Build a complete application

Grow a TurboVision application in small, runnable steps. Begin with the framework defaults, then add application chrome, commands, custom windows, responsive scrolling views, dialogs, controls, and committed form data.

You can run any step from a source checkout:

composer install
php examples/php/tutorial/Guide01.php

Replace Guide01 with any step through Guide16. Each program has a matching test under tests/Feature/, so it is also safe to read as tested framework code.

What you will build

Steps	Result	Continue with
01–03	An application shell with a desktop, status shortcuts, and menus	Build the application shell
04–10	Movable windows containing custom-drawn, scrollable, responsive panes	Add windows and scrolling
11–16	Modeless and modal dialogs, buttons, choices, input, and committed form data	Add dialogs and data

Source examples for each step

Step	Addition	Main API
01	Smallest complete application	Application::run()
02	Status-line shortcuts	initStatusLine()
03	File and Window menus	initMenuBar()
04	A command that creates windows	handleEvent(), Desktop::insertWindow()
05	A custom view inside each window	View::draw(), Window::insert()
06	Lines loaded from a file	writeStr()
07	Complete row painting	DrawBuffer, writeLine()
08	One scrollable viewport	Scroller::setLimit(), scrollTo()
09	Independently scrolling split panes	ScrollBar, growMode
10	A safe minimum window size	Window::sizeLimits()
11	A modeless dialog	Desktop::insertWindow()
12	A modal dialog	Group::execView()
13	Default and cancel buttons	Button, Cmd::Ok, Cmd::Cancel
14	Check boxes and radio buttons	CheckBoxes, RadioButtons, Label
15	Editable text	InputLine
16	Preload and commit a form	Dialog::setData(), getData()

Where this guide comes from

The sequence is adapted from Turbo Vision's original C++ tutorial, but the code and recommendations follow this PHP implementation: typed classes, Composer autoloading, collision-free application commands, deterministic window placement, Unicode-aware drawing, and headless tests.

The original material remains in examples/cpp/tutorial, with its original notices. The runnable PHP adaptations are in examples/php/tutorial.

After the guide, use Structure a larger application to turn the single-file teaching style into a maintainable project layout.