v0.8.0

Added

• Optional igbinary serializer. Set TORQUE_SERIALIZER=igbinary to encode the queue payload envelope as binary instead of JSON. Roughly 2x faster encode/decode on large payloads (~67% throughput gain on the payload-large workload), no measurable difference on small ones. Opt-in by design; JSON stays the default so redis-cli XRANGE keeps working during debugging. composer.json now suggests ext-igbinary. torque:start prints a one-line install hint when the extension is missing and a Serializer: igbinary confirmation when active. Decode path sniffs the first byte ({/[ or \x00\x00\x00\x02) so flipping the env var is safe while workers are running and in-flight messages organically drain
• torque:bench artisan command. Reproducible end-to-end throughput and latency measurement against your own hardware and workload. Seven workload profiles (cpu, io, async-io, fanout, mixed, payload-small, payload-large) covering the dimensions where serializer choice, Fiber concurrency, and worker count actually matter. Console output mirrors torque:status formatting; --json=path (or --json=- for stdout) emits a machine-readable schema for CI / diff workflows. v1 requires --use-running-master; self-spawning workers from inside the bench command is tracked as v1.1
• Live BenchAggregator, BenchRunner, BenchJob, BenchProbe classes under src/Console/Bench/ for the bench machinery. BenchProbe is wired but per-stage breakdown (serialize / xadd / xreadgroup / unserialize / handle / xack) is v1.1; current output reports throughput, end-to-end latency p50/p95/p99, and median handle duration
• bench/horizon-comparison/ reproduction kit. HorizonBenchJob.php (the symmetric mirror of BenchJob for the redis-driver side), run-horizon-bench.php (standalone driver, auto-detects the host Laravel app from cwd), and a step-by-step README. Lets anyone reproduce the headline numbers from BENCHMARKS.md instead of taking them on faith
• BENCHMARKS.md. Full apples-to-apples comparison vs Laravel queue:work (the engine Horizon runs underneath): up to 15x throughput on async I/O fan-out, 95% lower memory at equivalent throughput on the fanout workload. Methodology, raw numbers, igbinary A/B, memory-at-equivalent-throughput framing, and a "what this benchmark does NOT measure" section
• README rewrite. Hero claim now sits on defensible measured numbers. New "When to use Torque" / "When to use Horizon instead" sections so users self-select before installing. New "Working with databases (avoid the Eloquent trap)" section explaining why blocking PDO calls in handlers destroy Fiber concurrency and how to use MysqlPool or pre-fetch in dispatch instead. Live job progress now positioned as a first-class differentiator with a hero callout and updated compatibility table

Fixed

• StreamJob::payload() now decodes via StreamQueue::decodePayload instead of inheriting Laravel's JSON-only base implementation. Without this, TORQUE_SERIALIZER=igbinary workers crashed in StreamJob::__construct with a TypeError on the readonly array property when the raw body was igbinary-encoded; jobs piled up and the bench tail timed out. Caught by adding the redis-driver Horizon comparison: the JSON path was incidentally exercising the only code path that worked
• WorkerProcess::processMessage now validates incoming payloads via StreamQueue::isValidPayload (which sniffs both formats) instead of json_validate, so igbinary blobs are no longer dropped as "corrupt"

Changed

• StreamQueue constructor takes a new serializer parameter (default 'json', backwards compatible). StreamConnector::connect() reads 'serializer' from the queue connection config and forwards it. New private encodePayload/transcodeIncomingPayload and public static decodePayload/isValidPayload helpers replace inline json_encode/json_decode at the four call sites in pushRaw, laterRaw, release, and the telemetry decode in pushRaw
• config/torque.php adds a top-level 'serializer' => env('TORQUE_SERIALIZER', 'json') key
• Compatibility table in the README now reflects what Torque actually does for Eloquent (works, but blocks Fibers; use MysqlPool for fan-out) and adds rows for "Per-job event timeline" and "Live job progress" to make those differentiators visible