docs: STATUS.md (session-context snapshot + documentation policy), new ROADMAP (quality-scale phases 7-10, universality), PRODUCT.md (market assessment, competitors verified 2026-07-06), DEVELOPMENT.md environment refresh

docs/PRODUCT.md

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+# Product assessment & market position
+
+*Written 2026-07-05. Sources: GitHub API star counts and HA docs verified 2026-07-06;
+see links inline. Update this file when the landscape shifts.*
+
+## What the product is
+
+An interactive floor plan for Home Assistant delivered as one HACS package:
+a storage **integration** (server-side config, WS API, file uploads, auth) + a
+**Lovelace card** (rendering, room markup editor, drag layout, zoom, live states,
+temperature, Zigbee LQI, device metadata with PDF manuals, virtual markers,
+en/ru localization). GUI-first: no YAML, no hand-made SVG.
+
+## Competitive landscape (stars verified 2026-07-06)
+
+| Competitor | Stars | Approach | Weakness we exploit |
+|---|---|---|---|
+| [ha-floorplan](https://github.com/ExperienceLovelace/ha-floorplan) (incumbent) | 1 562 | hand-made SVG + YAML/CSS/JS rules | steep barrier: Inkscape + YAML; no GUI editor; config in card YAML |
+| native `picture-elements` | built-in | absolute % coordinates in YAML | trial-and-error positioning, no zones, no editor |
+| native Areas/Home dashboard (2025.4→2025.12) | built-in | auto card grid by area/floor | **not spatial** — leaves the visual-plan niche open |
+| [Dwains Dashboard](https://github.com/dwainscheeren/dwains-lovelace-dashboard) | 2 049 | auto-generated menus | not a floor plan |
+| [Bubble Card](https://github.com/Clooos/Bubble-Card) | 4 391 | GUI card collection | not a floor plan; sets the GUI-quality bar |
+| [zigbee-floorplan-card](https://github.com/TheLarsinator/zigbee-floorplan-card) | 71 | LQI over a plan image | single-purpose; validates our LQI feature |
+| [kishorviswanathan/ha-floorplan](https://github.com/kishorviswanathan/ha-floorplan) (2026-01) | 155 | external web editor → YAML export | editor outside HA, still YAML at runtime |
+| [Padraigggs-ha-interactive-floorplan](https://github.com/Padraiggg/Padraigggs-ha-interactive-floorplan) (2026-03) | 41 | editor+viewer cards, "no YAML" | weeks old, card-only, no server-side integration |
+| [easy-floorplan](https://github.com/nicosandller/easy-floorplan) (2026-05) | 11 | draw walls/furniture in the card | drawing-centric, immature |
+
+**Demand evidence:** a dedicated [Floorplan forum category](https://community.home-assistant.io/c/third-party/floorplan/28);
+the "100% Floorplan UI" mega-thread (500k+ views); a visible 2025–2026 wave of new
+floorplan projects (three launched in the last six months alone). The pain is constant:
+*people want a floor plan without Inkscape and YAML.*
+
+## Honest assessment
+
+**Usefulness — high.** A floor plan is the most natural "at a glance" home UI, and the
+GUI-first workflow (upload image → outline rooms → devices appear → drag) removes the
+exact barrier that keeps most users on lists of entity cards.
+
+**Demand — real but niche-shaped.** Floorplan is a perennial top request, but the
+audience is enthusiasts with wall tablets. Realistic trajectory given the field:
+hundreds of stars in the first year *if* discoverability is solved (HACS default +
+demo GIF + forum post). Bubble Card (4.4k★) proves polished GUI cards can go
+quasi-mainstream; ha-floorplan's 1.5k★ with a hostile workflow shows the demand floor.
+
+**Unique position — currently unoccupied.** Nobody else combines: server-side config
+(integration + `.storage`, survives dashboard edits, shared across users/devices,
+optimistic locking, live multi-client sync) + in-card room polygon editor bound to HA
+areas + curated auto-placement + drag layout + LQI/temperature overlays + config flow +
+en/ru localization + CI/quality-scale discipline. The newcomers are card-only toys so
+far; the incumbent is powerful but YAML/SVG-locked. Our moat grows if we integrate
+deeper with the areas/floors registry (Phase 9) — that is the direction HA core itself
+is signalling with the native Areas dashboard.
+
+**Risks.**
+1. *HA core ships a native spatial plan.* The Areas dashboard is grid-based today, but
+   core moving spatial would commoditize us. Mitigation: registry integration, speed.
+2. *Discoverability.* 0 stars until the HACS queue (~2 months) clears. Mitigation:
+   demo assets + forum/Reddit showcase now, custom-repo installs meanwhile.
+3. *Single maintainer bus factor* — mitigated by docs/ discipline and tests.
+4. *Frontend API churn* (undocumented hass internals custom cards rely on).
+   Mitigation: minimal surface, CI against beta HA (add to Phase 8).
+
+## Recommended next moves (priority order)
+
+1. **Demo GIF + English forum/Reddit posts** — cheapest adoption lever, do before the
+   HACS queue clears so the storefront lands with social proof.
+2. **Phase 7 quality items** (runtime_data, unloading, storage migrations, single_config_entry)
+   — cheap now, expensive later; also a credibility marker for reviewers.
+3. **Registry-driven onboarding** (import floors/areas as spaces/rooms suggestions) —
+   the feature that makes first-run magical and that no competitor has.
+4. **Editable icon rules** — removes the last dacha DNA and answers the #1 predictable
+   user complaint ("wrong icon for my device").
+5. **Click actions (toggle from the plan)** — most requested behavior in every
+   floorplan thread; we currently only open info dialogs.