diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index c77e9aa..133a1c4 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -257,6 +257,18 @@ if(PP_BUILD_APP)
         set_source_files_properties(${PP_VENDOR_SOURCES}
             PROPERTIES SKIP_PRECOMPILE_HEADERS ON)
 
+        add_library(pp_panopainter_ui STATIC
+            ${PP_PANOPAINTER_UI_SOURCES})
+        target_link_libraries(pp_panopainter_ui
+            PUBLIC
+                pp_legacy_app
+                pp_project_options
+            PRIVATE
+                pp_project_warnings)
+        target_precompile_headers(pp_panopainter_ui REUSE_FROM pp_legacy_app)
+        set_target_properties(pp_panopainter_ui PROPERTIES
+            VS_GLOBAL_CharacterSet "Unicode")
+
         add_library(panopainter_app STATIC
             ${PP_PANOPAINTER_APP_SOURCES})
         target_include_directories(panopainter_app
@@ -265,6 +277,7 @@ if(PP_BUILD_APP)
         target_link_libraries(panopainter_app
             PUBLIC
                 pp_legacy_app
+                pp_panopainter_ui
                 pp_project_options
             PRIVATE
                 pp_project_warnings)
diff --git a/cmake/PanoPainterSources.cmake b/cmake/PanoPainterSources.cmake
index 2916b61..d7834ea 100644
--- a/cmake/PanoPainterSources.cmake
+++ b/cmake/PanoPainterSources.cmake
@@ -25,12 +25,10 @@ set(PP_LEGACY_APP_SOURCES
     src/log.cpp
     src/mp4enc.cpp
     src/node.cpp
-    src/node_about.cpp
     src/node_border.cpp
     src/node_button.cpp
     src/node_button_custom.cpp
     src/node_canvas.cpp
-    src/node_changelog.cpp
     src/node_checkbox.cpp
     src/node_color_quad.cpp
     src/node_colorwheel.cpp
@@ -46,8 +44,6 @@ set(PP_LEGACY_APP_SOURCES
     src/node_image.cpp
     src/node_image_texture.cpp
     src/node_input_box.cpp
-    src/node_message_box.cpp
-    src/node_metadata.cpp
     src/node_panel_animation.cpp
     src/node_panel_brush.cpp
     src/node_panel_color.cpp
@@ -67,7 +63,6 @@ set(PP_LEGACY_APP_SOURCES
     src/node_text.cpp
     src/node_text_input.cpp
     src/node_tool_bucket.cpp
-    src/node_usermanual.cpp
     src/node_viewport.cpp
     src/pch.cpp
     src/rtt.cpp
@@ -84,6 +79,14 @@ set(PP_PANOPAINTER_APP_SOURCES
     src/version.cpp
 )
 
+set(PP_PANOPAINTER_UI_SOURCES
+    src/node_about.cpp
+    src/node_changelog.cpp
+    src/node_message_box.cpp
+    src/node_metadata.cpp
+    src/node_usermanual.cpp
+)
+
 set(PP_WINDOWS_PLATFORM_SOURCES
     src/main.cpp
 )
diff --git a/docs/modernization/build-inventory.md b/docs/modernization/build-inventory.md
index 11cdbf4..d61e9ae 100644
--- a/docs/modernization/build-inventory.md
+++ b/docs/modernization/build-inventory.md
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ Keep it updated as platform paths move to shared CMake targets.
 
 | Platform/Target | Current Entrypoint | Notes |
 | --- | --- | --- |
-| Windows desktop | Root `CMakeLists.txt`, preset `windows-msvc-default`; target preset `windows-vs2026-x64` retained for VS 2026 | Raw `.sln/.vcxproj` files removed on 2026-05-31; local machine currently uses Visual Studio 17 2022; `PanoPainter` now links through `pp_platform_windows` and `panopainter_app`, with Windows/vendor link dependencies owned by the platform shell, runtime payload deployment in `cmake/PanoPainterRuntime.cmake`, and version metadata owned by `panopainter_app` |
+| Windows desktop | Root `CMakeLists.txt`, preset `windows-msvc-default`; target preset `windows-vs2026-x64` retained for VS 2026 | Raw `.sln/.vcxproj` files removed on 2026-05-31; local machine currently uses Visual Studio 17 2022; `PanoPainter` now links through `pp_platform_windows` and `panopainter_app`, with Windows/vendor link dependencies owned by the platform shell, runtime payload deployment in `cmake/PanoPainterRuntime.cmake`, version metadata owned by `panopainter_app`, and the first modal/help UI nodes owned by `pp_panopainter_ui` |
 | Windows AppX | `PanoPainterPackage/Package.appxmanifest`, `.wapproj` referenced by solution | Distribution packaging |
 | macOS | `PanoPainter-OSX/` project files and `Info.plist` | Uses `NSOpenGLView` today |
 | iOS | `PanoPainter/Info.plist`, related Apple sources | Uses OpenGL ES today |
diff --git a/docs/modernization/roadmap.md b/docs/modernization/roadmap.md
index 7ba9b00..0e2138a 100644
--- a/docs/modernization/roadmap.md
+++ b/docs/modernization/roadmap.md
@@ -148,7 +148,10 @@ option targets exist. The Windows desktop app builds through CMake as
 dependencies now belong to the platform shell target, and Windows runtime
 payload deployment lives behind `cmake/PanoPainterRuntime.cmake`.
 `panopainter_app` is now a real static target that owns app version metadata
-and version-header generation. Android arm64 now configures and builds headless
+and version-header generation. The first `pp_panopainter_ui` target now owns a
+small app-specific modal/help UI group (`NodeAbout`, `NodeChangelog`,
+`NodeMessageBox`, `NodeMetadata`, and `NodeUserManual`) outside
+`pp_legacy_app`. Android arm64 now configures and builds headless
 foundation/tool targets through the root CMake/NDK path. Non-Windows platform
 app/package files remain during Phase 6 alignment.