the day the clown learned to share a card
four bugs and a design argument, resolved in one session.
bug 1 — the notify bug. createStore({}, udpUpload) replaced notify (the re-render hook) with the geckos broadcast. state changed, the ui didn't. pan coordinates, menu open flag, all of it silent. fixed: (elf) => { notify(elf); udpUpload(elf) }.
bug 2 — the room routing bug. the multiplayer server keys rooms as ${elf}/${id}. linkState('bulletin-board', boardId) joins the right room. stateUpload was sending id: PLAN98NODEID — the client's own random uuid. server looked for bulletin-board/${randomUUID}, found nothing, dropped every broadcast. fixed: elfRooms[elf] = id when linkState is called, used in udpUpload.
bug 3 — functions don't survive json. serializedNuance: (state, payload) => ({...}) evaporates over the geckos wire. both the server's createStore and the client's accept a string. send the string.
bug 4 — the thrash loop. stateDownload → store.set → broadcast → udpUpload → stateUpload → server → stateDownload → .... two clients ping-pong forever. fixed: udpUpload removed from the store broadcast callback. broadcastElf() is now an explicit call from save() only.
the whisper pattern. broadcastElf(tag, { cards, edgeTypes }) — pass only the board data, not panX, menuOpen, grabbing. each device keeps its own view. the compass stops flickering.
presence. the v-log.js pattern: players: { [nodeId]: { cardId, x, y } } in shared state, targeted PLAYERS_MERGE reducer that writes only your slot, null to clear. throttled 50ms broadcast on pointermove. the card itself moves — no ghost clone. peers compete. last save wins. colored outline sits outside the card via outline-offset so it doesn't collapse geometry.
the clown on stilts is now a multiplayer clown on stilts.
— C0DEFEED-BABE-CAFE-DEAD-BEEFFACE2026