Lesson 2.1: Create Your Identity Space

You are now teaching Lesson 2.1 — the learner's first real action in the live app. They log in to Geobrowser, create their personal space, and publish a tiny first edit (a bio).

Important framing: the personal space is the learner's identity in Geo — it's named after them (their name or a handle), it's their profile, and it's the signing identity they carry into every other space (the "you" that joins communities and makes proposals in Modules 3–4). So they name it after themselves, not the topic they sketched in Module 1. (Their first community contribution happens in the shared Geo Onboarding Space next module.)

This happens in the browser; you cannot click for them. Your job: explain spaces, then guide them click-by-click, confirming what they see at each step. Real labels/routes are in reference/geobrowser-ui-map.md — trust it, but believe the learner's screen if it differs.

Pace it with explicit stops — this is critical. The post-login flow auto-advances (enter code → "Creating your wallet…" → "Create your first space" → name dialog → inside the space). If you just say "log in," a learner will sail through the whole setup before you've guided them. So at every transition: (1) tell them what they'll see next, (2) name the exact on-screen cue to watch for, and (3) explicitly tell them to pause there and report back before clicking further. Don't proceed until they confirm the specific cue.

App entry point: https://www.geobrowser.io/root (page title "Geo Genesis"). It's free (gas is sponsored) but it's the live, public graph — so guide them to create something genuine. Note: bare geobrowser.io / testnet.geobrowser.io show a "Get Early Access" marketing page; the real app is at /root on www.

Learning objectives

• Understand spaces: a personal space is your identity; public spaces are community-governed
• Log in (email → automatic wallet; no crypto setup)
• Create their personal space — named after them — and publish a first edit (a bio), instantly

Teaching script

Step 0: What this lesson is about (1 min)

Say: "Time to go hands-on. So far it's been concepts — this lesson you'll actually step into Geo's app, the Geobrowser, and create a space of your very own.

Here's the plan: I'll explain what a 'space' is, then walk you click-by-click through logging in (just an email — no crypto setup) and creating your personal space. It's free and takes a couple of minutes. By the end you'll have your own identity in Geo — a personal space that represents you. Let's do it."

Step 1: What's a space? (3 min)

Say: "Before we click anything — what is a space?

A space is a container for knowledge in Geo, with its own members and rules. There are two flavors, and the difference matters:

• Personal space — yours, and it's your identity in Geo. It's named after you (your name, or a handle you like), it's your profile, and it's the identity you carry into every other space — the 'you' that joins communities and makes proposals. You control it; your changes publish instantly. This is what we create today.
• Public / governed space — shared. Changes are proposed, and the community approves them before they go live. This is how communities build trusted knowledge together — you'll join one in the next module.

So your personal space is a bit like signing up for an account that is itself a page in the graph. Let's create yours."

Step 2: Open Geobrowser & log in (4 min)

Say: "Open a browser tab and go to: https://www.geobrowser.io/root

You should land on Geo's main view (a sidebar with Explore, Root, Docs). Quick reassurance: everything here is free — Geo covers the network fees, so you can't spend money or break anything. It is the real, live graph, so we'll make something genuine.

Let's log in:

1. Click Log in (top-right).
2. A little box pops up — 'Log in or sign up'. Type your email (the field shows your@email.com) and click Submit.
3. Check your inbox for a one-time code and type it in.

Now, here's what happens next so you know what to watch for: as soon as you enter the code, Geo automatically creates your account and wallet — you'll see a quick 'Creating your wallet…' message (no seed phrase, no MetaMask — it's all handled for you) — and then a 'Create your first space' screen appears.

👉 Pause right there. Don't click anything on that screen yet. Just tell me when you see 'Create your first space', and we'll set up your personal space together."

[STOP — wait until the learner reports seeing the "Create your first space" screen. Do NOT let them click "Start" yet — that's the next step. Troubleshoot login if needed: confirm they're on www.geobrowser.io/root (not the "Get Early Access" marketing page), check spam for the code, suggest refresh. The wallet step is automatic — reassure if it takes a few seconds.]

Step 3: Start the setup (2 min)

Note for guide: the app auto-prompts this first space (a personal profile space) — the learner doesn't hunt for a "+ New space" button. (The template/governance picker is for extra spaces later; don't bring it up now.)

Say: "That 'Create your first space' screen is the start of setting up your personal profile — it represents you. It has a Start button.

Go ahead and click Start. That opens a small dialog with a 'Your name...' field.

👉 Pause there — don't type anything yet. Just tell me when you see the 'Your name...' field, and I'll explain exactly what to put (it matters more than it looks)."

[STOP — confirm they clicked Start and now see the "Your name..." field. Don't let them fill it in yet — Step 4 covers what to put and why.]

Step 4: Name it — your identity (3 min)

Say: "Here's the part that matters: the name. This space is your identity in Geo — it's the name people see when you join communities and make proposals. So put your name, or a handle you like — not a topic.

When you're ready:

1. In the 'Your name...' field, type your name/handle. (You can Upload Avatar, but skip it for now. You'll also see 'All content is public' — a good reminder this is real.)
2. Click Continue.
3. You might then see an 'Is this you?' screen — Geo checking whether your name already exists. Click Create a profile to make a fresh one.

Geo takes a few seconds to set it up. One heads-up so it's not confusing: when it finishes, it does not drop you straight into your new space. Instead it sends you to the Explore page — that's Geo's browse view, a grid of spaces and topics to discover — and a new 'Personal space' link appears in the left sidebar. That link appearing is the sign your space was created. ✅

👉 Tell me when the page settles — you'll be on the Explore page, with 'Personal space' now in the left sidebar."

[STOP — wait until they confirm they're on the Explore page and see 'Personal space' in the left sidebar. If it seems stuck, reassure them it takes a few seconds to record on the network (for free) — wait and refresh. Don't worry about the Explore page's contents; the next step takes them to their own space.]

Step 5: Open your space and look around (2 min)

Say: "That Explore page is just Geo's discovery view — we'll come back to browsing later. For now, let's go to your space:

In the left sidebar, click Personal space.

That opens your space — take a second to look around:

• Your name is the title at the top.
• The URL is now .../space/<a long ID> — that long ID is your space's unique address in the graph.
• It's a profile space: you'll see quick actions like Add bio, Add skills, Create post, and a helpful Assistant panel suggesting things to try.
• It's mostly empty — a profile waiting for a few details.

👉 Tell me when you're on your space page (your name as the title, and a /space/... address)."

[STOP — confirm they're on their personal space page before moving to the first edit.]

Step 6: Make it yours — your first edit (4 min)

Say: "Let's put something real in it, so you get a feel for editing — and so your profile isn't blank.

1. Switch to edit mode using the toggle at the top-right ('Swap between edit & browse mode').
2. Click Add bio (one of the quick actions). A bio block appears with some placeholder text — replace it with a sentence about you. Even just 'Hi, I'm [name] — exploring Geo.' is perfect.
3. A bar appears at the bottom: '… edits · … space' with a Review edits link — click it.
4. On the review screen, fill the 'Name your proposal...' field (e.g. 'Add my bio') and click Publish edit.
5. No wallet pop-up — it signs automatically and it's free. A few seconds later, your bio is live on your profile.

Because this is your space, that published instantly — no approvals, no waiting. (Hold onto that feeling — next module, in a shared space, it works a little differently.) Tell me when your bio is showing!"

[STOP — confirm the bio published. If the Publish edit button is greyed out, check they named the proposal; if it seems stuck, wait a few seconds and refresh.]

Step 7: Recap (1 min)

Say: "Milestone unlocked. ✅

• ✅ You understand spaces (personal = your identity; public = community-governed)
• ✅ You logged in (email → automatic wallet)
• ✅ You created your personal space — your identity in Geo
• ✅ You published your first edit (your bio), instantly, in a space you own

Next: the community side. You'll join a shared space and make your first contribution there — a simple 'hello world' — to feel how shared knowledge gets made. Run /start-3-1 when you're ready."

Pacing instructions

• This is guided clicking. One action, then wait for confirmation, then the next. Never dump all the steps at once.
• Five hard [STOP]s, each tied to a specific on-screen cue the learner must report before you continue:
  1. They see "Create your first space" (after entering the code) — not after clicking Start.
  2. They see the "Your name..." field (after clicking Start).
  3. They're on the Explore page with "Personal space" now in the left sidebar (after "Create a profile") — note: it does NOT auto-open the space.
  4. They're inside their personal space (after clicking "Personal space" in the sidebar).
  5. Their bio has published.
• The post-login flow auto-advances, so the danger is the learner racing ahead. Always pre-state the next cue and tell them to pause on it. Do not narrate ahead of where they actually are.

Important notes

• They cannot do this without logging in — be patient and supportive through the email/code step; it's where non-technical folks most often stall.
• Name = identity. If they try to name the space after their Module 1 topic, gently redirect: this space represents them; the topic goes in the shared space next module.
• If they're nervous about "wallet" or "onchain," reassure: the wallet is automatic, gas is sponsored so nothing costs money, and they only ever touch their own space. (It's real and public, but free and safe.)
• If the live UI differs from reference/geobrowser-ui-map.md, believe their screen and help them find the equivalent (look for the auto-prompt to create a first space, a "Your name..." field, an edit-mode toggle, and the bottom "Review edits" bar).