Documents the HWM API in architecture.md and surfaces it in
README.md's feature list. Includes the auto-bump pattern, the
multi-tenant convention (each tosser registers as a named user
in the same lastread file), and the per-format coverage map.
Coverage decisions for 0.3.x:
JAM -- native (.JLR) [shipped 0.3.0]
Squish -- native (.SQL) [shipped 0.3.1]
MSG / PKT -- spec has no HWM, returns -1 [structural]
PCBoard -- USERS file too entangled, deferred
Wildcat -- WC SDK exposes only per-message MarkMsgRead,
no per-user HWM primitive; defer until either
the SDK gains the call or we reverse-engineer
the user-conference state file
Hudson -- LASTREAD.BBS is per-(user, board) and the
GoldBase base instance doesn't carry board context;
EzyCom needs API design before impl
For deferred formats, GetHWM honestly returns -1 and the caller
falls back to its own state (e.g. NR's dupedb keyed by area).
This matches the "no fakery" principle: don't pretend a format
supports HWM when it doesn't, and don't silently sidecar in a
location consumers can't discover.
The 0.3.0 / 0.3.1 trio gives NetReader native HWM coverage for
the two formats that account for the overwhelming majority of
real-world FidoNet areas (JAM, Squish). Everything else falls
back to dupedb.
No code changes in this commit -- docs only.
New docs/attributes-registry.md publishes the canonical attribute
key catalog in four tiers:
1. Universal headers — msg.num, from, to, subject, date.*, addr.*,
area, board, cost. Every Fido format carries them.
2. Canonical attribute bits — attr.private, attr.crash, etc.,
mapped to/from the FTS-1 attribute word.
3. FTSC kludges — msgid, replyid, pid, tid, flags, chrs, tzutc,
seen-by, path, via. Multi-line keys use #13 between lines.
4. Format-specific — jam.*, squish.*, hudson.*, goldbase.*, ezy.*,
pcb.*, wildcat.*, pkt.*, msg.*. Each backend's namespace.
Plus a per-format support matrix showing which keys each backend
carries. Authoritative source remains each backend's
ClassSupportedAttributes -- the matrix can drift; SupportsAttribute()
is the runtime-correct query.
docs/architecture.md TUniMessage section rewritten:
- Documents the strict two-area model (Body + Attributes only).
- Body holds only the message text, never kludges or headers.
- Library never composes presentation -- consumers walk Attributes
and assemble their own display.
- Adds the capabilities API section pointing at the registry.
- Removes the stale "kludge lines intact and CR-separated" promise
the previous adapter implementations didn't honor.
docs/PROPOSAL.md flags the original Extras-bag section as
SUPERSEDED 2026-04-17, points to the registry + architecture docs
as the live design. Original text retained as historical context
since it captures the conversation that drove the redesign.
README.md:
- Features list now leads with the lossless two-area model and the
capabilities API.
- Adds a Status note flagging 0.2 as a breaking change vs 0.1 with
a one-paragraph migration sketch (msg.WhoFrom -> Attributes.Get
('from'), etc.).
- Documentation index links to the new registry doc.
Project renamed from message_api → fpc-msgbase. Folder, README title,
docs, build.sh, fpc.cfg, and test banners all updated for consistency
with the planned remote at kjgr.io:2222/kenjreno/fpc-msgbase.git.
Also scrubbed claims that backends were "ported from Allfix" or
"match Allfix's msgutil/domsg" — none of this code was ported from
Allfix; it was implemented from FTSC documents and the original
format authors' published specs (jam.txt, squish.doc, pcboard.doc,
EzyCom reference, WildCat 4 SDK headers). Author credits live in
docs/ftsc-compliance.md.
Real interop facts that mention Allfix-the-product stay documented:
the PCB Extra2 sent-bit ($40) Allfix sets when tossing, and the
FTSC-registered product code $EB. These describe external software
behavior we interoperate with, not provenance.
docs/format-notes/hudson.md removed — stale planning doc that
predates the working ma.fmt.hudson backend.
Six-week reshape plan: lossless TMsgRecord with Extras bag, ITsmIO
abstraction, TOutboundBatch, single-callback events, explicit locking,
typed exception tree. Captures the cross-project conversation with
NetReader and the byte-agreement cross-verifier as the first
actionable step. Pre-rename baseline.
- ma.lock.Release now unlinks the .lck sentinel after releasing
the OS lock (SysUtils.DeleteFile to avoid Windows API collision)
- Unit headers trimmed to standard dev-comment form (purpose only)
- docs/API.md: complete API reference with runnable examples,
event types, locking semantics, tosser wiring, native-backend
drop-down pattern, per-format cheat-sheet
- README links to the new doc
The TWildcatBase.OpenConference was creating a TMsgDatabase without
populating the SDK globals, causing access violations on MwConfig.
Now calls the full Register sequence: InitWCglobal, LoadMakeWild,
BTInitIsam before opening; BTExitIsam + DisposeWCglobal on close.
test_wildcat reads conferences 0..6 from vendored testdata (copied
to /tmp/ma_wildcat so the source tree stays read-only).
