docs: add custom license and update README with licensing terms

Author: coderomm

LICENSE

@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+CollabyDraw Custom License
+Copyright (c) 2025 Om Sharma
+
+Permission is granted to anyone to view, use, and learn from this source code for **personal and educational purposes only**.
+
+You are **not allowed** to:
+- Use this code, in whole or in part, for any **commercial** purpose.
+- Sell, sublicense, or distribute this project or its derivatives.
+- Remove or alter any original author credit.
+- Claim authorship or ownership of the code or project.
+- Re-upload, fork, or host this code as your own work.
+- Deploy this app as a hosted service (SaaS) without explicit written permission.
+- Use the name “CollabyDraw” or any branding assets without permission.
+
+You **must**:
+- Credit Om Sharma if you publicly showcase or share code derived from this project.
+
+Violation of any of these terms will be considered a breach of license and may lead to legal action.
+
+For commercial use, hosting, or licensing inquiries, contact: omsharma.dev@gmail.com

README.md

@@ -1,62 +1,109 @@
-# CollabyDraw
+# 🎨 Collabydraw | Hand-drawn look & feel • Collaborative • Secure
 
-CollabyDraw is a real-time collaborative drawing application inspired by Excalidraw and a project built by Harkirat Singh Sir in his **Cohort 3**. While working on the project, I made some modifications and introduced features that make **CollabyDraw** slightly different from what project built during Cohort and possibly from other students' implementations.
+---
 
-## 🚀 Features
+**CollabyDraw** is a web-based collaborative whiteboard where multiple users can draw, edit, and brainstorm together in real time. Whether solo or in a group session, the app offers a smooth, intuitive canvas experience with real-time sync, shape tools, editable text, and privacy-focused end-to-end encryption — all without needing an account.
 
-### 🎨 **Standalone Mode (No Authentication Required)**
-- Users can start drawing **without signing up or logging in**.
-- Offers the **same features** as collaboration mode, except live room functionality.
-- Data is stored in **local storage**, ensuring **privacy** and **no dependency on a database**.
+---
 
-### 🎨 **Live Collaboration Mode**
-- Users can **join rooms** and collaborate in real-time.
-- Participants are **visibly displayed in an interactive UI**, similar to Excalidraw.
-- Built-in **WebSocket-based syncing** for smooth collaboration.
+### ✅ Core Features
 
-### 🎨 **Next.js Server Actions (No Separate HTTP Services)**
-- The cohort project used a separate HTTP service for:
-  - Room creation & management
-  - User authentication & management
-- **CollabyDraw eliminates separate HTTP services** by using **Next.js server actions**, making the architecture cleaner and more efficient.
+- **Canvas Drawing**: Freehand, shapes, and editable text
+- **Rough.js Support**: Optional sketch-style drawing
+- **Perfect-freehand Support**: Hand drawn feel
+- **Eraser Tool**: Remove individual shapes
+- **Editable Text**: Double-click to edit on canvas
 
-### 🎨 **Privacy-Focused Architecture**
-- **Standalone mode does not require a database**; it relies on **local storage**.
-- Planning to fully **eliminate database usage in the future**, similar to Excalidraw.
+---
 
-### 🎨 **Interactive and Responsive UI**
-- Built with a focus on **high performance and smooth UX**.
-- WebSocket connections are **hookified** for better state management.
-- The UI is highly **interactive and visually appealing**, improving the user experience over the cohort project.
+### 🔗 Collaboration
 
-## 🛠️ Tech Stack
+- **Real-time Sync**: WebSocket-powered live drawing
+- **Multi-Tab Awareness**: No duplicate join/leave events
+- **Optimistic Updates**: Instant feedback before server response
 
-- **Frontend:** Next.js 15  
-- **Real-time Sync:** WebSockets  
-- **State Management:** React hooks  
-- **Storage:** Local Storage (Standalone Mode), Database (for authentication in Collaboration Mode)  
+---
 
-## 🆚 Differences from Cohort Project
+### 🔐 **Privacy & End-to-End Encryption (E2EE)** in CollabyDraw
 
-| Feature                   | Cohort Project by Harkirath | CollabyDraw |
-|---------------------------|---------------------------|-------------|
-| Authentication Required   | Yes                        | No (Standalone Mode) |
-| Local Storage Support     | No                         | Yes |
-| Database Dependency       | Yes                        | No (Standalone Mode) |
-| Separate HTTP Services    | Yes                        | No (Uses Next.js Server Actions) |
-| Live Collaboration UI     | Basic                      | Interactive UI with participant list |
-| Performance Optimizations | Basic                      | Hookified WebSocket connection & responsive UI |
+CollabyDraw is built with **privacy by design** to ensure that no sensitive drawing data can be accessed by anyone other than the intended participants.
 
-## 🎯 Future Plans
-- **Fully eliminate database dependency** to enhance privacy.
-- **Enhance UI further** with better collaboration tools.
-- **Improve performance** with optimizations in WebSocket handling.
+### 🔑 **How It Works**
+
+- When a user creates or joins a room, the app generates a link like:
+    
+    ```
+    https://collabydraw.xyz#room=abc123,xyz456
+    ```
+    
+    - `abc123`: Unique room ID (used by the server)
+    - `xyz456`: Encryption key (used **only** on the client)
+
+### 🧠 **Key Never Touches the Server**
+
+- The **encryption key** after the comma (`xyz456`) is part of the URL fragment (`#...`).
+- This fragment is **never sent** in HTTP requests, meaning:
+    
+    > The server cannot see or store the encryption key.
+    > 
+
+### 🔒 **Client-Side Only Decryption**
+
+- All encrypted drawing data is transmitted over WebSocket.
+- The **decryption and rendering** happen completely on the client-side using the `key` from the URL.
+- Even if someone intercepts the WebSocket traffic, they cannot decrypt the data without the key.
+
+### 🛡️ **Benefits**
+
+- No one — not even the server — can read what’s drawn in a room without the key.
+- Ensures **confidentiality** for private brainstorming, teaching, or design sessions.
+- Works like **Excalidraw's E2EE rooms**, but tailored for your collaborative drawing logic.
+
+---
+
+### 🧠 Reliability
+
+- **Message Queue**: Stores unsent messages in memory/localStorage
+- **Auto Retry**: Flushes queued messages on reconnect
+
+---
+
+### 🧭 Modes
+
+- **Standalone Mode**: Offline/local drawing
+- **Room Mode**: Collaborative sessions
+
+---
+
+### ⚙️ Tech Stack
+
+- **Frontend**: React (Vite), TypeScript, Tailwind CSS
+- **Canvas**: HTML Canvas API + Custom Engine
+- **Realtime**: Native WebSocket (`useWebSocket` hook)
+- **Security**: Hash-based E2EE
+
+---
+
+### 📄 Notion Document
+
+https://plum-chamomile-116.notion.site/Collabydraw-Hand-drawn-look-feel-Collaborative-Secure-1cb6d6552d9b802597c1cb575db2a9da?pvs=4
+
+---
+
+### 📽️ Youtube Video
+
+https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNVdRCoFnK0
+
+---
+
+### 🌍 Open Source & Contributions
 
-## 🌍 Open Source & Contributions  
 I want **CollabyDraw** to be open source so that other students and developers can explore and learn from it.  
-If you'd like to contribute—whether it's improving the UI, optimizing performance, or adding new features—feel free to open an issue or submit a pull request!  
+If you'd like to contribute—whether it's improving the UI, optimizing performance, or adding new features—feel free to open an issue or submit a pull request!
+
+---
 
-## 📜 License
-This project is open-source and available under the MIT License.
+## 📄 License
 
----
+This project is licensed under a **Custom Personal Use License** — you may view and learn from the code, but **commercial use, redistribution, or claiming authorship is strictly prohibited**.  
+See the full [LICENSE](./LICENSE) for details.