Docs: add dev FAQ for 'should I start with the APWorld or the client?' #5716
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Looks like something that would be worth linking at least once a week in ap-world-dev. That's a win in my book.
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| - Start with a proof-of-concept for the game client | ||
| - Figure out how to interface with the game. Whether that means "modding" the game, or patching a ROM file, | ||
| or developing a separate client program that edits the game's memory, or some other technique. |
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I think it may be worth pointing out here, that there exists channels in the AP discord dedicated to modding different types of things and that this would be where a prospective apworld dev would want to look if they want help with the mod side of things.
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After thinking about this, I believe mentioning that specific channel would be better in adding games.md (next to where it already mentions client libs), and this FAQ entry should link to adding games.md so it's not duplicating anything in that document.
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As a person who has been researching archipelago, and contributed in others' projects, but not started my own, I find this information about how to approach the beginning insightful!
It's also well written, for a little bit of objectivity.
(Am I, like, allowed to approve a PR? This feels wrong somehow)
docs/apworld_dev_faq.md
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| you write a bunch of code assuming it could be done. That's why we recommend starting with the game client. | ||
| - Getting an APWorld to generate whatever items/locations you want is always feasible, since items/locations are | ||
| little more than id numbers and name strings during generation. | ||
| - For a developer new to Archipelago, it's likely much easier to tell if your game client is working correctly than |
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This comment asserts something about the developer that I do not think is consistently true. I imagine that a decent amount of folks who are developing AP are already pretty Archipelago-native, but are new to programming. People with no prior programming experience but have built a Manual definitely fall into this category.
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I've reworded it in a way that I think expresses the point I was trying to make without the assumption that no one "knows Archipelago" before making an APWorld.
…e of first-timers
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Yep. The weight of that approval may vary, but "peer review" is all about getting other mere mortals like us to look at the change, especially for documentation like this where we want a mix of experts checking correctness and relative novices checking that it's clear and helpful. |
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Looks like a doc that would've been useful to me if I'd read it before making an apworld myself so that makes it good.
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What is this fixing or adding?
Common answers to this common question, in way more detail than the typical Discord message.
The Discord conversation starting around https://discord.com/channels/731205301247803413/1214608557077700720/1437562394921406638 was what specifically inspired me to make a FAQ entry for this, since it sounds like all the chatty veteran world devs including me have a general consensus on how to answer the question. The disagreements turned out to be superficial ones about which part of this consensus to emphasize in a quick one-line reply (e.g. those of us who say "start with the client" never meant do 100% of client work before even starting an APWorld).
How was this tested?
reading
If this makes graphical changes, please attach screenshots.
N/A