docs(#359): restructure 1.2.0 release notes per Ben's review

Reordered + marketed per direction: platforms-first (Android/Windows/
Linux/Web now shipped every release), then the interface redesign as the
headline (left rail, pinned rail, in-place channel nav), storage, GIFs
(cross-client tap-to-view + Tenor render), a big FEM/LNA callout, deeper
diagnostics (persisted rxTime, honest path units), and performance.

Added <!-- SCREENSHOT: ... --> placeholders at the hero, pinned-rail,
and FEM-LNA spots for Ben to drop captures into the GitHub release
editor (real screenshots must be captured from the running app; not
faking them).

No em-dashes.

Part of #160. Agent: SapphireCompass (session 8d755b5e)
pull/360/head
Strycher 16 hours ago
parent e17070ae59
commit 4d91120b57

@ -1,44 +1,101 @@
## Offband Meshcore 1.2.0
A big one. This release rebuilds how Offband stores your data, gives the app a
new navigation shell, and makes GIFs work across every MeshCore client. It is
also the first Offband release built, signed, and published across all platforms
automatically through CI.
Our biggest release yet. A ground-up interface redesign, a real database under the
hood, GIFs that work across every MeshCore client, and hands-on control of your
radio's RF front end. This is also the first Offband release built, signed, and
shipped to every platform automatically.
### Your data now lives in a real database
<!-- SCREENSHOT: hero shot of the redesigned app (pinned left rail + a channel open) -->
Messages, contacts, channels, and the rest have moved from scattered preference
entries to a proper drift / SQLite database. **Your existing data is migrated
automatically the first time you open this version, and nothing is thrown away.**
Message history is kept in full, storage errors no longer fail silently, and on
desktop the database no longer gets tangled up in OneDrive/Documents sync.
### One app, every platform
Because this is a one-time on-device migration, it is worth backing up nothing in
particular but simply being aware that the first launch does a little more work
than usual.
From this release on, every Offband build ships everywhere at once, signed with
the same key so updates just work:
### A new way to get around
- **Android**: install from Google Play or sideload the signed APK
- **Windows**: desktop build
- **Linux**: desktop build
- **Web**: run it right in your browser, no install, at offband.app
There is a new navigation drawer you open from the hamburger button, and you can
pin it open so it stays alongside your chat. The channel list lives there and you
can switch channels without leaving the one you are in. Map layer toggles moved
into the panel, Disconnect and Settings moved to its footer, and Contacts gained
a filter rail. The back button now behaves the way you would expect: it
backgrounds the app instead of killing it, and it no longer knocks you off a
connected radio.
Pick your platform below.
### GIFs that work everywhere
### A brand-new interface
GIFs are now sent as a plain Giphy link instead of an Offband-only code, so
people on other MeshCore clients can actually see them. Pasted Giphy and Tenor
links render inline, behind a trusted-host allowlist.
The headline feature. Offband has been rebuilt around a modern navigation shell
that finally gets out of your way.
### Also in this release
- A **left rail** you open from the hamburger button, and can **pin open** so it
lives right alongside your conversation instead of covering it.
- Your **channels live in the rail** and switch **in place**, so jumping between
channels never loses your spot or your scroll position.
- Map layer toggles, Disconnect, and Settings all found sensible new homes in the
panel, and the back button finally behaves the way it should: it backgrounds
the app instead of killing it, and never knocks you off a connected radio.
- Desktop remembers your window position and size.
<!-- SCREENSHOT: left rail pinned open, showing the channel list -->
### Your data, on solid ground
Under the surface, Offband now keeps your messages, contacts, and channels in a
real SQLite database instead of a pile of loose preference files.
- Your **existing data migrates automatically** the first time you open this
version. Nothing is thrown away, and your **full message history is preserved**.
- Storage problems that used to fail silently now surface, so nothing goes wrong
in the dark.
- On desktop, your data no longer gets swept into OneDrive/Documents sync.
### GIFs everyone can see
GIFs are no longer an Offband-only party trick.
- Send a GIF and it goes out as a **plain Giphy link**, so people on **stock
MeshCore and other clients can tap it and watch it** too, not just Offband
users.
- Paste a **Giphy or Tenor** link and it renders inline, behind a trusted-host
safety allowlist.
### Take command of your radio's front end
Power users, this one's for you. On supported hardware, Offband now gives you
direct control of your radio's **FEM / LNA** (the front-end module and low-noise
amplifier that shape receive sensitivity and transmit path).
- Toggle **FEM LNA** right from Radio Settings.
- Device Info now reads out your radio's Offband capabilities, so you can see at a
glance what your hardware supports.
Both are gated on firmware capability, so they appear only where the radio
actually supports them.
<!-- SCREENSHOT: Radio Settings showing the FEM LNA toggle -->
### Deeper diagnostics
More signal, less guesswork when you need to see what your mesh is doing.
- Message **arrival time is now logged and persisted** separately from the claimed
send time, so you can tell when a message really reached you versus when the
sender says it left (#285).
- Path diagnostics report **honest, width-aware units** instead of mislabeled hop
counts, and path lengths decode exactly per the firmware contract.
### Faster across the board
The new storage engine and a round of under-the-hood work add up to a noticeably
snappier app.
- Connecting no longer rewrites your entire preferences file for every channel, so
connect time is quicker and lighter on storage.
- Bulk reads and writes go through the database now, which scales far better as
your message and contact history grows.
### And a few more
- Desktop remembers your window size and position between launches.
- Reach a contact's settings straight from its long-press menu.
- FEM LNA control and Offband capability readout in Device Info, where the radio
supports it.
- You can no longer accidentally block your own node.
Full details in the changelog.
---
See the full, itemized changelog in the repository.

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