wallet/docs/rootDocs/README.md

---
title: >-
    README
---
[pre alpha documentation (mostly a wish list)](docs/index.htm)

[copyright © and license](./license.txt)

pre-requisite, Pandoc to build the html documentation from the markdown files.

Windows pre-requisites:  Visual Studio and git-bash

To obtain the source code from which the project can be built,
including this README, from the bash command line (git-bash in windows).

```bash2
git clone --recurse-submodules missing url
```

To configure and build the required third party libraries in windows,
then build the program and run unit test for the first time, execute

```bat
.\winConfigure.bat
```

from the windows power shell or command window.

Should the libraries change in a subsequent `pull `  you will need

```bat
git pull
rem you get a status message indicating libraries have been updated.
git pull -force --recurse-submodules
winConfigure.bat
```

in order to rebuild the libraries.

The `--force` is necessary, because `winConfigure.bat` changes
many of the library files, and therefore git will abort the pull.

[cryptographic software is under attack]:./docs/contributor_code_of_conduct.html#code-will-be-cryptographically-signed
"Contributor Code of Conduct"
{target="_blank"}

The winConfigure script builds everything, including the documents, but
takes a while.  Normally when you make changes to the source code you
should rebuild just the program, using `wallet.sln` on windows.
To rebuild the documents after editing them, `docs/mkdocs.sh`

winConfigure.bat also configures the repository you just created to
to use `.gitconfig` in the repository, causing git to to implement
GPG signed commits -- because [cryptographic software is under attack]
from NSA entryists and shills, who seek to introduce backdoors.

This may be inconvenient if you do not have `gpg` installed and set up.

`.gitconfig` adds several git aliases:

1. `git lg` to display the gpg trust information for the last few commits.
   For this to be useful you need to import the repository public key
   `public_key.gpg` into gpg, and locally sign that key.
1. `git graph` to graph the commit tree with signing status
1. `git alias` to display the git aliases.

```bash
# To verify that the signature on future pulls is
# unchanged.
gpg --import  public_key.gpg
gpg --lsign 096EAE16FB8D62E75D243199BC4482E49673711C
```

We ignore the Gpg Web of Trust model and instead use the Zooko
identity model.

We use Gpg signatures to verify that remote repository code
is coming from an unchanging entity, not for Gpg Web of Trust.  Web
of Trust is too complicated and too user hostile to be workable or safe.

Never --sign any Gpg key related to this project.  --lsign it.

Never check any Gpg key related to this project against a public
gpg key repository. It should not be there.

Never use any email address on a gpg key related to this project
unless it is only used for project purposes, or a fake email, or the
email of an enemy.  We don't want Gpg used to link different email
addresses as owned by the same entity, and we don't want email
addresses used to link people to the project, because those
identities would then come under state and quasi state pressure.

To build the documentation in its intended html form from the markdown
files, execute the bash script file `docs/mkdocs.sh`, in an environment where
`pandoc` is available. On Windows, if Git Bash and Pandoc
has been installed, you should be able to run this shell
file in bash by double clicking on it.

[Pre alpha release](./RELEASE_NOTES.html), which means it does not yet work even well
enough for it to be apparent what it would do if it did work.