DesktopPal

DesktopPal is a Windows-only WPF desktop companion prototype.It places a small pet on the desktop, supports local AI chat through LM Studio, and experiments with lightweight world and desktop interactions.

Project status

DesktopPal is currently in prototype / pre-release state.

What is working today:

• transparent desktop overlay with a wandering pet
• local AI chat through LM Studio
• text-file "letter" reading and reply writing on the desktop
• persistent pet stats with offline decay
• settings, system tray, and global hotkey support
• simple world objects and cleanup interactions

What is still partial or planned:

• true vision is not implemented yet; the repo only has groundwork
• pet visuals and animation are still prototype-grade
• gardening, richer world systems, and multi-pet support are roadmap items
• there is currently no automated test suite, CI workflow, or packaging pipeline in the repository

If you want the execution plan rather than the product pitch, start with:

• TRITIUM-PLAN.md for the full roadmap
• docs/ROADMAP.md for the contributor-facing execution summary
• CONTRIBUTING.md for issue, milestone, and triage conventions
• HANDOFF.md for architecture and implementation notes

Prerequisites

• Windows 10 or Windows 11
• .NET 10 SDK
• LM Studio running locally on http://localhost:1234 for AI chat features

DesktopPal can still launch without LM Studio, but AI-dependent features will be limited.

Run locally

From the repository root:

dotnet build DesktopPal/DesktopPal.csproj
dotnet run --project DesktopPal/DesktopPal.csproj

From the DesktopPal/ subdirectory:

dotnet run

Repository map

Path	Purpose
DesktopPal/	WPF application source
TRITIUM-PLAN.md	Long-form product and engineering roadmap
docs/ROADMAP.md	Execution summary, milestones, and issue structure
CONTRIBUTING.md	Contribution, triage, and GitHub project workflow
HANDOFF.md	Technical architecture handoff for developers/agents
plans/	Historical planning notes retained for reference

Current repository gaps

The repo still needs:

• automated tests
• CI validation
• packaging and release discipline
• clearer separation between prototype behavior and shipped capability

Those gaps are tracked in the Tritium roadmap and GitHub project rather than being treated as already complete.

Contributing

Please read CONTRIBUTING.md before opening issues or pull requests. New work should align to the Tritium milestones and use the repository label taxonomy.

License status

No repository license file is currently present. Until a license is added, treat reuse and redistribution as unspecified.