This page is the public documentation shelf for the most important document layers behind x64base, DotTalk++, DotScript, DotTalk++ Workbench, and the Laboratory Campus.
The website is not meant to be a hand-written brochure. It is a reviewed publication surface built from the same vertical documentation system used by the runtime: source comments, usage contracts, HELP, metadata, SelfDoc reports, MDO organization, manualgen, diagrams, and AI-friendly summaries.
Document Layers
| Layer | Role | Website Status |
|---|---|---|
| Source and runtime truth | C++ source, command registration, headers, contracts, runtime transcripts, and command behavior. | Referenced and summarized; not fully mirrored. |
| HELP and metadata | HELP, CMDHELP, command/function catalogs, usage contracts, field/type metadata, and validation readback. | Command and function pages should be regenerated from this layer. |
| SelfDoc reports | Report-only extracts for features, contracts, comments, evidence, diagrams, and crosswalks. | Selected reports are promoted after review. |
| MDO organization | Master Documentation Organizer structure for lanes, manuals, evidence, sections, and promotion decisions. | Public pages should cite the organized lane, not raw scanner guesses. |
| AI-friendly artifacts | Compact summaries, manifests, crosswalks, inventories, and review notes designed for model-assisted maintenance. | Should be exposed when reviewed and clearly marked as derivative. |
| Manualgen outputs | Generated manual inventories, validation reports, dry-runs, and accepted manual sections. | Manuals are planned for publication as reviewed outputs. |
| Website derivatives | Public pages under x64base.com that present reviewed, status-labeled slices of the above. | This site is the current publication surface. |
Current Public Anchors
- Current Project Truth records conservative wording rules and the observed implementation state.
- Current Work Lanes lists active, canary, planned, and integration lanes without crowding the front page.
- SelfDoc Feed Pipeline documents the repeatable report-only path from source to manuals and website pages.
- SelfDoc Website Publication defines the boundary between implementation truth and public website copy.
- Coding Standards records contracts, usage comments, header conventions, and safeguards.
- Runtime Evidence Gallery curates screenshots as evidence artifacts, not marketing screenshots.
- Engine Feature Crosswalk summarizes engine features from a generated SelfDoc report.
- Command Catalog and Function Catalog are public catalog derivatives that should eventually be regenerated from HELP/metadata/contract evidence.
Manual Publication Plan
Manuals should appear here only after they are generated, validated, and reviewed. The intended path is:
source behavior
-> comments and @dottalk.usage / @dottalk.contract headers
-> HELP, CMDHELP, metadata, and comments evidence
-> CMDHELPCHK / SelfDoc validation reports
-> MDO section organization
-> manualgen inventory / validate / dry-run
-> reviewed manual section
-> website manual page or downloadable artifact
This keeps the public manual honest. If a feature is runtime-evidenced, the manual can say so. If it is source-evidenced, canary, planned, or review-needed, the manual should carry that status instead of smoothing it over.
AI-Friendly Documentation
AI-friendly documents are useful because the project is broad, but they are not the source of truth by themselves. They should preserve:
- source path or report path,
- generation date or extraction snapshot,
- evidence status,
- mutation boundary,
- review state,
- promotion target.
AI-friendly summaries are allowed on the website when they help a reader navigate the system and when they remain traceable back to source, HELP, SelfDoc, MDO, or manualgen artifacts.
Website Generation Rule
The website should increasingly be maintained by vertical content generation:
D:\code\ccode implementation truth
-> SelfDoc / MDO / manualgen / AI-friendly reviewed artifacts
-> D:\dev\x64base-site public derivatives
-> x64base.com published documentation
Hand edits are acceptable for framing and review, but important technical pages should be fed by repeatable reports whenever possible.