📝 docs: clarify release example contract

.github/workflows/ci-tests.yml

@@ -54,15 +54,16 @@ jobs:
       - name: Check Spore files
         run: |
           find src/basic_cli -name '*.sp' -type f | sort | xargs -n 1 spore check
+          spore check examples/hello.sp
           spore check examples/hello-app/src/main.sp
 
-      - name: Build Spore files
+      - name: Build Spore platform API files
         run: |
           find src/basic_cli -name '*.sp' -type f | sort | xargs -n 1 spore build
-          spore build examples/hello-app/src/main.sp
 
-      - name: Run project-mode hello-app example
+      - name: Run Spore examples
         run: |
+          spore run examples/hello.sp
           (
             cd examples/hello-app
             echo "✓ Running project-mode example (default entry)"

README.md

@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ basic-cli = { path = "../.." }
 import basic_cli.stdout as stdout
 
 fn main() -> () uses [Console] {
-    println("Hello from a project-mode Spore application!")
+    println("Hello from a project-mode Spore application!");
     return
 }
 ```
@@ -67,9 +67,9 @@ spore check src/main.sp
 spore run src/main.sp
 ```
 
-This is a real package-backed application. The in-repo example points `basic-cli` at `../..`; projects generated by `spore new` vendor the package and use `vendor/basic-cli` instead. The formatter currently normalizes the import to `import basic_cli.stdout as stdout`, while `println` still resolves directly in scope.
+This is a real package-backed application. The in-repo example points `basic-cli` at `../..`; projects generated by `spore new` vendor the package and use `vendor/basic-cli` instead. The formatter currently normalizes the import to `import basic_cli.stdout as stdout`, while `println` still resolves directly in scope as an imported platform API call.
 
-For quick experiments, you can also run standalone `.sp` files (see `examples/hello.sp`), but production applications should use the project-mode structure above.
+For quick experiments, you can also run pure standalone `.sp` files (see `examples/hello.sp`), but production applications that call platform APIs such as `println` should use the project-mode structure above.
 
 ## Project Structure
 
@@ -90,7 +90,7 @@ basic-cli/
 │   ├── Cargo.toml
 │   └── src/
 │       └── lib.rs     # Foreign function implementations
-└── examples/          # Canonical examples that format/check/build in CI
+└── examples/          # Canonical examples that format/check/run in CI
 ```
 
 ## Contract Surface (MVP)
@@ -108,18 +108,35 @@ Applications targeting `basic-cli` must implement the same startup function name
 
 ## Tutorial Contract
 
-- `examples/hello-app/` is the **canonical project-mode example** — it is formatted, checked, built, and run in CI.
-- `examples/hello.sp` is a minimal standalone file for quick experiments.
+- `examples/hello-app/` is the **canonical project-mode example** — it is formatted, checked, and run in CI.
+- `examples/hello.sp` is a minimal pure standalone file for quick experiments — it is formatted, checked, and run in CI.
 - `src/basic_cli/` is the API surface for the platform modules themselves.
 - `src/platform_contract.sp` is the package-owned startup contract surface.
 - Only add `tests/` when the repo has real Spore-side regression coverage worth running with `spore test`.
 
 If you want to add a new tutorial/example, treat this as the bar:
 
 1. keep it self-contained;
-2. make sure it passes `spore format --check`, `spore check`, and `spore build`;
+2. make sure it passes `spore format --check`, `spore check`, and `spore run`;
 3. only then promote it into `examples/` and mention it in this README.
 
+Native `spore build` is still useful for platform API modules and pure standalone files, but it is not required for package-backed platform projects that rely on `foreign fn` declarations until the backend supports foreign/platform lowering.
+
+## Platform API Calls and Effect Syntax
+
+Project-mode applications call imported `basic-cli` platform functions directly:
+
+```spore
+import basic_cli.stdout as stdout
+
+fn main() -> () uses [Console] {
+    println("Hello from basic-cli!");
+    return
+}
+```
+
+In this style, the `uses [Console]` clause records the capability required by the direct `println` platform API call. The lower-level `perform Effect.op(...)` form belongs to effect-handler syntax; use it only when documenting or implementing explicit handlers, not for the normal `basic-cli` project-mode tutorial path.
+
 ## Design Philosophy
 
 Following Spore's [SEP-0003 (Effect System)](https://github.com/spore-lang/spore-evolution/blob/main/seps/SEP-0003-effect-system.md):
@@ -135,7 +152,7 @@ Following Spore's [SEP-0003 (Effect System)](https://github.com/spore-lang/spore
 
 The canonical example is the **package-backed project-mode** `examples/hello-app/` application. It already validates and runs with `[project].platform = "basic-cli"`, an in-repo path dependency, and `import basic_cli.stdout`.
 
-The standalone file example (`examples/hello.sp`) stays around for quick experiments. The main remaining platform gaps are generic handled-effects enforcement, startup `spec` stacking, and lifting the runtime from its current explicit `basic-cli` host profile to a more general package-backed mechanism.
+The pure standalone file example (`examples/hello.sp`) stays around for quick experiments. The main remaining platform gaps are generic handled-effects enforcement, startup `spec` stacking, native lowering for `foreign fn` platform projects, and lifting the runtime from its current explicit `basic-cli` host profile to a more general package-backed mechanism.
 
 ## License
 

examples/hello.sp

@@ -1,4 +1,14 @@
-/// A simple "Hello World" using the basic-cli platform.
+/// A minimal pure standalone Spore file.
 ///
 /// Run with: spore run examples/hello.sp
-fn main() -> () uses [Console] { println("Hello from Spore basic-cli!") }
+///
+/// This intentionally does not import or call the basic-cli platform. Platform
+/// APIs such as `println` are available from package-backed applications like
+/// `examples/hello-app/`, not from standalone files.
+fn greeting(name: Str) -> Str { "Hello, " + name + "!" }
+
+fn main() -> () {
+    let message = greeting("standalone Spore");
+    message;
+    return
+}