labUI.git/core/app_settings.py, branch main

Add PyInstaller packaging and tufup-based auto-update pipeline

2026-07-31T21:52:28Z

Full pipeline, verified end-to-end against the real installed tufup 0.10.0 API (initial docs/summaries turned out inaccurate in places — e.g. the apply method is download_and_apply_update, not update; confirmed by inspecting installed package source directly rather than trusting docs alone): - core/version.py: single-source app version constant. - labdaq.spec: PyInstaller onedir build (must be onedir, not onefile — tufup replaces individual files in the install dir on update). Bundles ui/*.qss, plugins/ (needed for runtime plugin discovery), and repository/metadata/root.json once repo_init.py has produced one. Built and smoke-tested: the frozen exe launches and stays running. - scripts/release/{repo_init,repo_release}.py: maintainer-run release tooling using tufup.repo.Repository, manual local signing (keys never touch CI). Both actually run end-to-end during development of this feature against a real build, not just written and assumed correct. Longer expiration_days than tufup-example's CI-oriented defaults (targets/snapshot/timestamp 90d instead of 7d/7d/1d), since we're signing manually, not on an automated daily schedule — see scripts/release/README.md for the re-signing cadence this still requires even between releases. - core/updater.py: thin Client wrapper. Refuses to run outside a frozen build (getattr(sys, "frozen", False)) since there's no installed bundle for tufup to update in `python main.py` dev mode. Bootstraps the bundled root.json into the metadata cache dir on first run — tuf.ngclient.Updater loads root.json from local disk on construction, it does not fetch it remotely by design (the root of trust can't come from the same server being verified). - core/app_settings.py: factored out app_data_dir() (was inline in _settings_path()) so the updater's metadata/target cache dirs live in the same per-user location as settings.json, deliberately outside the install directory an update can replace/move. - Settings > General: version display + "Check for Updates" button, manual-only per discussion (no silent background network calls or surprise restarts for a lab-instrument-control app). Metadata/targets are hosted on this repo's "updates" GitHub Release — a fixed tag, not a normal per-version tag, because TUF's top-level metadata needs a stable URL across app versions. No such GitHub-Releases- hosting example exists in tufup or tufup-example; verified this by fetching tufup-example's actual GitHub Actions workflow file directly after a web search wrongly suggested one existed — the design here is ours, not copied from upstream. Not yet done, deliberately left for the user: running repo_init.py for real (generates production signing keys), and creating the actual "updates" GitHub Release. Both are irreversible-ish, security-sensitive, externally-visible actions outside what should happen without the user directly driving them. Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 5

Add Developer Mode setting, Debug window, and gate simulate behind it

2026-07-29T19:28:24Z

New Settings > General > "Developer mode" checkbox (default on, so this repo's simulate-by-default workflow is unaffected out of the box) persisted through the existing core/app_settings.py load/save functions. Exposed to code that can't easily receive the settings dict via core.app_settings.is_developer_mode()/set_developer_mode(), a small in-memory cache MainWindow keeps in sync whenever settings are loaded or applied. Debug window (ui/windows/debug_window.py): minimal first pass per the plan — a live console. core/debug_log.py tees stdout/stderr into a ring buffer + Qt signal (installed once in main.py, before anything prints), so the window shows everything printed since app start, including from background poll threads, not just what's printed while it happens to be open. Its toolbar button is hidden unless developer mode is on. Simulate gating: every device's Simulation Mode checkbox/dropdown is now hidden when developer mode is off — ui/add_device_dialog.py (also covers the motion_capture camera panel, which shares this same checkbox rather than having its own), and the per-device config widgets in analog_input.py, arduino_device.py, digital_io.py, nidaqmx_device.py, serial_device.py. Hiding rather than force-clearing an already-simulating device's state — an existing simulated device keeps working if developer mode is turned off later; the option is just not offered again until it's back on. Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 5

Persist settings per-computer; add Reset to Defaults in General tab

2026-06-03T18:53:35Z

- New core/app_settings.py: load/save settings.json to platform config dir (Windows: %APPDATA%, Linux: ~/.config, macOS: ~/Library/Application Support) - MainWindow loads saved settings on startup, saves on every Apply & Close - Settings survive profile switches and app restarts independently of profiles - Settings > General: Reset to Defaults button with QMessageBox confirmation Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.6