LEDMatrix/docs/README.md

LEDMatrix Documentation

This directory contains guides, references, and architectural notes for the LEDMatrix project. If you are setting up a Pi for the first time, start with the project root README — it covers hardware, OS imaging, and the one-shot installer. The pages here go deeper.

I'm a new user

1. GETTING_STARTED.md — first-time setup walkthrough
2. WEB_INTERFACE_GUIDE.md — using the web UI
3. PLUGIN_STORE_GUIDE.md — installing and managing plugins
4. WIFI_NETWORK_SETUP.md — WiFi and AP-mode setup
5. TROUBLESHOOTING.md — common issues and fixes
6. SSH_UNAVAILABLE_AFTER_INSTALL.md — recovering SSH after install
7. CONFIG_DEBUGGING.md — diagnosing config problems
8. LOW_MEMORY_BOARDS.md — Pi Zero 2 W / 3B+ / 1GB Pi 4 memory limits

I want to write a plugin

Start here:

1. PLUGIN_DEVELOPMENT_GUIDE.md — end-to-end workflow
2. PLUGIN_QUICK_REFERENCE.md — cheat sheet
3. PLUGIN_API_REFERENCE.md — display, cache, and plugin-manager APIs
4. PLUGIN_ERROR_HANDLING.md — error-handling patterns
5. DEV_PREVIEW.md — preview plugins on your dev machine without a Pi
6. EMULATOR_SETUP_GUIDE.md — running the matrix emulator

Going deeper:

• ADVANCED_PLUGIN_DEVELOPMENT.md — advanced patterns
• PLUGIN_ARCHITECTURE_SPEC.md — original plugin-system design spec (historical; see its banner for what has drifted)
• PLUGIN_DEPENDENCY_GUIDE.md / PLUGIN_DEPENDENCY_TROUBLESHOOTING.md
• PLUGIN_WEB_UI_ACTIONS.md (+ example JSON)
• PLUGIN_CUSTOM_ICONS.md
• PLUGIN_REGISTRY_SETUP_GUIDE.md (+ registry template)
• STARLARK_APPS_GUIDE.md — Starlark-based mini-apps
• widget-guide.md — widget development
• ADAPTIVE_LAYOUT.md — render legibly on any panel size (opt-in font/layout scaling)
• plugin-safety-harness.md — test a plugin across every screen and matrix size

Configuring plugins

• PLUGIN_CONFIG_QUICK_START.md — minimal config you need
• PLUGIN_CONFIGURATION_GUIDE.md — schema design
• PLUGIN_ELEMENT_STYLING.md — let users restyle, move, hide and scale individual elements (per display mode, if you have them)
• PLUGIN_CONFIGURATION_TABS.md — multi-tab UI configs
• PLUGIN_CONFIG_ARCHITECTURE.md — how the config system works
• PLUGIN_CONFIG_CORE_PROPERTIES.md — properties every plugin honors

Advanced features

• ADVANCED_FEATURES.md — Vegas scroll, on-demand display, cache management, background services, permissions
• FONT_MANAGER.md — font system
• SKIN_SYSTEM.md — skin architecture for sports scoreboards
• CREATING_SKINS.md — writing and validating a skin

Reference

• CONFIG_REFERENCE.md — every key in config.json and config_secrets.json
• REST_API_REFERENCE.md — all web-interface HTTP endpoints
• PLUGIN_API_REFERENCE.md — Python APIs available to plugins
• DEVELOPER_QUICK_REFERENCE.md — common dev tasks
• PLUGIN_IMPLEMENTATION_SUMMARY.md — what the plugin system actually does

Contributing to LEDMatrix itself

• DEVELOPMENT.md — environment setup
• HOW_TO_RUN_TESTS.md — running the test suite
• MULTI_ROOT_WORKSPACE_SETUP.md — multi-repo workspace
• MIGRATION_GUIDE.md — breaking changes between releases
• SPORTS_UNIFICATION.md — how the sports scoreboard base classes are organized

Archive

docs/archive/ holds older guides that have been superseded or describe features that have been removed. They are kept for historical context and git history but should not be relied on.

Contributing to the docs

• Markdown only, professional tone, minimal emoji.
• Prefer adding to an existing page over creating a new one. If you add a new page, link it from this index in the section it belongs to.
• If a page becomes obsolete, move it to docs/archive/ rather than deleting it, so links don't rot.
• Keep examples runnable — paths, commands, and config keys here should match what's actually in the repo.