## The DBE Index

Every project on this site has a rating like `DB892-W@5-E` or `DB438@1` attached to it. That's the DBE Index  a classification system for rating projects across four axes: difficulty, customization, feasibility, and reception risk.

### The format

```
DBXYZ-[modifiers]@N-(cert)
```

- **X**  Difficulty (0â€“9)
- **Y**  Customization (0â€“9, generic to hyper-specific)
- **Z**  Feasibility (1â€“9, impossible to fully shippable)
- **Modifiers**  `-W` (dangerous), `-E` (expensive), `-L` (personal), `-O` (obsession-driven), and others
- **@N**  Reception risk (how volatile or reputationally risky the project is once revealed)
- **Cert**  `-B` peer reviewed, `-S` recipient verified, `-G` community confirmed

### Why it exists

The index came out of wanting a consistent way to compare projects that are wildly different in type. A compiler for a Minecraft VM and a humanoid robot don't map to the same scale naturally  but `DB784-O@5-S` and `DB892-W@5-E` give you an immediate read on the difference in ambition, risk, and cost.

The reception risk field (`@N`) is the unusual one. Most project rating systems don't account for how a project lands. This one does  because some builds are technically simple but socially volatile, and that matters.

The full spec is on the project page.

Every project on this site has a DBE rating. Here's what the format means and why it exists.