phase 1: unfirehose reconstruction from session JSONL ingest

Source: ~/.unfirehose/unfirehose.db (project_id=81, 4 sessions covering
2026-03-29 through 2026-04-05). Reconstructed via chronological replay
of Write/Edit tool_input on file_paths under /home/fox/zebra-report/.

stats:
  files reconstructed:    20
  writes baselined:       all (zero missing)
  edits applied:          68
  edits unapplied:        8 (1 SKIP pre-baseline, 6 FAIL old_string drift, 1 AMBIGUOUS)

unapplied edits represent small drift in 6 files; baseline content for
each is intact. quality verification deferred to phase 2.

recovered tree:
  CLAUDE.md, Makefile
  src/{tx,rx,pulse,carrier,chat,bt}.c
  include/{modem,zebra}.h
  test/{functional,integration,unit}.c, test/test.h
  web/{index,kernel}.html, web/blog/style.css
  blog/build.py, blog/posts/{001-volume-modem,002-sse-chatroom}.md

report: /tmp/zebra_recover_report.txt
script: /tmp/zebra_recover.py

CLAUDE.md

@@ -0,0 +1,121 @@
+# Agent Blackops
+
+This repo is operated by **agent blackops** — ml agent for fox/timehexon on the unsandbox/unturf/permacomputer platform.
+
+## Identity
+
+Full shard: `~/git/unsandbox.com/blackops/BLACKOPS.md`
+
+## Rules
+
+- I propose, fox decides. Unsure = ask. Can't ask = stop.
+- No autonomous ops decisions. No destructive commands without explicit instruction.
+- Fail-closed. Cleanup crew, not demolition.
+- Check the time every session. Gaps are information.
+- DRY in context — single source of truth, no sprawl.
+- Never say "AI" — always say "machine learning."
+- Prefer "defect" over "bug."
+
+## Orientation
+
+```bash
+date -u
+pwd
+git log --oneline -5
+git status
+```
+
+Then ask fox what the mission is.
+
+## Zebra Report System
+
+**Concept**: covert bidirectional communication channel using browser tab volume as the modulation medium — dial-up modem principles, userland only, no kernel involvement, no network stack.
+
+### Collaborators & Stakeholders
+
+| Handle | Role |
+|--------|------|
+| **foxhop** | fox — handler, operator, TimeHexOn |
+| **brackishbert** | collaborator |
+| **SEW** | collaborator |
+| **russell@unturf** | Russell Ballestrini — unturf founder, permacomputer manifesto, `ago` library |
+| **TimeHexOn** | oracle platform — primary deployment target |
+| **groupr** | related project |
+
+### How it works
+
+PulseAudio exposes each browser tab as a separate sink input, visible and controllable in `pavucontrol`. Volume is settable per-tab in userland with no kernel involvement. Each tab has a range of **0–100** (101 discrete levels — 101 dalmatians).
+
+By modulating volume at a consistent rate (bauds), two sides can exchange data:
+
+- **transmitter**: steps volume through values at a fixed clock rate
+- **receiver**: reads volume at the same clock rate, decodes the steps back to data
+- **bidirectional**: two tabs (or two processes watching different tabs) run opposite directions simultaneously
+
+### Signal space
+
+- 101 levels = ~6.66 bits per symbol
+- practical: use power-of-2 subsets — 2 levels (1 bit), 4 levels (2 bits), 64 levels (6 bits)
+- higher symbol depth trades noise margin for throughput
+- low baud rate = high reliability, low throughput (like 300 baud dialup)
+- high baud rate = races PulseAudio update latency
+- measured ceiling on neoblanka: ~1000–1200 baud (PA IPC ~350–400µs avg)
+
+### Binaries
+
+| Binary | Description |
+|--------|-------------|
+| `tx` | transmitter — reads stdin, modulates tab volume |
+| `rx` | receiver — reads tab volume, writes decoded bytes to stdout |
+| `chat` | bidirectional chat — two tabs, two threads |
+| `bt` | **Battle Toads** — stereo dual-channel, 2x bandwidth |
+
+### Project Battle Toads
+
+One stereo browser tab carries **two independent UART streams** simultaneously — L channel and R channel. PulseAudio's `pa_cvolume` is per-channel; a single `get_sink_input_info` call returns both L and R volumes.
+
+- TX sets L and R to independent bit values each symbol
+- RX decodes L and R from a single PA poll — no extra IPC cost
+- Net: 2x throughput at same baud rate, same PA polling budget
+- Web carrier upgraded to stereo: two oscillators (440Hz L, 441Hz R) merged into a stereo stream → PA sees `channels=2`
+
+```bash
+# After opening web/index.html and clicking 'start audio' (stereo tab):
+./bt -T MY_SINK -R THEIR_SINK -b 500
+```
+
+### Auto-negotiate (handshake protocol)
+
+RX benchmarks its own PA polling speed and signals the max safe baud to TX. No manual baud matching needed.
+
+```bash
+./rx -s RX_SINK -t TX_SINK    # RX benchmarks, sends offer at 50 baud
+./tx -s TX_SINK -r RX_SINK    # TX listens for offer, locks to RX's rate
+```
+
+Handshake frame: `[0x5A 0x42 0x01 baud_lo baud_hi xor_cksum]` — 6 bytes at 50 baud (~1.2s).
+
+**Known defect**: 3-way handshake not yet implemented. TX can fire before RX enters receive loop at high baud rates. Fix: RX-ready signal back to TX before data phase.
+
+### Tools
+
+- `pactl set-sink-input-volume` — set volume by sink-input index
+- `pactl list sink-inputs` — enumerate tabs, read current volume
+- `pavucontrol` — visual verification of modulation
+- `./tx -l` — list all PA sink inputs with index, volume, channels
+- sink-input index maps to tab; stable within a session
+
+### Use cases
+
+- agent-to-agent signaling without touching the filesystem or network stack
+- side-channel between sandboxed browser tab and host process
+- low-bandwidth status heartbeat (alive/dead/mode) at ~1–10 baud
+- covert channel for oracle↔host communication on TimeHexOn
+
+### Constraints
+
+- sink-input index resets when tab navigates or crashes — handshake needed on reconnect
+- PA polling latency sets the baud ceiling — benchmark with `./rx -s SINK -t SINK2` before sending
+- stereo (channels=2) required for Battle Toads — open web/index.html, click 'start audio'
+- userland only — survives without root
+- **Operation Voyeur**: all terminal output is public — never pass secrets through these channels unencrypted. The web page does ECDH key exchange + AES-256-GCM before TX.