diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 0f2457311..78a6dd644 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -40,4 +40,8 @@ artifacts/
.DS_Store
.classpath
.project
-.settings/org.eclipse.jdt.core.prefs
\ No newline at end of file
+.settings/org.eclipse.jdt.core.prefs
+
+# as of 2024-09-04, prebuilt dir is deprecated in favor of releases due to
+# increasing binary blob file sizes
+/prebuilt
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 6d6798077..9364a5efe 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -1,44 +1,22 @@
# RuneJS Java Client #435
-A RuneScape game client from October 2006 which has been modified to work with RuneJS, a RuneScape game server written in NodeJS and TypeScript. **This client is not for OldSchool RuneScape** - client #435 pre-dates the very first OSRS client by quite some time.
+A RuneScape game client from October 2006 which has been modified to work with RuneJS, a RuneScape game server written in NodeJS and TypeScript. **This client is not for OldSchool RuneScape** - client #435 pre-dates the very first OSRS client by quite some time.
We've no interest in OSRS client hacking, this client exists as a means to develop on RuneJS game servers and will not work with other server emulators.
## Usage
-Running the client can be done either with the pre-built client JAR file or by building the Java code and running it manually in an IDE.
+Running the client can be done either with the pre-built client `.jar` file from this repository's [releases](https://github.com/runejs/refactored-client-435/releases) page, or by building the Java code and running it manually in an IDE.
### Pre-Built Client
-Running the pre-built client requires having Java installed: https://www.java.com/en/
+Running the pre-built client requires having Java installed:
-Once installed, go into the `/prebuilt/` and simply double-click the JAR file to run it. Alternatively if executing the JAR does not work, the command `java -jar client-435-0.3.jar` may be used from within the `/prebuilt/` directory.
+Once installed, go to the [releases](https://github.com/runejs/refactored-client-435/releases) page, download the latest release, and simply double-click the `.jar` file file to run it. Alternatively if executing the `.jar` file does not work, the command `java -jar client-435-0.3.jar` can be used.
The client will use a set of default configurations if no file is provided. The default client configuration matches up to the default RuneJS server configuration for quick and easy initial setup. It's highly advised that you generate your own RSA public and private keys for long term use.
-To provide your own configurations, create a file named `client-435.conf.yaml` in your User Home directory with the following content:
-
-```yaml
-net:
- address: 127.0.0.1
- game_port: 43594
-cache:
- cacheDir: .filestore_435
-rsa:
- rsaPub: YOUR_RSA_PUBLIC_KEY (default dev pair provided in the example file)
- rsaModulus: YOUR_RSA_PRIVATE_KEY (default dev pair provided in the example file)
-login:
- useStaticCredentials: true
- username: a
- password: a
-game:
- roofsEnabled: true
- freeTeleports: false
- debugContextMenu: true
-serverDisplayName: Build 435
-```
-
-Make sure to modify the given configuration for your specific needs.
+To provide your own configurations, copy the file [`./config/client-435.conf.example.yml`](./config/client-435.conf.example.yaml) to `client-435.conf.yaml` in your user's home directory, and modify the given configuration for your specific needs.
### Gradle
@@ -47,20 +25,76 @@ without the help of an IDE such as IntelliJ. Gradle is also configured to automa
The following examples use the unix executable `./gradlew`, however Windows can replace these with `./gradlew.bat`.
-**Running via Gradle**
+#### Running via Gradle
The `application` gradle plugin provides the `run` task, which starts up the Main client class. With this option,
arguments can be provided via `--args`.
-```
+```bash
./gradlew run
```
-**Building a Jar**
+#### Building a `.jar` file
The `jar` task can be used to build a jar, which is generated in the `build/libs` directory.
-```
+```bash
./gradlew jar
java -jar ./build/libs/client-435-0.3.jar
```
+
+#### Gradle and Java versions
+
+As of 2024-09-04, our manual builds are done with the following Gradle and Java versions - both appear to produce a similar result:
+
+```bash
+gradle -v
+```
+
+```text
+------------------------------------------------------------
+Gradle 8.10
+------------------------------------------------------------
+
+Build time: 2024-08-14 12:23:39 UTC
+Revision:
+
+Kotlin: 1.9.24
+Groovy: 3.0.22
+Ant: Apache Ant(TM) version 1.10.14 compiled on August 16 2023
+Launcher JVM: 1.8.0_422 (Arch Linux 25.422-b05)
+Daemon JVM: /usr/lib/jvm/java-8-openjdk (no JDK specified, using current Java home)
+OS: Linux 6.10.6-arch1-1 amd64
+```
+
+```text
+------------------------------------------------------------
+Gradle 7.2
+------------------------------------------------------------
+
+Build time: 2021-08-17 09:59:03 UTC
+Revision: a773786b58bb28710e3dc96c4d1a7063628952ad
+
+Kotlin: 1.5.21
+Groovy: 3.0.8
+Ant: Apache Ant(TM) version 1.10.9 compiled on September 27 2020
+JVM: 17.0.10 (Azul Systems, Inc. 17.0.10+7-LTS)
+OS: Mac OS X 14.4.1 aarch64
+```
+
+You can also view our [GitHub actions workflow](./.github/workflows/build-and-publish.yml) to see the automated build setup.
+
+## Creating tags and releases
+
+Our [GitHub actions workflow](./.github/workflows/build-and-publish.yml) is configured to build a new `.jar` file upon a `tag` push event. If you create a release in GitHub, the workflow will fail, because its purpose is to *create* the release.
+
+The proper process for creating a new build is as follows:
+
+1. `git fetch --all` (ensures everything is up to date - helps prevent creating a tag that someone else already created)
+2. `git pull origin master` (sync your local repository with the latest changes)
+3. `git tag -a -s v0.0.X`
+4. `git push origin v0.0.X`
+
+Swap out `v0.0.X` for your actual version, and please try to use the `-s` flag if you can - using GPG keys to sign tags is preferred.
+
+In a few minutes, a new `.jar` and release will be ready on the releases page!
diff --git a/prebuilt/client-435-0.3.jar b/prebuilt/client-435-0.3.jar
deleted file mode 100644
index c4024dace..000000000
Binary files a/prebuilt/client-435-0.3.jar and /dev/null differ