simian

This README was updated to reflect the current layout, build paths, and the small CMake wrapper approach used to optionally build ImGui / rlImGui when those folders are present.

What changed

The original single-file demo was split into modules: Application, ScriptEngine, ScriptBindings and HotReload.
Hot-reloads are performed safely: scripts compile into a temporary module first and only replace the running module on successful compilation. Compilation errors will no longer crash the running app.
CMake wrappers live in cmake/ to build third-party projects that don't ship a CMakeLists.txt (example: ImGui, rlImGui). This keeps submodules untouched.
A Justfile was added with convenient recipes for configure, build, run and cleaning.

Quick start (Windows)

Open a developer prompt for Visual Studio or use PowerShell / cmd configured for MSVC.

Clone with submodules:

git clone --recurse-submodules <repo-url>
cd Simian

Using the included Justfile (optional):

# from project root
just configure       # runs cmake -S . -B build -G "Visual Studio 17 2022" -A x64
just build           # builds Debug by default (uses cmake --build)
just run             # runs the built executable (Debug)

Or use raw CMake commands:

mkdir build; cd build
cmake -G "Visual Studio 17 2022" -A x64 ..
cmake --build . --config Release
# run:
build\Release\simian.exe

If you are using cmd.exe, the same commands apply (adjust quotes for generator if needed).

Linux / Unix

git clone --recurse-submodules <repo-url>
cd Simian
mkdir build && cd build
cmake -G "Unix Makefiles" ..
cmake --build .
./simian

Project layout (important files)

Simian/
├─ CMakeLists.txt            # top level CMake
├─ Justfile                  # convenience tasks (configure/build/run/clean)
├─ include/                  # public headers (Application, ScriptEngine, ScriptBindings, HotReload)
├─ src/                      # implementation
├─ scripts/                  # AngelScript source files loaded at runtime
├─ external/                 # git submodules (raylib, angelscript, optional imgui/rlImGui)
└─ cmake/                    # local CMake wrappers (imgui, rlImGui)

Hot-reload notes

The app watches scripts/ for changes. When a script is updated it is compiled into a temporary AngelScript module.
If compilation succeeds, the temp module replaces the live main module and new functions are used. If compilation fails, the running module is left intact and a single-line error is shown on-screen.
This avoids crashes that happen when a script with compilation errors would otherwise replace/break function pointers while the engine is executing.

ImGui / rlImGui (optional)

The repository prefers to keep upstream code as submodules. Some upstream projects (like certain ImGui tags or rlImGui) don't provide a CMakeLists.txt. To support those without editing submodules, the project includes small wrappers in cmake/:

cmake/imgui/ builds ImGui core (and optionally backends) when external/imgui is present.
cmake/rlImGui/ builds the rlImGui integration and links it to the imgui target if available.

If you prefer to use the upstream CMake (when present), the top-level CMakeLists.txt will prefer external/rlImGui's CMake if it detects one; otherwise it falls back to the wrapper.

To add ImGui/rlImGui as submodules:

# from repo root
git submodule add https://github.com/ocornut/imgui.git external/imgui
git submodule add https://github.com/NeoSpark314/rlImGui.git external/rlImGui
git submodule update --init --recursive

Then re-run CMake from a clean build directory.

Troubleshooting: if Git warns about "embedded git repository" when adding files, convert the folder to a submodule (remove cached tracked files, then add as submodule) — this README intentionally avoids modifying submodule contents.

Tests / Verification

Quick smoke test after building:

# run the Debug build
build\Debug\simian.exe

You should see the Raylib window. The running console prints from script when the default script executes (e.g. "[Script] Hello from AngelScript!").

If a script has a compilation error, the app will continue running and a brief error message is presented on the top-left of the window.

Updating submodules

Keep submodules pinned for reproducible builds. To update them safely:

cd external/raylib && git fetch && git checkout <commit-or-branch>
cd ../angelscript && git fetch && git checkout <commit-or-branch>
cd ../.. && git add external/raylib external/angelscript && git commit -m "Update submodules"

Notes

The project was developed and tested on Windows with Visual Studio; Linux builds are supported but may need X11 / audio dev packages installed depending on your environment.
The codebase avoids changing tracked submodule contents; use the cmake/ wrappers when a submodule doesn't include a CMake build.

License

Raylib: Zlib License (see https://github.com/raysan5/raylib#license)
AngelScript: MIT License (see https://github.com/angelcode/angelscript/blob/master/license.txt)
Simian: Not open source (yet)