a-la-karte/HACKING.md

Hacking A-La-Karte

This document is intended for contributors who want to build, run, and debug A-La-Karte locally.

Build

Configure

cmake -B build -S . -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug

Build

cmake --build build

Run from the build directory

./build/bin/alakarte

Code Map

• src/main.cpp
  • Application entry point, KAboutData, and QML engine setup.
• src/app.*
  • Singleton exposed to QML. Owns GameModel, GameLauncher, Config, and SteamGridDB.
• src/game.*
  • In-memory game object + JSON serialization.
• src/gamemodel.*, src/gamesortfiltermodel.*
  • Model + filtering/sorting used by the UI.
• src/*importer.*
  • Importers for different sources (Steam, Lutris, Heroic, Bottles, Desktop Entries, Flatpak, etc.).
• src/gamelauncher.*
  • Launches games and records last played on launch.
• src/qml/
  • Kirigami/Qt Quick UI.

Repeatable Local Smoke Tests (No real library required)

Run with isolated XDG dirs

This avoids touching your real config and library:

export XDG_CONFIG_HOME="$(mktemp -d)"
export XDG_DATA_HOME="$(mktemp -d)"
./build/bin/alakarte

Desktop Entries importer fixture

You can create a temporary desktop entry under the isolated $XDG_DATA_HOME:

mkdir -p "$XDG_DATA_HOME/applications"
cat > "$XDG_DATA_HOME/applications/alakarte-test-game.desktop" <<'EOF'
[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Name=A-La-Karte Test Game
Exec=sh -lc 'sleep 1'
Icon=applications-games
Categories=Game;
EOF

Then:

• Use the import sheet and run the Desktop Entries import.
• Verify the entry appears and launches.
• Verify Last played updates after launch.

Manual entry / launcher smoke test

• Create a manual entry with a harmless command, e.g. sh -lc 'sleep 2'.
• Launch it.
• Confirm the app stays responsive and the game transitions out of the running state.

Notes

• SteamGridDB cover fetching requires an API key.
• KRunner integration and gamepad navigation are optional at build time (depending on available dependencies).