diff --git a/HANDOFF.md b/HANDOFF.md
index 719cedf..eb511f1 100644
--- a/HANDOFF.md
+++ b/HANDOFF.md
@@ -7,19 +7,26 @@
 Pushed state at `197ee81` (36 commits ahead locally — push only at a sub-milestone / on the
 user's say-so).
 
-**Working tree DIRTY — two finished hotfix work units from the live build #77 session:**
+**Working tree DIRTY — account zone made world-independent (creator 2026-09-23):**
 
 ```
- M Controls/PreviewPane.xaml             (audio-sync status dot removed + YPP standing row)
- M Themes/Controls.xaml                  (IntToSyncBrush converter resource removed)
- D Helpers/IntToSyncBrushConverter.cs    (converter dead — deleted)
- M Services/ChannelStatsService.cs       (YPP auditDetails part dropped; 403 body logged)
- M Services/YppTrackerViewModel.cs       (standing flags removed; honest deep-link text)
- M ytLive.Tests/YppPullOutTests.cs       (fixture loses the standing flags)
-?? ytLive.Tests/ChannelStatsServiceTests.cs  (NEW Good Dog: no auditDetails in URL + parses)
- M ai.md, TASKS/task-22, TASKS/task-39, TASKS.md, MyMistakes.md, HANDOFF.md
+ M ViewModels/MainViewModel.Streaming.cs   (ShowSignInButton = !IsConnected, ShowAvatarButton = IsConnected)
+ M ytLive.Tests/TopBarModeTests.cs         (REC-world asserts: avatar stays, Sign In visible signed-out)
+ M ai.md, TASKS/task-42, HANDOFF.md
 ```
 
+Previous two hotfix units (audio-sync dot + YPP 403/statistics-string) are COMMITTED (`cb75066`);
+top-bar feedback COMMITTED (`d72949e`).
+
+## ⚠️ The account-zone unit (this turn)
+
+Creator, clicking RECORD on the live build: "why do you make the youtube user icon go away?" — the
+TASK 42 one-surface bar had scoped the account zone to the Stream world ("Record world has no YouTube
+identity at all"), so arming REC dropped the avatar AND the bar height bounced with it ("really fucking
+annoying"). Fix: `ShowSignInButton`/`ShowAvatarButton` are now world-independent (`!IsConnected` /
+`IsConnected`) — the right column never pops in/out, bar height pinned. Test stays a child of Stream.
+`TopBarModeTests` updated: signed-out Record world shows Sign In; flipping back to REC keeps the avatar.
+
 ## ⚠️ The app is RUNNING, and that's the story of this round
 
 Ac6e67a **could not be verified through the normal gate** because the user was *looking at the
@@ -83,17 +90,11 @@ the copy stage with XAML/markup compiling clean (only the 2 copy errors → code
 
 ## Next step
 
-1. **Close the running app (PID 17752 holds the exe), then run the full gate** —
-   `./scripts/verify.sh` with the full declared scope (audio-dot unit + YPP fix): clean build
-   0-warnings + full suite + scope check. Then commit BOTH units — they share PreviewPane.xaml /
-   ai.md, so a single hotfix commit ("build-77 polish + YPP refresh 403") is the honest shape, or
-   two commits if the user prefers strict splits.
-
-   ⚠️ The YPP Good Dog (`ChannelStatsServiceTests`) and the updated `YppPullOutTests` cannot even
-   BUILD until the app closes (the app csproj copy fails on the locked exe) — they were written but
-   not yet executed.
-
-2. After the gate: push decisions pending (user's call). TASK 40 Unit A next.
+1. **Run the gate on the account-zone unit** (declared scope: `ViewModels/MainViewModel.Streaming.cs`,
+   `ytLive.Tests/TopBarModeTests.cs`, `ai.md`, `TASKS/task-42-top-bar-redesign.md`, `HANDOFF.md`) —
+   `./scripts/verify.sh`: clean build 0-warnings + full suite + scope check. Then commit it
+   ("account zone is world-independent — avatar stays in Record world", code + docs in one).
+   Repo is 36 commits ahead of pushed `197ee81`; push decision is the creator's (sub-milestone).
 
 ## Critical working rules (unchanged, still binding)
 
diff --git a/TASKS/task-42-top-bar-redesign.md b/TASKS/task-42-top-bar-redesign.md
index 6183818..8e13490 100644
--- a/TASKS/task-42-top-bar-redesign.md
+++ b/TASKS/task-42-top-bar-redesign.md
@@ -21,7 +21,10 @@ world is the whole bar; the other world never exists on screen.
 - **Mode switch:** one segmented **REC|ON-AIR** toggle (former two pills are a
   binary, radio-exclusive decision). Going back = one tap on the other segment.
   Idle-only; while running the switch retires.
-- **Record world:** `switch + Start Recording`. **No YouTube identity at all.**
+- **Record world:** `switch + Start Recording`. **No Test — stream actions don't
+  exist here.** The account zone IS present (2026-09-23 correction, creator
+  "why do you make the youtube user icon go away?"): the avatar / Sign In are
+  **world-independent**, keeping the right column — and the bar height — pinned.
 - **Stream world:** `switch + Go Live + Test` and the **account zone** on the right
   (Sign In while signed-out — the pending sequence step rendered exactly when
   needed; the avatar once connected, right-click = Change Account/Logout).
diff --git a/ViewModels/MainViewModel.Streaming.cs b/ViewModels/MainViewModel.Streaming.cs
index 3184acb..d022b65 100644
--- a/ViewModels/MainViewModel.Streaming.cs
+++ b/ViewModels/MainViewModel.Streaming.cs
@@ -195,21 +195,22 @@ public partial class MainViewModel : ViewModelBase
     public bool RunningVisible => IsLive || IsRecording;
 
     /// <summary>Record world: the switch sits on REC and Go says "Start Recording".
-    /// No account zone, no Test — YouTube doesn't exist here.</summary>
+    /// No Test — YouTube's stream actions don't exist here. The account zone IS
+    /// here: it's app-level identity, not a stream-world widget (creator 2026-09-23).</summary>
     public bool ShowRecordAction => ShowIdleWorld && !OnAirPillOn;
 
     /// <summary>Stream world: the switch sits on ON-AIR; Go says "Go Live" and Test
-    /// appears. The account zone belongs to this world because login is a step in
-    /// THIS sequence.</summary>
+    /// appears.</summary>
     public bool ShowStreamActions => ShowIdleWorld && OnAirPillOn;
 
-    /// <summary>Sign In appears on the right only inside the Stream world, signed-out
-    /// — the pending step of the stream sequence, made visible exactly when it's next.</summary>
-    public bool ShowSignInButton => ShowStreamActions && !IsConnected;
+    /// <summary>Account zone is WORLD-INDEPENDENT (creator 2026-09-23): Sign In /
+    /// avatar stay put in Record and Stream worlds alike, so the right column never
+    /// pops in and out — which pins the bar height (no more bounce between worlds).</summary>
+    public bool ShowSignInButton => !IsConnected;
 
-    /// <summary>The avatar confirms WHICH account is about to stream — only in the
-    /// Stream world, signed-in. Right-click for Change Account / Logout.</summary>
-    public bool ShowAvatarButton => ShowStreamActions && IsConnected;
+    /// <summary>The avatar — right-click Change Account / Logout. Always visible when
+    /// signed in, Record or Stream.</summary>
+    public bool ShowAvatarButton => IsConnected;
 
     /// <summary>The reality word: TEST while a test broadcast runs, LIVE while on the
     /// air, REC during a local-record session.</summary>
diff --git a/ai.md b/ai.md
index 71a69a4..d4f999b 100644
--- a/ai.md
+++ b/ai.md
@@ -639,10 +639,13 @@ lights when a session is actually running.
   `RaiseTopBarModes()`). The old sign-lights + two pill toggles + status dot + PRIVATE/TEST chips are
   gone; the mode is one **segmented REC|ON-AIR switch** (`SegmentToggle`/`SegmentLabel` styles), and
   "going back" is one tap on the other segment. Idle worlds: Record = switch + "Start Recording"
-  (`PrimaryStartButtonLabel` names the armed world) and **no YouTube identity at all**; Stream = switch
+  (`PrimaryStartButtonLabel` names the armed world); Stream = switch
   + "Go Live" + Test (Test is a **child of Stream** — visible only stream-armed AND signed-in) plus the
-  account zone on the right (`ShowSignInButton` = stream world signed-out; `ShowAvatarButton` = the
-  avatar, right-click Change Account/Logout). Running retires the switch and worlds; one reality line
+  account zone on the right. **The account zone is WORLD-INDEPENDENT (2026-09-23):**
+  `ShowSignInButton` = signed-out and `ShowAvatarButton` = the signed-in avatar, in Record and Stream
+  worlds alike — it's app-level identity, and keeping it put pins the bar height (it no longer pops in
+  and out between worlds). Right-click the avatar = Change Account/Logout. Running retires the switch
+  and worlds; one reality line
   `● word elapsed` + End replace them (`RunningVisible`/`RunningText`/`RunningDotBrush` — TEST/LIVE/REC,
   gold/red/green). The account **status dot is gone** — the avatar/Sign In pair carries connectedness.
   `ShowPrimaryStartButton` remains the always-idle face. `StopStream` clears both pills (see "Stop ends
diff --git a/ytLive.Tests/TopBarModeTests.cs b/ytLive.Tests/TopBarModeTests.cs
index f74a4bf..b674288 100644
--- a/ytLive.Tests/TopBarModeTests.cs
+++ b/ytLive.Tests/TopBarModeTests.cs
@@ -10,11 +10,12 @@ namespace ytLive.Tests;
 
 /// <summary>
 /// Top bar redesign — the bar is ONE surface rendered by the FIRST decision
-/// (Record or Stream). Each world is the whole bar: the Record world has no
-/// YouTube identity at all, the Stream world owns the account zone (Sign In or
-/// avatar) plus Test. The switch is a two-position gate, so "going back" is one
-/// tap on the other segment. While running, the switch retires and a single
-/// reality line (dot + word + elapsed) + End replace it.
+/// (Record or Stream). Each world is the whole bar: Test is a child of Stream,
+/// but the account zone (Sign In / avatar) is WORLD-INDEPENDENT (creator
+/// 2026-09-23) so the right column never pops in and out and the bar height
+/// stays pinned. The switch is a two-position gate, so "going back" is one tap
+/// on the other segment. While running, the switch retires and a single reality
+/// line (dot + word + elapsed) + End replace it.
 /// </summary>
 [Collection("RealApp")]
 public sealed class TopBarModeTests
@@ -45,11 +46,12 @@ public sealed class TopBarModeTests
             vm.IsConnected = false;
 
             // Default (nothing armed) = the Record world: Go says "Start Recording",
-            // no account zone, no Test — YouTube doesn't exist in this world.
+            // no Test — but the account zone is app-level and stays (signed out →
+            // Sign In visible even here; no avatar).
             Assert.True(vm.ShowIdleWorld);
             Assert.True(vm.ShowRecordAction);
             Assert.False(vm.ShowStreamActions);
-            Assert.False(vm.ShowSignInButton);
+            Assert.True(vm.ShowSignInButton);
             Assert.False(vm.ShowAvatarButton);
             Assert.False(vm.ShowTestButton);
             Assert.Equal("Start Recording", vm.PrimaryStartButtonLabel);
@@ -72,11 +74,12 @@ public sealed class TopBarModeTests
             Assert.True(vm.ShowAvatarButton);
             Assert.True(vm.ShowTestButton);
 
-            // Going back is one tap: flipping REC returns the bar to the Record world.
+            // Going back is one tap: flipping REC returns the bar to the Record world —
+            // the avatar STAYS (world-independent account zone), only Test retires.
             vm.RecordPillOn = true;
             Assert.False(vm.ShowStreamActions);
             Assert.True(vm.ShowRecordAction);
-            Assert.False(vm.ShowAvatarButton);
+            Assert.True(vm.ShowAvatarButton);
             Assert.False(vm.ShowTestButton);
             Assert.Equal("Start Recording", vm.PrimaryStartButtonLabel);