Help / Designer permissions
Designer permissions
Mantis is built to protect designers by default. When you keep someone else’s pattern in your library, what you can do with it is governed by the designer’s permissions, and when they haven’t set any, Mantis uses the most protective defaults automatically.
Quick start
What this means for you.
If you’re following someone else’s pattern: personal use is always allowed — reading and following in cooking mode are never restricted, regardless of who the designer is or what their settings say. The limits are on sharing and modification.
If you’re a designer: the restrictive defaults apply to your patterns automatically, so your work is protected without any action on your part. Designer registration and self-serve controls are on the way; for now the protective defaults do the work.
The permissions panel on a pattern’s detail page shows exactly what’s allowed and what isn’t for that specific pattern.
Full guide
How permissions work, every case covered.
The four permission toggles
Every pattern in Mantis has four permission flags. Designers set these per-pattern; Mantis uses the restrictive default when a designer hasn’t registered or hasn’t set a value:
| Toggle | Default | What it gates |
|---|---|---|
| Allow sharing text | Off | Whether others can share or forward the written pattern text |
| Allow sharing chart | Off | Whether others can share the symbol chart image |
| Allow modification | Off | Whether followers can adapt or remix the pattern |
| Require attribution | On | Whether shares must credit the designer by name |
Personal use is always allowed — no toggle can restrict reading the pattern or following it in cooking mode. Those are personal uses; they stay permitted unconditionally.
How defaults protect unregistered designers
When a pattern in your library is by a designer who hasn’t registered with Mantis, the system defaults to the most protective settings:
- Sharing text: not allowed
- Sharing chart: not allowed
- Modification: not allowed
- Attribution: required
This means designers are protected the moment their pattern lands in any Mantis account, without having to know Mantis exists or take any action. When designer controls arrive, they’ll be able to adjust the settings if they want to be more permissive.
For designers — what’s coming
Self-serve designer controls — registering, verifying your identity, claiming your patterns, and setting your own per-pattern preferences — are on the roadmap and not yet available.
Until they land, the protective defaults above cover your work automatically. If you publish or sell patterns and want to talk about how yours are handled, contact support.
What “sharing” means in Mantis
Right now Mantis doesn’t have a public sharing feature; patterns are private to your account. The permission toggles are set now so that when sharing arrives later, the correct defaults are already in place for every pattern you don’t own. You won’t need to go back and set them retroactively.
The permissions panel on the pattern detail page is read-only today — it shows the current settings but sharing controls aren’t wired to anything yet. Treat the panel as a preview of what will be enforced when sharing launches.
Frequently asked questions
I’m using someone else’s pattern for personal use. Am I doing something wrong?
No. Personal use — reading it, following in cooking mode — is always allowed. The permissions system only restricts sharing and modification.
The permissions panel says sharing is off. Can I still send the pattern to a friend?
Mantis doesn’t currently have a sharing feature to block — the panel is forward-looking. For now, follow the designer’s original terms (usually published on their website or pattern page). When Mantis adds sharing, it will enforce the panel settings automatically.
I’m a designer. What if someone keeps my pattern in their library without my knowledge?
The restrictive defaults protect you without any action on your part. That person can follow it personally; they can’t share or convert it with Mantis tools. Self-serve designer controls are on the roadmap.
I authored a pattern myself. Can I share it freely?
Patterns you create in Mantis from scratch are yours — permissions don’t restrict your own work. The permission system only applies to patterns where someone else is the designer.