Technical diary

D105 newopenConventionDecision02 Jul 2026

Orphaned reference documents in Records/ need indexing

Seven reference/analysis documents in Records/ (gaad_charter.md, gaad_brand.md, gaad_roadmap.md, gaad_episode_plan.md, gaad_id_mapping.md, gaad_project_background.json, gaad_1994_audit.md) sit outside the JSON -> MD -> HTML record pipeline and are not referenced by the technical specification, any generator, or any other record. They are functionally orphaned: present but undiscoverable except by browsing the folder directly. Logged as an open decision rather than fixed silently, since resolving it (index all seven from the tech spec, consolidate some, or retire stale ones such as gaad_1994_audit.md now that gaad_audit.html supersedes it) is a content call, not a mechanical fix. Marked as orphaned in the Section 4 folder tree (gaad_technical_spec.json) so the gap is visible rather than requiring inspection to notice. Follow-up action (not built yet): add an orphaned-file WARN check to gaad_static_check.py Layer 1 - a Records/ file that is neither a record's .json/.md/.html trio, nor a generate_*.py, nor referenced in any technical-spec 'see' array, flagged as a warning (not a fail, since orphaned is not the same as broken).

D106 newadoptedArchitectureDecision02 Jul 2026

Fast geometry: direct mesh construction, joined per variant

From generator v0_33, variant primitives are built as raw mesh data (pure-Python vertex/face construction, replicating the v0_32 primitive layouts exactly) and joined into ONE mesh object per stage, replacing one bpy.ops object per primitive. Each primitive keeps its own material as a slot on the joined mesh (faces assigned by material_index) and its full parameters plus a logical object_name in the replay JSON, which remains the record of every individual primitive. The joined object carries variant-level properties (gaad_variant_id, gaad_stage_number, gaad_object_count, gaad_shape_types, gaad_is_generated), so champion selection by clicking is unchanged. Stage furniture (surface, labels, title panel, camera, sun) is out of scope: fixed overhead, not the scaling problem. The 3D view, materials, rendering and solar behaviour are unchanged: same polygons, same materials, same placement. Incidental fix: the v0_32 wedge face list carried a duplicated slope face with mixed winding (invisible in the double-sided viewport); the wedge is now a clean 5-face closed solid with the same vertex positions.

D107 newadoptedProcessDecision02 Jul 2026

Panel spec unfrozen; ownership with Claude; sanction-then-batch protocol

The v1_0 panel spec freeze (D100) is lifted by Miles's explicit call: 'I am happy to unfreeze the panel spec so we can update as needed, you own it.' Panel spec ownership sits with Claude as Specification Owner: Miles sanctions direction; Claude owns coherence, consistency and structural detail, iterating on the mock-up chain and prompting Miles when a formal amendment to the spec document is warranted, batching several settled items into one amendment rather than churning the document per change. Miles approves each amendment before it lands in the records.

D108 newadoptedPanelDecision02 Jul 2026

Records Hub replaces the nine DEVELOPMENT buttons

The DEVELOPMENT section's nine record buttons are replaced by ONE 'Records Hub' button (HOME icon) that opens Records/gaad_records.html - every record type, one searchable, fully offline page. Resolves the panel-wiring question parked since the Hub was built in 0_105 (replace vs sit alongside): REPLACE, per Miles's call ('development settings and tools need deleting, they serve no purpose, one new button to Hub (home) would be nice').

D109 newadoptedPanelDecision02 Jul 2026

Panel v2_1 reflow: subtraction first

The panel is reflowed per mock-up v2_1 (tested hands-on by Miles before any addon change). REMOVED: DEVELOPMENT (-> Records Hub button, D108), SETTINGS (version strings duplicate the STATUS line; Last Full Release moves to the Hub page), TOOLS (was empty), and GAAD Studio (DEFERRED, not deleted - Miles is not developing Studio yet; it returns to the spec when its development resumes). RELOCATED: Reset GAAD Platform to the foot of GAAD Lab beside Integrity Check (platform-level actions together; keeps its confirm dialog). PROMOTED: Evolution Rules out of the Design Language dropdown into CREATE as a collapsible block directly under Next Generation - Miles could not find mutation, buried two levels deep behind a dropdown; the sliders are now always editable, since the generator re-reads them on every run (the old 'Locked - used for this run' state on rules was UI-imposed, not real). One home, not two: Evolution Rules no longer appears in the DL sub-tab list (D102 cover: the panel is a VIEW onto the DL; the DL still owns Evolution Rules as data). REDESIGNED: the Objects sub-tab becomes a CONTRACT VIEW - mid-run one read-only line showing the actual locked object set, toggles rendered only between runs when they work (Miles: 'object panel sucks' - the locked-but-clickable-looking mixed states were the worst of both). COLLAPSE: 'Collapse Sections' removed; 'Collapse All' is one two-way toggle whose label flips to 'Expand All' when everything is closed (Miles's mock-up feedback). The three tech-spec Section 3 drift points resolve toward the live addon (Navigator Report name kept; the DEVELOPMENT drift dissolves with the section). Implemented as addon v0_68 against mock-up v2_1; static check v0.3 expectations updated to match.

D110 newopenDesign LanguageDecision02 Jul 2026

Evolve / Explore / Backtrack: the platform's mode grammar

Direction agreed, implementation deferred (Miles: open, no action today). The platform has three fundamental stances toward the design space, named by Miles: EVOLVE (selection breeds instantly - the world is hot; forward motion), EXPLORE (selection is safe - orbit, inspect, Navigator; standing still), BACKTRACK (step back through the lineage - F006 promoted from convenience utility to core verb). Forward, still, back: the complete verb set of genetic design. When implemented, the triad becomes the panel's organising principle - the mode you are in sits at the top and everything arranges beneath it. Naming candidates considered and rejected: Play/Pause (transport metaphor is right but 'Play' implies time passing without the user's click - GAAD never breeds on its own).

P046 VisionMoment02 Jul 2026

GRAL is grounded in a real, completed, lived garden room project

Confirmed by Miles: GRAL (Garden Room) is grounded in a real, completed garden room project that Miles designed and constructed himself. It is built and in active use as a workspace for Miles and his wife. Every significant decision can be traced through design, construction and occupation - the project carries design intent, compromises, client feedback, neighbour discussions, construction experience, lived experience and post-occupancy reflection, evidence that extends well beyond geometry alone. Full source documentation (drawings, decisions, feedback) has not yet been logged into GAAD's records as structured data; this entry captures the confirmed narrative ahead of that detail arriving, so nothing rests only on chat history.

P047 VisionMoment02 Jul 2026

The platform finds its grammar: Evolve / Explore / Backtrack

In a single feedback session, one-click breeding (Rapid Evolution, F022), the pause-to-inspect rhythm, and Backtrack (F006) resolved into a three-verb grammar for the whole platform - Evolve, Explore, Backtrack: forward, still, back. Named by Miles ('Evolve / Explore / Backtrack (:-) (:-)') after his own usage narrative: click, click, click, click - pause - orbit, inspect - resume - click, click - Navigator - explore. The moment carries a thirty-two-year echo: with the fast geometry (D106) making generations build at the speed of clicking, Miles's verdict was that the 1994 system could never do this.

F021 openToolingFeature02 Jul 2026

Panel usage logging - capture GAAD operator clicks

Proposed by Miles during 0_107 testing: log every GAAD panel operator click. Two values: (1) crash forensics - Blender's own crash log only records bpy.ops calls, and the v0_33/v0_66 changes made GAAD quieter in that log (silent mesh builds, fewer ops); a GAAD-side event log flushed to disk per click survives a crash and gives the exact operator sequence and timing leading up to it, which today's T006 diagnosis lacked; (2) usage feedback - click counts per operator over real use show which panel commands earn their place, giving evidence for future panel decisions (decisions-become-data applied to the panel itself). Sketch agreed in discussion: append-only JSONL at Logs/gaad_usage_log.jsonl (new root folder, deliberately survives Reset); per event: timestamp, operator id + label, scene, grid size, generation, object count, result, duration ms; implemented as one shared wrapper applied to all GAAD operators at registration (no per-operator churn, no panel/UI change, so no conflict with the frozen mock-up D100); local only; a later generator can render usage-stats HTML into the existing pipeline. Open question flagged: visibility - always-on with no UI (simplest) vs a SETTINGS toggle (honest, but a panel addition that touches the D100 freeze). Claude's lean: always-on now, toggle when the panel next unfreezes.

F022 in buildInteractionFeature02 Jul 2026

Rapid Evolution - selection IS the breeding act

Proposed by Miles (open, no action today - his explicit call): in Rapid Evolution mode, picking any object on a stage breeds the next generation from it immediately - no separate Next Generation click. Pick and breed collapse into one gesture; with the fast geometry (D106) a rebuild lands well under a second, so generations run at the speed of clicking. Miles: '1994 could never do this.' His usage narrative, preserved as design input: click, click, click, click - pause (panel control) - click object, spin around, inspect - then resume - click, click - Navigator - explore. Design sketch agreed in discussion: a MODE, not a replacement (toggle; classic two-step remains available); guarded trigger (only variant/stage geometry counts - labels, camera, furniture ignored); busy-lock ignores clicks while a build runs; technically a msgbus subscription on the active object deferring the build to a timer tick, which keeps the T006 safe-state pattern intact inside an event callback. The trap named and accepted for design: every click becomes a commitment - a stray inspection click replaces the generation on stage (JSON records everything, but mid-flow disruption is real), which is why Backtrack (F006) is the natural companion. Mode naming settled at the direction level as Evolve / Explore (with Backtrack the third verb) - see D110/P047; Play/Pause rejected since GAAD never breeds without the user's click. BUILT v1 as 'Rapid Stage Select' 03 Jul 2026 (addon v0_79 + generator v0_40, D119): additive toggle under Next Generation, msgbus watcher firing the existing operator, viewpoint preserved between breeds. First test verdict gold (P048); robustness gap after Navigator/Reset open as T015.

T008 highclosedAddonTicket02 Jul 2026

v0_66 regression: Next Generation always reports 'No Stage selected'

Fixed in addon v0_67 + generator v0_34 (bundle 0_108). Champion pick handed over as scene-property data.

T009 lowclosedAddonTicket02 Jul 2026

STATUS object count shows 0 with joined variants (v0_33+)

Fixed in addon v0_67 (bundle 0_108).

T010 mediumopenPerformanceTicket02 Jul 2026

Generator -> Navigator switch takes ~7 seconds

Fix shipped in tree v0_6 (bundle 0_109) - joined-mesh lineage build. Awaiting timing retest.

Q021 milesQuote02 Jul 2026

"I only need to pick an object to go to next gen... This will make it super fast going through generations - 1994 could never do this. Now you have new mesh I hope it will fly?"

Miles proposing Rapid Evolution (F022) during 0_107/0_108 testing, the day after the fast geometry (D106) shipped. Selection stops being 'nominate a champion' and becomes the breeding act itself - one-click generations at the speed the 1994 system could never reach.

Q022 milesQuote02 Jul 2026

"Evolve / Explore / Backtrack (:-) (:-)"

Miles naming the platform's three-verb grammar - forward, still, back - in four words and two smileys, ending a naming discussion (Play/Pause rejected: GAAD never breeds without your click). Sometimes the record should keep the joy in. Logged as the future organising principle of the panel (D110).