BARKLY COMMUNICATIONS · 00

TALK TOTHE LAB.

Barkly is built by humans, for humans. If you want to ask a question, share a project, propose a collaboration, report a problem, or simply see what we're building — there's a door open.

↳YOU DO NOT NEED TO KNOW THE RIGHT WORDS.

01 · WHY COMMUNICATION MATTERS

GOOD COMMUNICATION SHOULDREDUCE THE WORKOF BEING UNDERSTOOD.

The Barkly Standard treats communication as part of the system. A contact channel shouldn't make a person fight through unnecessary forms, jargon, or hidden expectations just to reach another human.

We still care about professional communication. We just don't think professional needs to mean cold, robotic, or difficult to understand.

02 · OPEN CHANNELS

01EMAIL

For work that needs room.

Use email for project inquiries, research conversations, partnerships, funding questions, accessibility needs, press, and anything that deserves a thoughtful written response.

BEST FOR · PROJECTS / PARTNERSHIPS / RESEARCH

OPEN EMAIL↗

02DISCORD

For people building alongside us.

Discord is the conversational layer of the lab. Bring ideas, experiments, questions, weird prototypes, builds, and community discussion.

BEST FOR · COMMUNITY / BUILDERS / DISCUSSION

JOIN DISCORD↗

03TEXT MESSAGE

For direct communication.

SMS is for people who already have Barkly's contact number or have been given a direct texting channel.

BEST FOR · DIRECT / OPERATIONAL COORDINATION

START A TEXT↗

03 · MAKE THE MESSAGE EASY TO RECEIVE

PROFESSIONALDOESN'T MEAN FORMAL.

The best message is one that lets another human understand the situation without making them reconstruct the entire story.

SAY WHAT THIS IS ABOUT

Give your message a useful subject or opening line. A human should know what they're looking at immediately.

GIVE US THE CONTEXT

Tell us what you're working on, what happened, or what you're trying to accomplish. A few useful details beat a wall of text.

SAY WHAT YOU NEED

If you're asking a question, proposing collaboration, requesting something, or reporting a problem, say that clearly.

LINK THE WORK

When relevant, include the repository, document, prototype, screenshot, or other material that lets us understand the work.

WRITE LIKE A HUMAN

You don't need corporate language. You don't need perfect grammar. Clarity, kindness, and enough context are what matter.

04 · A USEFUL MESSAGE

BARKLY / COMMUNICATIONS / EXAMPLE

SUBJECT: Collaboration · Human-centered documentation

Hi Barkly Labs,

I'm building a small open-source project that helps people understand their local computer systems. I found Barkly Docs and think there may be some overlap.

I'd like to talk about whether the projects could work together.

Here's the repository:github.com/example/project

I'm mainly looking for feedback and a possible collaboration. No rush — I just wanted to put the idea in front of you.

Thanks,
A human who likes making weird computers

Notice what isn't required: corporate language, a perfect pitch, or twenty paragraphs of biography. Context + intent + something concrete to look at is usually enough.

05 · WHICH DOOR?

EMAILWhen it should be findable later.

Projects, partnerships, research, funding, and formal requests.

DISCORDWhen conversation is useful.

Community, builders, questions, experiments, and collaboration.

SMSWhen the relationship is already direct.

Coordination and direct communication with established contacts.

06 · HUMAN + PRIVATE

SAY WHAT YOUNEED.

Please don't send passwords, authentication codes, financial credentials, or other highly sensitive information through ordinary contact channels.

If a conversation needs a more appropriate secure process, we'll help establish one.

Privacy is part of good system design — not an afterthought.

07 · BARKLY STANDARD

COMMUNICATION ISPART OF THE DESIGN.

HUMAN FIRSTUNDERSTANDABLEACCESSIBLERESPECTFULOPEN WHERE PRACTICALPRIVACY-AWARE

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BARKLY LABS / ENDPOINT

COME TALK.COME BUILD.

The lab is still becoming itself. That's the fun part. Bring an idea, a question, a prototype, a problem, or just curiosity.