🥧 Pi Developer Handbook

Massive overhaul to this project!

The Complete Resource for Building Pi Network Applications

Build applications that work seamlessly in both Web2 and Web3 environments

📖 View Documentation • 🚀 Get Started • 💻 Examples • 🔄 Migration Guide

---

🌟 What's New: Hybrid App Architecture

Revolutionary Update! This handbook now includes comprehensive support for hybrid applications that provide seamless experiences across both regular browsers and Pi Browser:

• ✅ Smart Pi Browser Detection - Automatically detect user environment
• ✅ Graceful Fallbacks - Clean UI for non-Pi Browser users
• ✅ No Scary Popups - Better authentication flows
• ✅ Broader Reach - Support both Web2 and Web3 users
• ✅ Future-Proof - Ready for Pi Network mainstream adoption

🚀 Quick Start

For New Developers

# 1. Clone this repository
git clone https://github.com/alxspiker/Pi-Developer-Handbook.git
cd Pi-Developer-Handbook

# 2. Explore the examples
cd examples/

# 3. Check out the hybrid app guide
# Visit: wiki/Pi-Browser-Detection

For Existing Pi Apps

Need to upgrade your app to hybrid architecture? 📚 Migration Guide - Step-by-step upgrade instructions

📚 Documentation Structure

Core Guides

Guide	Description	Best For
Pi Browser Detection	Build hybrid apps for Web2 & Web3	Essential for all new apps
SDK Reference	Complete Pi SDK documentation	API integration
Authorization	User authentication patterns	Login systems
Payments	Payment integration guide	Monetization

Platform Understanding

• What is PiNet? - Web2 accessibility platform
• What is PiWallet? - Pi Network wallet system
• Mainnet vs Testnet - Network environments

💻 Code Examples

Updated Examples with Hybrid Support

Example	Description	Technologies
basic-login-and-pay	Simple authentication + payments	Vanilla JS, HTML
python-login-pay-subscriptions	Subscription service with Flask	Python, Flask, JavaScript
Pi-Network-SDK-Example	Comprehensive SDK showcase	HTML, JavaScript

All examples now include:

• 🔍 Pi Browser detection
• 🎨 Fallback UI for regular browsers
• 👤 User-initiated authentication
• 💳 Conditional payment flows
• 🛡️ Proper error handling

Quick Example - Hybrid Authentication

// Modern hybrid app approach
async function initializeApp() {
  const isPiBrowser = await detectPiBrowser();
  
  if (!isPiBrowser) {
    // Show fallback for regular browsers
    showPiBrowserRequired();
    return;
  }

  // Only show Pi features in Pi Browser
  enablePiFeatures();
}

async function handleLogin() {
  try {
    const auth = await Pi.authenticate(['payments'], onIncompletePaymentFound);
    console.log('✅ Authentication successful:', auth);
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('❌ Authentication failed:', error);
  }
}

🏗️ Architecture Benefits

Traditional Approach vs Hybrid Approach

Aspect	Traditional	Hybrid (Recommended)
Browser Support	Pi Browser only	All browsers with smart fallbacks
User Experience	Scary popups in regular browsers	Clean, professional experience
Market Reach	Pi Network users only	Web2 + Web3 audiences
Authentication	Auto-login (poor UX)	User-initiated (better UX)
Payments	Hard failures	Graceful degradation

🛠️ Developer Tools

Utility Functions

• Pi Browser Detection - Smart detection with fallbacks
• Authentication Helpers - User-initiated login patterns
• Payment Wrappers - Conditional payment flows
• Fallback UI Generators - Professional non-Pi Browser experiences

Testing Checklist

• Works in regular browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari)
• Works in Pi Browser with full functionality
• No authentication popups in regular browsers
• Clear messaging for non-Pi Browser users
• Proper error handling and cleanup

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Here's how you can help:

1. Documentation - Improve guides and tutorials
2. Examples - Add new code samples
3. Bug Reports - Report issues with existing examples
4. Feature Requests - Suggest new guides or improvements

📖 Contributing Guidelines - Detailed contribution instructions

📞 Community & Support

• Wiki Documentation: github.com/alxspiker/Pi-Developer-Handbook/wiki
• Issues & Questions: GitHub Issues
• Pi Network: minepi.com

📄 Resources

Official Pi Network

• Pi Whitepaper (Original)
• Pi Whitepaper (Updated)
• Pi Browser Download

Developer Resources

• Developer Terms
• Social Chain Terms

---

🚀 Ready to build the future of Pi Network applications?

📖 Start with the Documentation • 💻 Explore Examples • 🔄 Upgrade Existing Apps

Let's build amazing Pi Network applications together!