Update Notes (v.09 – 5/10/2025)

What’s New in v.09 (Released 5/10/2025)

Document & PWA polish:
- Renamed <title> to “SnowCone MathFest” for consistency across tabs.
- Added desktop/bookmark favicons (192×192 & 512×512) and Apple touch icon, plus a web‐app manifest for smooth “Add to Home Screen” installs.
- Streamlined service-worker registration and manifest link in <head> to prep for offline support.
Menu & Modal updates:
- Replaced the old rules‐first load handler so the Menu now appears on launch (with “Math Tips & Story Intro,” “Music Mode,” and placeholders for Story, Infinity, and High Scores).
- Refined the Back to Menu and Jump to Quick Serve flows so screens fade cleanly and don’t overlap.
Intro Mode enhancements:
- Completed the multi-panel tutorial (“Quick Tips,” Pythagoras → Euclid → Galileo & Newton → … → Final Reflection) with responsive images and click-to-reveal answers.
- Overhauled the split-cone transition animation (cone slides right, scoop slides left, overlay fades) into a reusable startTransition() function—no more hard-coded CSS hacks.
- Improved dynamic image sizing (max-height:60vh), locked bottom-anchored tutorial panels, and fixed scroll overflow for desktop vs. mobile.
Gameplay fixes & QoL:
- Ensured zero answers (“0”) can be submitted immediately with Enter.
- Negative-toggle now works before any numeric input.
- Keyboard shortcuts tightened up (digits, Enter, Backspace, Escape, R = reset).
- Milestone celebrations (25/50/75/100 points) play the right sounds and animations no matter how fast you click.
Code cleanup:
- Merged duplicate load handlers into one.
- Consolidated CSS chunks into logical blocks.
- Tidied up service-worker cache naming (thanks for the reminder!) and removed unused listeners.

Behind the Scenes: Why the Intro Mode Felt Endless

Building that multi-panel tutorial turned into a mini-marathon. For nearly two weeks, I wrestled with a single bug: the “end” panel transition refused to trigger correctly—panels would fade out but never hand off to the final “Back to Menu” state. I tried every combination of timeouts, z-index tweaks, and CSS keyframes until it finally clicked. It was frustrating, but debugging that orphaned transition taught me more about asynchronous animations and DOM repaint cycles than any quick fix could. In the process, I learned patience, deeper JS event sequencing, and the value of a methodical “divide-and-test” strategy.

What’s Next?

Infinity Mode: Remove the timer and let the cones—and the music—play on forever.
High Scores & Badges: Give players a leaderboard to conquer and bragging rights to unlock.
Story Mode: Warp the truck through time, unveil lore-rich word problems, and meet those neon-glowing math ghosts in person.

Thanks for sticking with me through the animations, the panels, and every bug fix. v.10 is shaping up to be the most ambitious release yet—let’s get there together!

This app is free BTW! but….if you’re interested in financially supporting the project:

Donate BTC here: bc1qd0j9lem7Irk4n9h66gnxty3gxkwa6z9kpwk9te