HiStruct developer zone

Turn engineering judgement into executable components.

D-Zone is the public workbench for FCS, FCC packages, validation loops, visual outputs, and agent-readable examples. It is for people who need parametric civil-engineering knowledge to run, render, and explain itself.

Start in 5 minutes Open visual example Browse knowledge base

Current shape Static, searchable, Markdown-first

HTML for people, raw Markdown and JSON for agents.

Proof count 53 tested gists

Small runnable examples across language, geometry, FEM, steel, and reporting.

First public task Rebar lintel challenge

A narrow but real component brief with inputs, drawing, report, and validation notes.

Choose Your Door

New here Run the smallest useful loop

Read one concept, open one FCS file, validate one value, then move to a visual example.

Show me output Examples with source and scenes

Start with a vertex, then inspect a parametric dining scene with reusable components and material layers.

I want to build HiStruct Code Quest

Language notes, platform patterns, quickstarts, and recurring mistakes for component authors.

I am an agent Machine-readable entry points

Crawl roots, terms, rules for generated advice, and the JSON index for navigation.

The Loop

1 Describe

Write reusable FCS logic: geometry, parameters, formulas, reports, and outputs.

2 Configure

Bind PVC values from users, APIs, tools, or future assisted editing workflows.

3 Evaluate

Run FLI or Booster, capture expected values, reports, and validation artifacts.

4 Inspect

Render HiScene, compare outputs, record mistakes, and tighten the example.

Proof Shelf

Artifact	Why it matters
Golden Example: Vertex	Smallest technical proof that FCS source and expected output are linked.
Snow White Dining	Visual multi-file component assembly with `gclass`, `gblock`, transforms, materials, and HiScene output.
Gist-Based Documentation	Tested mini-project inventory with 53 created and tested examples, plus the next extraction waves.
Material Visualization	Practical viewer-facing material guidance for examples that should look understandable, not only compute.
FCC Input Item Array	PVC array schema details for real configurator input pages.
Build a Component and Its Easy Client	Verified end to end: Booster, FLI, inputs, palette, client API and the time machine.
Easy Clients: Host and Module	How a hand-written client is split so it always matches the FCS commit.
Direct Edit State Machines	Advanced GUI tool behavior captured from the platform wiki migration.

Operating Rules

Examples must link source, expected output, and validation notes whenever possible.
Drafts are allowed, but they must be marked as drafts.
FCS template logic and PVC instance state must stay distinct.
Visual examples should include HiScene or a clear route to the viewer.
Agent-facing pages must avoid invented endpoints and point back to checked sources.

Core Vocabulary

FCS: FemCAD Script: reusable component logic, geometry, formulas, reports, and outputs.
PVC: Parameter Value Collection: editable per-instance state.
FCC: FemCAD Component folder: the deployable component package.
FLI: Command-line interpreter used to run and validate FCS.
Booster: Compute node that evaluates HiStruct jobs.
HiScene: JSON scene format consumed by the viewer.
Golem: Planned companion for opening examples, changing parameters, and testing the loop.

Next Work Worth Doing

The first public challenge is a reinforced-concrete rectangular beam or lintel component: choose reinforcement bars, produce a clear report, and include a useful picture. Read the draft challenge and treat it as the first external-developer task: Rebar Lintel Challenge.

For the strategic framing, read Positioning. For local development, start with Local Preview.