From 79296f87fb5cee7aa4f52685424b1df46d8a8195 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Doxa Maps <maps@doxa.example>
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 2026 07:23:17 +0000
Subject: [PATCH] A fresh clone's first bun run dev line says Rudder is
 optional and needs Go 1.22+

The dev server's first line on a fresh clone was a warning that rudder-engine is
not built, with a go build command and no word that it is optional or needs Go.
A backend can now carry an optional note, printed as information instead; Rudder's
says it is desktop voice-to-text, fine to skip for the maps, needs Go 1.22+, and
points at the desktop HOWTO.
---
 internal/backend-dev-plugin.mjs | 8 +++++++-
 1 file changed, 7 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/internal/backend-dev-plugin.mjs b/internal/backend-dev-plugin.mjs
index c2e76bbbf..25b116ad4 100644
--- a/internal/backend-dev-plugin.mjs
+++ b/internal/backend-dev-plugin.mjs
@@ -44,6 +44,8 @@ export function devBackends(env = process.env) {
     name: 'rudder-engine',
     bin: 'backend/bin/rudder-engine',
     build: 'cd backend/rudder-engine && go build -o ../bin/rudder-engine .',
+    // What a fresh clone is told at startup when this backend is not built: it is OPTIONAL (desktop voice).
+    optional: 'optional: Rudder (desktop voice-to-text) is not built, which is fine for the maps. It needs Go 1.22+; see documentation/HOWTO-build-the-desktop-app.md.',
     route: '/api/rudder',
     port: Number(process.env.RUDDER_PORT || 5193),
     env: { RUDDER_PORT: String(process.env.RUDDER_PORT || 5193), RUDDER_NEMO_PORT: String(process.env.RUDDER_NEMO_PORT || 5194) },
@@ -238,7 +240,11 @@ export function backendDevPlugin(root, env = process.env) {
             b.fetch(root, logger).then((ok) => { REG.fetching.delete(b.name); if (ok) launch() })
             continue
           }
-          logger.warn(`[backend] ${b.name} not built — its plugin will show "engine offline". Build: ${b.build}`)
+          // An OPTIONAL backend is a note, not a warning: a stranger's first `bun run dev` line said
+          // "rudder-engine not built … go build …" with no word that it is optional or needs Go (upg100's
+          // fresh-clone run). A backend without that note keeps the build instruction.
+          if (b.optional) logger.info(`[backend] ${b.optional}`)
+          else logger.warn(`[backend] ${b.name} not built — its plugin will show "engine offline". Build: ${b.build}`)
           continue
         }
         launch()