Project Priorities and Status Guidelines

This document outlines the guidelines for checking project priorities and status before starting any work on the Family Shapes project.

Key Guidelines

1. Always check project status before starting work
2. Focus on immediate priorities first
3. Align work with the current development phase
4. Verify changes don't conflict with recent updates

Required Status Checks

Before starting any work, developers and contributors must:

1. Review the CHANGELOG.md

   • Understand recent changes to avoid duplicating work
   • Check for related features or fixes that might impact your task
   • Note any breaking changes or deprecations

2. Review the ROADMAP.md

   • Start with the "Immediate Priorities" section to identify the most urgent tasks
   • Check the "Key Milestones" table to understand the project timeline
   • Verify which phase of development is currently active
   • Understand dependencies between features

3. Verify alignment with current phase

   • Ensure your proposed changes align with the current development phase
   • Check if your task is listed in the immediate priorities
   • Understand how your work fits into the broader project roadmap

Prioritization Guidelines

When multiple tasks are available, prioritize work in this order:

1. Tasks listed in the "Immediate Priorities" section of ROADMAP.md
2. High-priority (🔴) tasks in the current development phase
3. Medium-priority (🟡) tasks in the current development phase
4. Low-priority (🟢) tasks in the current development phase
5. Tasks in upcoming development phases (only if explicitly requested)

Implementation Approach

When implementing features or fixes:

1. Check for dependencies

   • Verify if your task depends on other tasks being completed first
   • Note any tasks that depend on your work

2. Follow milestone guidelines

   • Adhere to the implementation approach specified for the current milestone
   • Use the technologies and patterns established for the current phase

3. Document your work

   • Update the CHANGELOG.md with your changes
   • Ensure documentation reflects the current state of the project

Integration with Other Guidelines

These priority guidelines work in conjunction with:

• Documentation Structure Guidelines
• Database Migration Guidelines
• Contributing Guidelines

Roadmap Structure

The project roadmap at /ROADMAP.md follows these principles:

1. Immediate Priorities: Clear section at the top highlighting the most urgent tasks
2. Phase Organization: Development organized into clear phases
3. Timeline Indicators: Approximate timeframes for each phase
4. Status Tracking: Current status of each planned feature
5. Priority Levels: Clear indication of feature priorities
6. Dependency Mapping: Dependencies between features
7. Key Milestones: Table showing major project milestones and their status

Changelog Structure

The project changelog at /CHANGELOG.md follows these principles:

1. Chronological Order: Most recent changes at the top
2. Version Grouping: Changes grouped by version number
3. Type Categorization: Changes categorized as:
   • Added: New features
   • Changed: Changes to existing functionality
   • Deprecated: Features that will be removed
   • Removed: Features that were removed
   • Fixed: Bug fixes
   • Security: Security-related changes
4. Date Tracking: Each version includes its release date
5. Reference Links: Links to relevant issues, PRs, or documentation