Editing Developer Guide

= Developer Guide =

This page is a practical map for engineers who want to read or modify the PlexyDesk source tree.

== Read these first ==
* <code>tasks/README.md</code> - current work areas and implementation notes
* <code>install-deps.sh</code> - the fastest view of build and system dependencies
* <code>Makefile</code> - build modes, active runtime entry points, and source grouping
* <code>include/plexy/plexy_ui.h</code> - public client API
* [[PlexyUI API]] - generated reference page built directly from <code>include/plexy/plexy_ui.h</code>
* <code>examples/hello_uikit.c</code> - smallest useful UI example
* <code>docker/README.md</code> - package build workflow
* <code>plexyshell.conf.example</code> - runtime configuration surface

== Key source areas ==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Path
! What you will find there
|-
| <code>src/renderer/</code>
| Compositing, window effects, dock, menubar, shaders, async renderer, and GPU configuration
|-
| <code>src/backend/</code>
| DRM, X11-related display backend code, session management, and display backend selection
|-
| <code>src/input/</code>
| libinput integration, focus policy, and input coordination
|-
| <code>src/core/</code>
| Shell runtime, event loop, dock manager, drag/resize state, and display layout state
|-
| <code>src/server/</code>
| Compositor-side protocol server
|-
| <code>src/wayland/</code>
| Wayland bridge and XWM interoperability work
|-
| <code>src/canvas/</code>
| Canvas rendering, text, layout, styling, and animation support
|-
| <code>lib/</code>
| Client-side event loop and protocol support
|}

== Build workflow ==
Standard release build:

<pre>
make
</pre>

Verbose debug build:

<pre>
BUILD_MODE=debug make
</pre>

The Makefile groups sources by subsystem and applies different compiler and logging flags for debug versus release mode. Release builds enable aggressive optimization and link-time optimization.

== Public client API ==
The main client-facing API lives in <code>include/plexy/plexy_ui.h</code>. It covers:
* application and window lifecycle
* widget creation
* layout primitives such as row, column, justify, align, padding, and gap
* state changes such as visibility, text, value, and enabled state
* styling helpers such as corner radius, fill color, elevation, and glass material
* event hooks for clicks, values, text changes, keys, and menus

== Example-driven learning ==
The best small files to read early are:
* <code>examples/hello_uikit.c</code>
* <code>examples/canvas_demo.c</code>
* <code>examples/drawer_demo.c</code>
* <code>examples/settings_panel.c</code>
* <code>examples/showcase_demo.c</code>

== Applications and experiments ==
The <code>apps/</code> directory includes larger experiments such as:
* <code>plexy_term</code>
* <code>plexy_browser</code>
* <code>plexy_clock</code>
* <code>fileman</code>
* <code>pcalc</code>
* <code>vim</code>

== Packaging and service helpers ==
* <code>docker/README.md</code> explains the Ubuntu Docker package flow
* <code>scripts/systemd/</code> contains the user slice, service, installer, starter, and status helpers

== Good follow-up pages ==
* [[Architecture]]
* [[Getting Started]]
* [[Examples]]
* [[Development Status]]