Full setup instructions coming soon.
Variables to set when installing Placebo for the first time:
| Variable | Contents |
|---|---|
| DATABASE_URL | Heroku-provided postgres:// URL. |
| PLACEBO_GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRETS | OAuth client secret for Google APIs, in JSON format. Download client_secret.json from the Google API console, then paste the contents into this variable. |
| PLACEBO_SLACK_TOKEN | OAuth Access Token for the Slack API, from the app's OAuth & Permissions page. |
| PLACEBO_ADMIN_SLACK_USER | Slack user ID for the person running the app. This is used to send DMs about any operational problems. To find your user ID, open "people & user groups" in the Slack UI, click on yourself, open "more," and choose "copy member ID." It's alphanumeric and starts with a U. |
Variables to set when testing and debugging Placebo:
| Variable | Contents |
|---|---|
| PLACEBO_DEBUG_LOGS | If set to 1, the minimum logging level is set to "debug," which includes e.g. request and response payloads on API calls. If missing or set to any other value, the logging level is "info." |
| PLACEBO_TESTING | For every variable marked with a dagger (†) you can set a corresponding _TESTING variable; for example, PLACEBO_UNLOCKS_CHANNEL_ID and PLACEBO_UNLOCKS_CHANNEL_ID_TESTING. If PLACEBO_TESTING is set to 1, these test variants are used and the non-test variables are ignored. |
Variables to set when configuring Placebo in advance of Mystery Hunt:
| Variable | Contents |
|---|---|
| PLACEBO_PUZZLE_LIST_SPREADSHEET_ID† | Spreadsheet ID for the puzzle list. Take this from the URL: it comes after /spreadsheets/d/ and before /edit. |
| PLACEBO_PUZZLE_LIST_SHEET_ID† | Sheet ID for the puzzle list. Take this from the URL: it comes after #gid= and it's numeric. In Google Sheets parlance, a spreadsheet is the entire sharable document, made up of one or more sheets, which are the tabs at the bottom. |
| PLACEBO_PUZZLES_FOLDER_ID† | ID for the Google Drive folder containing puzzles in progress. Take this from the URL: it comes after /folders/. |
| PLACEBO_PUZZLE_TEMPLATE_ID | Spreadsheet ID for a blank document to be copied for each new puzzle. |
| PLACEBO_SOLVED_FOLDER_ID† | ID for the Google Drive folder containing solved puzzles. |
| PLACEBO_QM_CHANNEL_ID† | Channel ID for the Slack channel where quartermasters hang out. Find it from the URL (open Slack in your web browser, or right-click the channel in the desktop app and choose "Copy Link"): it comes after /messages/. It's alphanumeric and starts with a C. |
| PLACEBO_UNLOCKS_CHANNEL_ID† | Channel ID for the Slack channel where newly unlocked puzzles will be announced. |
† See PLACEBO_TESTING.
Variables to set during Hunt, as the round structure reveals itself:
| Variable | Contents |
|---|---|
| PLACEBO_CREATE_METAS | If set to 1, a metapuzzle is automatically created for each unlocked round. If missing or set to any other value, an empty row is added to the tracker but no spreadsheet or channel is created. |
| PLACEBO_METAS_HAVE_NAMES | If set to 1, metapuzzles have their own names (apart from just "Round Name Meta"). Those names are listed in the tracker, and used as aliases for the Slack channel. |