% FLOSS Release Roadmap

Reviewed 2021-03-03 by japhb

This doc puts forward a roadmap for major FLOSS releases leading up to an eventual MUGS 1.0 release. Pre-public versions were all 0.0.x; the first public release will be 0.1.x, the "Proof of Concept" series. Further major releases will follow when their respective key deliverables are completed.

0.1 Proof of Concept (CURRENT WIP)

There are a great many TODO tasks already identified for MUGS, but a smaller number needed before the initial proof-of-concept FLOSS release. Most of these are just getting things cleaned up enough that people can reasonably try it out and give feedback other than "It's completely broken for me."

This list is about 80% solid:

• Cleanups

  • Simple XXXX addressed

  • Larger XXXX filed as TODOs

• ✓ Core functionality

  • ✓ Content tags

  • ✓ Genre tags

  • ✓ Game descriptions

• … Docs

  • ✓ READMEs rewritten (or pointing to a Getting Started doc)

    • All README info tested on fresh install

  • ✓ Simple contributing instructions written

  • ✓ Code style documented in coding-standards doc

  • ✓ All TODO docs cleaned up

  • … All design docs marked with implementation status

  • … All docs marked with latest review date

  • Draft release guide

• … Games

  • … Guessing

    • ✓ Snowman supported as default word-guessing game

    • Multi-round Snowman

    • Multi-player Snowman

• ✓ Organizational

  • ✓ Create Raku-MUGS GitHub org

  • ✓ Create 'mugs' Freenode group and #mugs IRC channel

• … Packaging

  • ✓ File extensions changed to current Raku standards

  • ✓ Support for plugging UIs and games

  • ✓ Meta files checked and updated

  • ✓ MUGS-Core separated from MUGS-Games and MUGS-UI-*'s

  • cro run and Docker support restored

• Testing

  • MUGS::Util::* fully tested

• UIs

  • All games exist in at least 2 UIs

  • CLI and WebSimple UIs approximately equivalent

  • Turn-based games tested with a screen reader

• ✓ UX

  • ✓ Game selection interfaces show genre tags and description

0.2 Prototype

The first major release after the 0.1.x series will need to support a much wider set of games and enough functionality to prove the value proposition.

This list is about 60% solid:

• Cleanups

  • XXXX review pass

• Core functionality

  • Achievements/Awards/Accomplishments

  • Game config menus

  • Invites

    • create account

    • join game

  • Messaging

    • persona messaging

    • offline messaging

    • server notices

• Docs

  • Release guide tested and tuned

  • Review pass

• Error handling

  • All ad hoc exceptions converted to proper X::MUGS subtypes

  • Sad paths explored

  • Client and Server independent of each other's failures

  • Separate error messages for debug logs and user-visible messages

• Games

  • Arcade

    • Two multi-player 2D arcade games

  • Board

    • Draughts (Checkers)

  • Card

    • A shedding-type game

    • Poker of some form

  • Guessing

    • FourDigits

  • Interactive Fiction

    • At least one basic IF playable

  • Social

    • Chat Room

• Reliability

  • Limit max active games

  • Server load shedding

  • Client able to forget old requests with no response (or whose game is gone)

  • Protocol details: protocol version, sequence numbers, security, etc.

• Testing

  • Core roles fully tested

• UIs

  • TUI added

  • TUI supports login and game choice

  • All games tested on at least one UI working with multiple assistive technologies

• UX

  • List of active games shows which are available to join

0.3 Alpha 1

With the basic value proposition shown in the prototype, the first alpha pivots to tackling internationalization and manageability, along with more depth in each of the major work themes.

This list is about 40% solid:

• Cleanups

  • XXXX review pass

• Core functionality

  • Skill ratings

  • Skill matching?

• Docs

  • Review pass

• Error handling

  • Testability

    • Fault injection

    • Latency injection

• Games

  • Arcade

    • Side-scroller shmup

    • Side-scroller platformer

  • Board

    • Chess

    • Go

  • Card

    • Klondike Solitaire

  • Roguelike or CRPG

• I18N

  • Basic multi-language support (LTR-only in this release)

  • Various testing "translations" such as double-wide

• Manageability

  • Logging much more complete

  • Monitoring support

• Testing

  • Storage drivers fully tested

• UIs

  • Review AT support for all games

0.4 Alpha 2

The second alpha follows the first with easier onramps for users and developers.

This list is about 20% solid:

• Cleanups

  • XXXX review pass

• Docs

  • Comprehensive Getting Started

  • Review pass

• Games

  • MUD/MUSH

• I18N

  • Deeper locale support

  • RTL support, with "180 degree rotated" testing "translation"

  • Hooks for using a translation service for messages

• Manageability

  • Fleet management

  • Universe management

• Testing

  • Entire MUGS-Core fully tested

• UIs

  • Review AT support for all games

0.5 Alpha 3

At this point the following is more aspirational and directional than solid:

• Cleanups

  • XXXX review pass

• Docs

  • Review pass

• I18N and L10N

  • Getting Started translated into multiple languages

  • All UI and error messages translated into multiple languages

• Manageability

  • Schema rollouts

  • Server rollouts

• Testing

  • Client/Server pairs for each genre fully tested

• UIs

  • Review AT support for all games

0.6 Alpha 4

• Cleanups

  • XXXX review pass

• Docs

  • Review pass

• Testing

  • Client/Server pairs for every game fully tested

• UIs

  • Review AT support for all games

???

• IRC gateway?