Developers

Source Code

Where is the Lassie Shepherd source code?

Lassie Shepherd source code is hosted on Google code within a Subversion repository (see below for more information).

You can get a copy of the code from:
http://code.google.com/p/lassiestudio/source/checkout

Or browse the repository online at:
http://code.google.com/p/lassiestudio/source/browse

How does Subversion work?

Subversion, or “SVN”, is a version control system for managing digital files. It is commonly used for managing source code.

The concept of version control revolves around a central file repository. This central repository is generally hosted online, and is used to store all the latest confirmed versions of the files being managed. After setting up a file repository, individual content editors may “checkout” a copy of the files, then make edits and modifications to their local copies. Once the individual editors have tested and confirmed that their edits and modifications are free of errors, they may “commit” their changes back into the central repository (assuming they have contributor status). Once updates have been committed to the central repository, all individuals with a checkout of the central repository will be notified of the update, and may update their local copies with all the latest files from the repository. Version control is an extremely powerful development tool, and is essential for large projects with multiple developers and/or followers.

How do I checkout source code?

You’ll need an SVN client, which is basically the equivalent of an FTP client for Subversion repositories. There are numerous free and trial SVN clients available. Try the following:

Windows:
RapidSVN (free)
http://rapidsvn.tigris.org/
(choose “download the latest release”, then the EXE download)

Mac OSX:
svnX (free)
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/development_tools/svnx.html
(download and follow install instructions)

While all SVN clients are designed slightly differently, they’ll all have the same basic capabilities. Once you have an SVN client, you’ll need to use it to do the following:

1) Create a new repository bookmark named “Lassie Shepherd”. Username and password will not be needed. Just specify the following location: http://lassiestudio.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/

2) Once you’ve created a repo bookmark, you should be able to connect to and browse around that repository.

3) Select “trunk” (top-level directory) from the repo browser, then click your SVN client’s “checkout” button. Your client should prompt you to pick a location on your local system, then proceed to download the complete Lassie Shepherd source code onto your local system.

4) In the future, you may see a number appear within your SVN client next to the Lassie Shepherd repo bookmark. This generally means that X new changes have been made within the repo and that your local copy is out of date. To update, select the Lassie Shepherd repo bookmark, and click your client’s “update” button. All latest files will be downloaded onto your local system.

NOTE: if you edit a file within your local checkout that is later updated within the central repository, that file will go into “conflict” for you when you update. Therefore, you should familiarize yourself with how to resolve SVN conflicts before making any changes to your local checkout of Lassie Shepherd – otherwise, make edits to a copy of your checkout!

Comitting