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Getting Started

This guide gets you from nothing to a running Norm Editor and your first interpretation.

Prerequisites

To run the full stack locally you need:

  • Docker and Docker Compose, or
  • Node.js v20+ if you only want to run the frontend against an existing backend.

To save to or load from TriplyDB you also need a Triply API key.

Running the full stack

  1. Create a .env file in the project root with your Triply key:
TRIPLY_KEY_R=your-triply-api-key
  1. Start everything:
docker compose up --build
  1. Open the editor at http://localhost.

All traffic goes through nginx on port 80. The individual services are also exposed for debugging (backend :3000, nlp-api :8081, unwrap-api :5001, wrap-up-api :5002).

For frontend-only development with hot reload, see Local Development.

The five-step workflow

The editor opens on a stepper. You move through it from left to right:

  1. Define a task — say who you are and what you are interpreting.
  2. Collect sources — load documents and pick the sentences in scope.
  3. Interpret sources — highlight text and build frames.
  4. Validate interpretations (planned).
  5. Perform task (planned).

A banner at the top of the stepper lets you save and load an interpretation at any point, so you never lose work between sessions.

Your first interpretation in brief

  1. On step 1, fill in Editor, Label, and Description, then click Continue.
  2. On step 2, add a source, tick the sentences you care about, and click Continue.
  3. On step 3, highlight a phrase, choose Fact, Act, or Claim-duty, and start building. For an act, use the role pencils to mark which fact is the actor, action, object, and recipient.
  4. Use the save banner to download your interpretation as JSON or to push it to TriplyDB.

Each step has its own detailed page: