active Participation Mode** sits beside **Problem** above the chat prompt when publishing is enabled.

## Story

A Parable has a **Collaboration Mode**: **Personal** or **Published Versions**.
This setting decides where edits are saved and whether publishing and participation
are enabled. Your responsibility still determines which actions you may perform.

**Active Participation Mode** describes how you are working right now: Publishing,
Pinging, or Peeping. It can reduce the controls on screen without changing your
responsibility or granting access.

## Structure

### Choose Collaboration Mode

| Collaboration Mode     | Editing                                                                     | Collaboration tab                                                                              |
| ---------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Personal**           | Changes save directly to the main ref.                                      | The **Publish & Ping** invitation, with **Stay Personal** and **Enable Publishing & Pinging**. |
| **Published Versions** | Changes use a separate set that can be reviewed and published as a Version. | Opens on **Participants**, with **Pushes** and **Publishing** alongside it.                    |

New composed Parables start Personal. The dropdown beside Problem stays visible,
shows **Personal**, and offers **Publishing** when you can change Collaboration Mode.
The Report actions button and the Push, Version, State, and Changes controls remain hidden.

The Primary can choose **Publishing** in the dropdown or **Enable Publishing & Pinging**
in the Collaboration tab to start versioning. This
creates their first set of Changes; it does not publish a Version or send a Ping.
In **Pushes**, choose **All Workspaces** or **Selected Workspaces** to configure
where future publishes go. Choosing these destinations does not deploy anything now.

The Publishing gear menu offers **Disable Publishing**. It returns the origin to
Personal, keeps the main content, and removes the other participants. Open Changes
are pocketed so their work is retained. Saved Versions and existing Workspace copies
remain available; disabling does not withdraw earlier publishes. A Workspace or Role
that holds Primary must first assign a Person as Primary before returning to Personal.

The Collaboration icon follows this saved policy: a lock for Personal and people for
Published Versions. The authoring view opens or reuses **My Changes** and addresses its
actual draft ref. Historical Versions remain explicit readings, and the selector never
offers a **No Changes** entry.

### Choose Active Participation Mode

| Mode           | What it supports                                                                        |
| -------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Publishing** | Authoring, review, report actions, and publication actions your responsibility permits. |
| **Pinging**    | Reading, clarification, Problems, Proofs, and Pings without editing Pieces.             |
| **Peeping**    | Reading Pages and selecting a Version, Changes, or Report reading.                      |

Personal is not a participation choice. In Personal mode the author keeps the
editing controls their responsibility permits and does not need to choose Publishing.

Report actions are hidden in Personal mode. With Published Versions enabled, they stay
discoverable in every participation mode; Peeping and Pinging explain restrictions on actions.

Every participation choice remains visible in its dropdown. An unavailable choice
explains which responsibility it needs. Primary and Publishing actors can choose all
three; Pinging actors can choose Pinging or Peeping; Peeping actors can choose Peeping.

## Security

Participation mode only narrows the current view. The server independently checks
Workspace access, Parable responsibility, and the requested action. A wider mode
cannot grant a permission or reveal a protected Parable.

## Stability

The participation choice is encoded in the address. Missing or invalid choices open
in Peeping, and a choice above the recipient's responsibility is clamped to one they
can use. Personal policy takes precedence over this temporary view choice.

Disabling publishing retains work rather than merging someone else's pending Changes
into main. Re-enable publishing to reach pocketed work through the normal history controls.