RUSTLE/Development Plan ucxl Browser using Rust and Tauri.md

Here’s a detailed development plan for a Rust + Tauri-based UXCL Browser (uxcl-browser), focused on delivering a solid MVP and a clean long-term path. It covers architecture, scope, milestones, and concrete tasks you can hand to a small team.

Goals, scope, and success criteria
MVP scope (first 12 weeks, adjustable):
A Rust core that implements UCXL protocol interactions (parsing UCXL URIs, envelope operations like GET/PUT/POST/ANNOUNCE/DELETE, basic envelope history/store).
A Tauri-based UI shell with a web frontend (React or Svelte) that talks to the Rust core via a secure IPC bridge.
Core UI screens: Dashboard (overview), Envelope Viewer (JSON/details), Action Toolbar (GET/PUT/POST/ANNOUNCE/DELETE), and Logs/Console.
Local storage for envelopes/history (in-memory with optional on-disk persistence for MVP).
Linux-native look-and-feel with decent cross-distro packaging support (AppImage and Flatpak).
Basic security posture: sandboxed UI, strict IPC surface, input validation, CSP.
Non-goals for MVP:
Cross-platform parity in visuals beyond Linux initially (Windows/macOS can come later).
Advanced encryption or hardware security modules in MVP (focus on solid core and secure IPC first).
Success metrics:
Buildable AppImage/Flatpak artefacts for Pop!_OS within 12 weeks.
Sub-1-second IPC latency for typical UCXL commands in a dev machine.
Positive developer feedback on code structure and testability.
Passes a basic security hygiene review (no untrusted code paths, input validation, minimal privileges).
Reference architecture
Core rust crate (uxcl-core)
Responsibilities: UCXL URI parsing, envelope data models, envelope operations (GET/PUT/POST/ANNOUNCE/DELETE), in-memory envelope store, simple transport layer (mock or real UCXI interactions), async runtime.
Public API example (high level):
UCxlEnvelope, UCxlCommand (enum of GET/PUT/POST/ANNOUNCE/DELETE), UCxlResult
Async functions: execute_command(cmd, params) -> Result<Response, UCxlError>
EnvelopeStore trait with CRUD methods
UI layer (Tauri app)
Frontend: Single-page app (SPA) built with React or Svelte, TypeScript.
IPC: Define a small, versioned set of commands sent from UI to Rust core, with strict input/output schemas (e.g., UiToCoreCommand and CoreToUiResponse).
UI panels:
Address bar for UCXL URIs
Envelope list/history panel
Envelope detail viewer (formatted JSON and raw)
Action bar for GET/PUT/POST/ANNOUNCE/DELETE
Logs panel
Security: Tauri sandbox, content security policy, only permit necessary APIs; frontend code isolated from direct filesystem/network access.
Data flow
UI issues commands via IPC to uxcl-core
Core performs the operation and responds with structured data
UI renders results and appends to logs
Packaging and deployment
Linux-first packaging: AppImage and Flatpak (target Pop!_OS), with optional Debian packaging later
CI builds for Linux, with artifact publishing
Tech stack decisions
Core: Rust (stable, safe, fast)
Async runtime: Tokio (or async-std if you prefer; Tokio is more common and robust)
Data formats: serde with serde_json for envelope payloads
Networking/IO: reqwest or hyper for any local/remote UCXI endpoints
Persistence: in-memory store initially; optional on-disk store via sled or a simple JSON store
UI: Tauri with a React or Svelte frontend
Web framework: React (with Vite) or SvelteKit
Styling: CSS variables, lib/adwaita color tokens if you want a GNOME-like look
Build and packaging
Rust toolchain (rustup), cargo workspaces
Tauri CLI for building the native app
AppImage and Flatpak for Linux packaging
Testing
Unit tests in Rust for core logic
Integration tests for IPC surface
UI end-to-end tests (optional; can start with Playwright or Cypress in a later phase)
Repository layout (starter)
UXCL workspace
uxcl-core/ (Rust library)
Cargo.toml
src/lib.rs (core API)
src/envelope.rs (data models)
src/store.rs (in-memory store)
uxcl-tauri-app/ (Tauri project)
src-tauri/Cargo.toml (backend integration)
src-tauri/tauri.conf.json
src/ (frontend assets built by Vite)
uxcl-workspace Cargo.toml (workspace members)
Simple example:
uxcl-core = lib
uxcl-tauri-app = bin (tauri app) that depends on uxcl-core
MVP features by milestone (12–16 weeks plan) Milestone 1 — Foundation (weeks 1–2)
Setup repository, CI pipeline, and coding standards
Implement uxcl-core skeleton
UCXL URI parsing scaffold
Basic Envelope data model and in-memory store
Async command handling scaffold
Initialize uxcl-tauri-app with a minimal Tauri scaffold
Establish IPC contract (UiToCoreCommand, CoreToUiResponse) Deliverables:
Working monorepo skeleton
Basic unit tests for core parsing and envelope data model
Milestone 2 — Core functionality (weeks 3–5)

Implement core operations: GET, PUT, POST, ANNOUNCE, DELETE
Wire up in-memory envelope store with simple persistence mock
IPC: implement a sample command round-trip (UI sends GET, core returns envelope)
Basic error handling and validation Deliverables:
Core library with full command surface
Basic IPC integration test
README with API surface
Milestone 3 — UI scaffolding and MVP UI (weeks 4–7)

Build out MVP UI screens
Address bar, envelope list/history, envelope viewer, action toolbar, logs
Integrate frontend with IPC
Implement minimal UX flows for common tasks
Add CSP and sandbox configuration Deliverables:
Functional UI shell with IPC to core
Wireframes and a simple UI kit
Initial accessibility considerations (keyboard navigation, contrast)
Milestone 4 — UX polish and security hardening (weeks 6–9)

Improve UI/UX: responsive layout, polishing, error messages
Harden security: input validation, restricted IPC surface, secure defaults
Add basic unit/integration tests for IPC layer
Implement simple local persistence strategy (optional on-disk store) Deliverables:
Hardened UI and IPC
Documentation on security model and data flow
Milestone 5 — Packaging, CI, and testing (weeks 9–12)

Set up Linux packaging: AppImage and Flatpak pipelines
Implement end-to-end tests (UI or IPC-level tests)
Add cargo-audit/clippy/rustfmt checks in CI
Prepare release notes and developer onboarding docs Deliverables:
Automated packaging artifacts for Linux
CI that builds, tests, and packages on push
Milestone 6 — MVP release candidate and feedback loop (weeks 12–16)

Polish features based on internal feedback
Add simple user settings (storage location, log level)
Prepare for beta testing, gather feedback, plan iterations Deliverables:
Release candidate build for Linux
Feedback channel and roadmap for next iteration
UI/UX design approach
Focus on clarity and minimalism:
Consistent typography and spacing
Clear status indicators for envelope operations
Console/logs pane with filtering and search
Screens concept
Dashboard: quick overview of recent envelopes and status
Envelopes: list with sortable columns (id, status, timestamp)
Envelope detail: JSON viewer with pretty-print toggle; raw view
Actions: clearly labeled GET/PUT/POST/ANNOUNCE/DELETE buttons with confirmations
Logs: filterable and copyable logs
Accessibility basics: keyboard navigation, ARIA roles, sufficient color contrast
Testing strategy
Unit tests (Rust core)
Tests for URI parsing, envelope data validation, command execution
Integration tests (IPC)
End-to-end test that issues a command from UI to core and validates response
UI tests (optional in early phase)
Playwright or Cypress tests for core flows (optional for MVP)
Security/testing hygiene
Dependency audits (cargo audit)
Validate inputs across UI and core
Code signing plan in later stage
Security and compliance
Isolation: Tauri sandbox, minimal privileges for the frontend
Data validation: strict validation on all UCXL inputs
CSP: implement content security policy for the webview
Dependency management: pin versions, CI scans for vulnerabilities
Data at rest: plan for protecting stored envelopes (encryption later if needed)
CI/CD and quality gates
Linux-focused CI for MVP:
Build and test Rust core
Build Tauri app for Linux (AppImage/Flatpak)
Run basic UI IPC tests
Run cargo fmt, cargo clippy, cargo audit
Automatic artifact creation:
Generate AppImage and Flatpak manifests
Publish artifacts to a suitable artifact store or GitHub Releases
Packaging and release plan
Target Pop!_OS (and Ubuntu derivatives) for MVP
Primary packaging formats: AppImage, Flatpak
Deb packaging can follow if needed; ensure runtime dependencies are available
Release notes focusing on MVP capabilities and how to test locally
Risks and mitigations
Risk: UCXL core complexity grows beyond simple in-memory store
Mitigation: design core with clean interfaces and allow swapping in a database or mock UCXI transport later
Risk: UI/IPC surface grows too large
Mitigation: lock scope to essential MVP commands; add additional commands only when needed
Risk: Linux packaging headaches
Mitigation: rely on established tooling (Tauri bundling, Flatpak) and keep packaging logic modular
Risk: Security validation gaps
Mitigation: implement strict input validation, CSP, sandboxed UI, code reviews focused on IPC
Roles and responsibilities (small team)
Product/UX Lead: define UX flow, wireframes, and acceptance criteria
Rust Core Developer: implement ucxl-core, data models, IPC surface, tests
Frontend Developer: build SPA, integrate with IPC, ensure good UX
DevOps/CI Engineer: set up CI, packaging pipelines, automated tests
QA/Security Reviewer: review security posture, run basic tests, ensure compliance
Next steps (immediate actions)
Create the monorepo structure with uxcl-core and uxcl-tauri-app
Set up initial CI workflow (Linux build and tests)
Create a minimal UCXL core with URI parsing and a simple envelope struct
Generate the Tauri app scaffold and wire it to call a sample core function
Define the IPC contract: UiToCoreCommand, CoreToUiResponse, with a couple of initial commands (e.g., GET envelope)
Prepare wireframes and design tokens for the UI