URLs and namespaces

Direct URLs and configured namespaces use the same resolver and installer. They differ only in how Manteen locates related documents and records their identity.

Capability	Direct item URL	Configured namespace
Install one self-contained item	Yes	Yes
Multi-file item	Yes	Yes
npm dependencies, package styles, theme fragments	Yes	Yes
list against a registry index	No	Yes
Stable short references	No	Yes
Registry request headers or query parameters	No	Yes
Bare parent-local registry dependencies	No	Yes
Repeated use across many items	Verbose	Designed for it

Direct URL

npx manteen add https://example.com/r/release-panel.json

The canonical receipt identity begins with url: and retains the source URL. Because the item has no namespace, a bare registryDependencies entry cannot be interpreted safely and is refused. Fully qualified dependencies work only when their namespaces are already configured.

Namespace

{
  "registries": {
    "@friend": {
      "url": "https://example.com/r/{name}.json",
      "index": "https://example.com/r/registry.json"
    }
  }
}

npx manteen add @friend/release-panel

The namespace belongs to the consumer configuration, but it can also be part of the compiled item graph. manteen-kit qualifies a catalog’s bare uses entries with its declared namespace so other interchange clients do not accidentally resolve them from an unrelated public registry. Therefore:

• a self-contained item can be installed by URL or assigned a convenient consumer namespace;
• a hand-authored item may keep dependencies bare and let Manteen visibly assume they are local;
• a dependency-bearing kit registry should be shared under the namespace declared by its catalog.

There is intentionally no central registry directory. A registry URL, repository documentation, or namespace snippet is enough to share the content.