yaze/docs/z3ed/CONSOLIDATION_SUMMARY.md

z3ed Documentation Consolidation Summary

Date: October 2, 2025
Action: Documentation reorganization and consolidation
Status: Complete

What Changed

The z3ed documentation has been reorganized into a clean, hierarchical structure that eliminates redundancy and establishes clear sources of truth.

Before Consolidation

• 15 active documents in main folder (many overlapping)
• 19 archived documents mixed with current docs
• No clear hierarchy or "source of truth"
• Redundant information across multiple files
• Difficult to find current vs historical information

After Consolidation

• 3 core documents (design, reference, implementation plan)
• 3 quick start guides (focused and practical)
• 4 status documents (clear current state)
• 19 archived documents (properly organized with README)
• Clear documentation hierarchy
• Single source of truth for each topic

Core Documentation Structure

1. Source of Truth Documents

E6-z3ed-cli-design.md (Updated)

Purpose: Architecture and design decisions
Content:

• System overview and current state (Oct 2025)
• Design goals and architectural decisions
• Command structure
• Agentic workflow framework
• TUI architecture
• Implementation roadmap phases

Role: PRIMARY SOURCE OF TRUTH for design decisions

E6-z3ed-reference.md (New - Comprehensive)

Purpose: Technical reference for developers
Content Consolidated From:

• IT-01-QUICKSTART.md (test harness details)
• AGENT_TEST_QUICKREF.md (CLI command details)
• IT-01-grpc-evaluation.md (gRPC technical details)
• GRPC_TEST_SUCCESS.md (implementation details)
• IT-01-PHASE3-COMPLETE.md (API learnings)
• Various troubleshooting docs

Sections:

1. Architecture Overview - Component diagrams and data flow
2. Command Reference - Complete CLI command documentation
3. Implementation Guide - Building, configuring, deploying
4. Testing & Validation - E2E tests, manual workflows, benchmarks
5. Development Workflows - Adding commands, RPCs, test patterns
6. Troubleshooting - Common issues and solutions
7. API Reference - RPC schemas, resource catalog format
8. Platform Notes - macOS/Windows/Linux specifics

Role: ONE-STOP TECHNICAL REFERENCE for all implementation details

E6-z3ed-implementation-plan.md (Maintained)

Purpose: Project tracker and task backlog
Content:

• Current priorities with time estimates
• Task backlog with status tracking
• Implementation phases (completed/active/planned)
• Known issues and blockers
• Timeline and milestones

Role: LIVING TRACKER for development progress

2. Quick Start Guides (Retained)

These focused guides provide fast onboarding for specific tasks:

• IT-01-QUICKSTART.md - Test harness quick start
• AGENT_TEST_QUICKREF.md - CLI agent test command reference
• E2E_VALIDATION_GUIDE.md - Complete validation checklist

Why Retained: Quick reference cards for common workflows

3. Status Documents (Retained)

Current status and planning documents:

• README.md - Documentation index and project overview
• PROJECT_STATUS_OCT2.md - Current project status snapshot
• NEXT_PRIORITIES_OCT2.md - Detailed next steps with implementation guides
• WORK_SUMMARY_OCT2.md - Recent accomplishments

Why Retained: Track current state and progress

4. Archive (Organized)

All historical and superseded documents moved to archive/ with explanatory README:

Technical Investigations:

• IT-01-grpc-evaluation.md
• GRPC_TECHNICAL_NOTES.md
• DEPENDENCY_MANAGEMENT.md

Implementation Progress Logs:

• GRPC_TEST_SUCCESS.md
• IT-01-PHASE2-IMPLEMENTATION-GUIDE.md
• IT-01-PHASE3-COMPLETE.md
• IT-01-getting-started-grpc.md

Session Summaries:

• STATE_SUMMARY_2025-10-01.md
• STATE_SUMMARY_2025-10-02.md
• SESSION_SUMMARY_OCT2.md
• SESSION_SUMMARY_OCT2_EVENING.md
• PROGRESS_SUMMARY_2025-10-02.md

Implementation Status Reports:

• IMPLEMENTATION_PROGRESS_OCT2.md
• IMPLEMENTATION_STATUS_OCT2_PM.md
• RUNTIME_FIX_COMPLETE_OCT2.md
• QUICK_TEST_RUNTIME_FIX.md

Planning & Organization:

• DOCUMENTATION_CONSOLIDATION_OCT2.md
• DOCUMENTATION_REVIEW_OCT2.md
• FILE_MODIFICATION_CHECKLIST.md

Information Mapping

Where Did Content Go?

Original Document(s)	New Location	Notes
IT-01-grpc-evaluation.md	E6-z3ed-reference.md § Implementation Guide	gRPC setup, Windows notes
GRPC_TEST_SUCCESS.md	E6-z3ed-reference.md § Testing & Validation	Phase 1 completion details
IT-01-PHASE2-IMPLEMENTATION-GUIDE.md	archive/	Historical - covered in reference
IT-01-PHASE3-COMPLETE.md	E6-z3ed-reference.md § API Reference	ImGuiTestEngine API learnings
GRPC_TECHNICAL_NOTES.md	E6-z3ed-reference.md § Platform Notes	Technical quirks and workarounds
Various troubleshooting docs	E6-z3ed-reference.md § Troubleshooting	Consolidated common issues
Session summaries	archive/	Historical snapshots
Status reports	archive/	Superseded by PROJECT_STATUS_OCT2.md

Key Content Areas in E6-z3ed-reference.md

Architecture Overview (New comprehensive diagrams):

• System component stack
• Proposal lifecycle flow
• Data flow diagrams

Command Reference (Consolidated from multiple sources):

• All agent commands with examples
• ROM, palette, overworld, dungeon commands
• Complete option documentation

Implementation Guide (From multiple scattered docs):

• Building with gRPC (macOS, Windows, Linux)
• Starting test harness
• Testing with grpcurl
• Platform-specific setup

Testing & Validation (Consolidated from E2E guide + others):

• E2E test script
• Manual workflow testing
• Performance benchmarks

Development Workflows (New section):

• Adding new commands
• Adding new RPCs
• Adding test patterns
• Clear step-by-step guides

Troubleshooting (Consolidated from ~5 docs):

• Common issues
• Debug mode
• Platform quirks
• Solutions and workarounds

API Reference (Consolidated proto docs):

• RPC service definitions
• Request/Response schemas
• Resource catalog format
• Example payloads

Platform Notes (From various sources):

• macOS status and setup
• Windows status and caveats
• Linux expectations
• Detailed platform differences

Benefits of New Structure

For New Contributors

Before: "Where do I start? What's current?"
After: Read README → E6-z3ed-cli-design.md → E6-z3ed-reference.md → Done

For Developers

Before: Search 10+ docs for command syntax
After: E6-z3ed-reference.md § Command Reference → Find answer in one place

For AI/LLM Integration

Before: No clear machine-readable specs
After: docs/api/z3ed-resources.yaml + E6-z3ed-reference.md § API Reference

For Project Management

Before: Status scattered across session summaries
After: PROJECT_STATUS_OCT2.md + E6-z3ed-implementation-plan.md

For Troubleshooting

Before: Search multiple docs for error messages
After: E6-z3ed-reference.md § Troubleshooting → All issues in one place

Document Roles

Document	Role	Update Frequency
E6-z3ed-cli-design.md	Source of truth for design	When architecture changes
E6-z3ed-reference.md	Technical reference	When APIs/commands change
E6-z3ed-implementation-plan.md	Project tracker	Weekly/as needed
README.md	Documentation index	When structure changes
IT-01-QUICKSTART.md	Quick reference card	Rarely (stable API)
AGENT_TEST_QUICKREF.md	Quick reference card	When patterns added
E2E_VALIDATION_GUIDE.md	Testing checklist	When workflow changes
PROJECT_STATUS_OCT2.md	Status snapshot	Weekly
NEXT_PRIORITIES_OCT2.md	Task breakdown	Daily/weekly
Archive docs	Historical reference	Never (frozen)

Maintenance Guidelines

When to Update Each Document

E6-z3ed-cli-design.md: Update when:

• Architecture changes (new components, flow changes)
• Design decisions made (document rationale)
• Major features completed (update "Current State")

E6-z3ed-reference.md: Update when:

• New commands added
• RPC methods added/changed
• API schemas change
• New troubleshooting issues discovered
• Platform-specific notes needed

E6-z3ed-implementation-plan.md: Update when:

• Tasks completed (mark ✅)
• New tasks identified (add to backlog)
• Priorities change
• Milestones reached

Quick Start Guides: Update when:

• Commands/flags change
• New workflows added
• Better examples found

Status Documents: Update on:

• Weekly basis (PROJECT_STATUS_OCT2.md)
• When priorities shift (NEXT_PRIORITIES_OCT2.md)
• After work sessions (WORK_SUMMARY_OCT2.md)

Avoiding Future Bloat

Don't create new docs for:

• Session summaries → Use git commit messages or issue comments
• Progress reports → Update E6-z3ed-implementation-plan.md
• Technical investigations → Add to E6-z3ed-reference.md § relevant section
• Status snapshots → Update PROJECT_STATUS_OCT2.md

Do create new docs for:

• Major new subsystems (e.g., E6-policy-framework.md if complex)
• Platform-specific guides (e.g., E6-windows-setup.md if needed)
• Specialized workflows (e.g., E6-ci-cd-integration.md)

Then consolidate into main docs after 1-2 weeks once content stabilizes.

Next Steps

1. Review: Check that no critical information was lost in consolidation
2. Test: Try following guides as a new user would
3. Iterate: Update based on feedback
4. Maintain: Keep docs current as code evolves

Verification Checklist

• All technical content from archived docs is in E6-z3ed-reference.md
• Design decisions from multiple docs consolidated in E6-z3ed-cli-design.md
• Clear hierarchy established (design → reference → implementation plan)
• Archive folder has explanatory README
• Main README updated with new structure
• Quick start guides retained for fast onboarding
• Status documents reflect current state
• No orphaned references to deleted/moved docs

Questions?

If you can't find something:

1. Check E6-z3ed-reference.md first - Most technical info is here
2. Check E6-z3ed-cli-design.md - For design rationale
3. Check archive/ - For historical context
4. Check git history - Content may have evolved

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Consolidation by: GitHub Copilot
Reviewed by: @scawful
Status: Complete - Ready for team review