Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
4.9 KiB
Announcing changes
How we tell people about Frame Control features and fixes as they merge. The same few sentences feed the X post, the release notes and the website, so they are written once, in the pull request, while the change is fresh.
What gets announced
| Kind | Announce? | Example |
|---|---|---|
| New — something you can now do | Yes, its own post | Stream Mac windows into the Frame as panels |
| Better — something existing got noticeably easier, faster or wider | Yes, its own post or a roundup | APKs install without the Android SDK |
| Fixed — something broken that users hit | Yes if people reported it or it blocked a flow; otherwise the next roundup | Mac mirror showed a zoomed-in corner |
| Release — a tagged build | Always, one post linking the release | Frame Control 0.3.1 |
| Tests, refactors, CI, docs-only, website polish | No | Fake Frame tests, screenshot crop |
If a change isn't worth a sentence to someone who owns a Frame, it isn't announced.
The voice
Write it the way the README and release notes already read.
- Lead with what the person can now do, in their words: "Install older versions of an app when the newest won't run on the Frame", not "Add APK version fallback resolver".
- Plain and specific. Name the thing, give the number: "about 30 fps", "4,500 apps", "up to 8 older versions". No "blazing", "game-changing", "excited to announce", "huge", or exclamation marks.
- Say where it works. Platforms and what it was tested on, briefly: "Tested on a real Frame from macOS 27." Don't claim what wasn't tested.
- Say the catch. If it needs a setup step, an unsigned build, or only works on one OS, say so in the same post.
- Sentence case, full sentences, British spelling to match the docs. Contractions are fine.
- No emoji in the text. One image, GIF or short clip carries the tone instead. The only symbol is the kind label below.
- Unofficial, always. Never imply Valve made or endorses it. Say "Steam Frame" for the headset and "Frame Control" for the app.
- Credit people. If a user reported the bug or suggested the feature and is happy to be named, thank them by handle.
The formats
Every announceable PR ends with an ## Announcement section holding these.
The reviewer checks it like code.
1. The post (X, and any other social account)
<Kind>: <what you can do now, one sentence>
<one or two sentences: how it works, the catch, or what it was tested on>
<link>
<Kind>isNew,BetterorFixed.- 280 characters maximum including the link (X counts any link as 23).
- One link: the release if it has shipped, otherwise the PR.
- One visual when the change is visible: a screenshot from the app, a GIF, or a short clip from the headset. Alt text describes what it shows.
- No hashtags, except
#SteamFrameon releases and on posts about something new, because people search for it.
2. The release-note line
One bullet under New in x.y.z, same as the current release notes: the first half of the post's first sentence, no kind label, no link.
3. Release post
Frame Control <version>: <the headline change>
<one sentence on the headline change>. Also: <two or three short items>.
Windows, macOS and Linux: <release link>
#SteamFrame
The release title on GitHub uses the same Frame Control <version>: <headline>
line, as 0.3.0 and 0.3.1 already do.
Roundups
Small fixes that don't earn their own post wait for a roundup, posted with the next release or when three or more have piled up:
Fixed in Frame Control this week:
- <fix>
- <fix>
- <fix>
<link>
Examples from what has already merged
#11, older APK versions
New: when an Android app is too new for the Frame, Frame Control now offers
older versions that will install.
It checks F-Droid, its archive and IzzyOnDroid, and verifies each download
before it goes on the headset.
https://github.com/saphid/steam-frame/pull/11
#8, Mac mirror fixes
Fixed: mirroring your Mac into the Steam Frame now fits the whole desktop in
the panel, asks for the right password, and shows the cursor.
Tested end to end on a real Frame from macOS 27.
https://github.com/saphid/steam-frame/pull/8
v0.3.1
Frame Control 0.3.1: install APKs without the Android SDK
Frame Control now reads APK files itself, so there's nothing extra to install.
Also: Linux and Windows game sideloading, and one-click install links.
Windows, macOS and Linux: https://github.com/saphid/steam-frame/releases/tag/v0.3.1
#SteamFrame
Posting
Nothing is posted without a person approving it. The flow is:
- The PR carries its
## Announcementsection. - On merge, the post is drafted from that section (manually for now).
- Alex approves or edits it, then it's posted from the project account.
- Replies and questions that turn out to be bugs become GitHub issues labelled
feedback, same as the website form.