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Architecture

Welcome to the Architecture section.

This section focuses on the "Why" and the "How" of pico-ioc—intended for contributors and architects who need a deep understanding of the framework's core mechanics and design philosophy.

Audience and Goals

  • Who should read this: contributors, maintainers, and architects working on pico-ioc.
  • Goals:
  • Explain the rationale behind key design decisions.
  • Document internal components and their interactions.
  • Provide a consistent reference for future changes via ADRs (Architecture Decision Records).

Scope and Non-goals

  • In scope:
  • Design principles and trade-offs.
  • Internal architecture and lifecycle.
  • Comparison with related libraries to clarify positioning.
  • Decision records that capture significant architectural changes.
  • Out of scope:
  • End-user tutorials and API guides (see user- or developer-facing documentation elsewhere in the repository).
  • Project management processes not directly impacting architecture.

Table of Contents

    1. Design Principles (The "Why"): ./design-principles.md
    1. Comparison to Other Libraries: ./comparison.md
    1. Internals Deep-Dive (The "How"): ./internals.md
    1. Architecture Decision Records (ADR Index): ../adr/README.md

Conventions Used in This Section

  • Terminology:
  • "Architecture" refers to core components, their responsibilities, and interactions.
  • "Internals" refers to non-public mechanisms subject to change.
  • "ADR" documents authoritative decisions and their context.
  • Diagrams and examples are illustrative; consult source code to confirm exact behavior.
  • Paths in links are relative to this directory.

Stability and Change Management

  • Internal details may evolve; prefer ADRs for context and rationale behind changes.
  • Public-facing APIs should be documented separately and may have different stability guarantees than internals.
  • When proposing changes affecting architecture:
  • Open an ADR (see ../adr/README.md for workflow).
  • Reference impacted sections in design-principles.md and internals.md.

How to Use This Section

  • Start with design-principles.md to understand motivations and constraints.
  • Use comparison.md to position pico-ioc among similar solutions.
  • Consult internals.md for deep technical details and implementation notes.
  • Review adr/README.md to trace decisions over time and understand historical context.

Feedback and Contributions

  • If you find inconsistencies or gaps:
  • Propose edits via pull request.
  • Link changes to relevant ADRs where applicable.
  • Keep examples and references accurate:
  • Update function/class names and file paths when refactoring.
  • Ensure cross-links remain valid after structural changes.