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May 2026: Exposure of Fools

The RetroDECK Team have been hard at work stirring the development cauldron.

Highlights

News

  • Development Update: 0.11.0
  • More Modular Components
  • Dynamic Logic and ES-DE Systems
  • External Components: The Fool

Development Update: 0.11.0

We have begun development on the upcoming major update, 0.11.0.

This release is currently in active development, with the team adding new features, improvements and several unexpected things.

More Modular Components

We are still building upon the sandboxed architecture introduced in 0.10.0, where all components operate within isolated sub-sandboxes. 0.11.0 introduces a deeper level of modularity. The core strategy involves migrating component-specific logic directly into their respective modules via the updated RetroDECK Framework.

For instance, Steam Input Templates, which were formerly managed by the core RetroDECK application, are now housed within the SRM component.

This streamlines the development workflow for adding new tools or RetroDECK Configurator options.

Dynamic Logic and ES-DE Systems

As part of our initiative to enhance modularity, we are developing tools that enable component files to encapsulate their own ES-DE launch command logic. This advancement eliminates the necessity for RetroDECK to constantly modify ES-DE's core files, fostering a cleaner separation.

In 0.11.0, the Framework will dynamically detect available components and their features upon every RetroDECK boot.

The new modular architecture significantly lowers the barrier to entry for external developers creating custom components, while simultaneously streamlining the development process for our own internal components.

To simplify the integration process, we are consolidating the existing component files:

Previous Structure:

  • Required five separate "ingredient" files plus a dedicated "recipe" file.

New Structure:

  • component_prepare.sh and component_update.sh logic is merged into component_functions.sh.

Final Component Structure

  • component_recipe.json: Specifies build instructions, dependencies and configuration recipes.

Ingredients:

  • component_functions.sh: Contains the logic for preparation, updates, config modifications and runtime functions.
  • component_launcher.sh: Handles the specific execution and launch command for the component.
  • component_manifest.json: Defines metadata, configurator options, tool features, es-de commands and other information.

External Components: The Fool

LibreOffice

LibreOffice Configurator

Last month, we shared an April Fools joke about integrating LibreOffice into RetroDECK.

However, the reality behind the joke is quite technical:

We actually implemented a working LibreOffice integration specifically for the screenshots and video to demonstrate the capabilities of RetroDECK 0.11.0.

The April Fools post served as a proof-of-concept, showcasing how easily the updated framework can handle complex applications through its even more modular architecture.

All of this effort makes it easier to add components, establishing RetroDECK as a powerful Retro Gaming Platform for all your retro gaming needs.

Double the foolery!

That is all for now

There are more features and improvements in the works, which will be shared in future blog updates!

As always, if you want to help with development, join the 💙-i-want-to-help channel on Discord, or reach out to us on Matrix or other socials.

A big thank you to everyone for your continued support 🦈.

// The RetroDECK Team

Category Link Description
🌐 Website retrodeck.net Official RetroDECK homepage
💬 Discord Join Discord Discord community chat
💬 Matrix Matrix Room Open Matrix community space
💬 Lemmy Lemmy Community RetroDECK community on Lemmy
💬 Reddit r/retrodeck RetroDECK subreddit
📖 Wiki RetroDECK Wiki Official documentation and guides
❤️ Donations Donations & Licenses Support the project and view license information