• ANNOUNCE
• DESCRIPTION
• New Options
• Improved Subclassability
• ExtUtils::ModuleMaker::PBP
• Structural Improvements
• ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
• SUPPORT

ANNOUNCE

ExtUtils::ModuleMaker version 0.43 is now available on CPAN (http://search.cpan.org/dist/ExtUtils-ModuleMaker/). ExtUtils::ModuleMaker is a replacement for the most typical use of the h2xs utility bundled with all Perl distributions: the creation of the directories and files required for a pure-Perl module to be installable with make and distributable on CPAN.

A companion distribution, ExtUtils::ModuleMaker::PBP, version 0.08, is also now available and is described below.

DESCRIPTION

ExtUtils::ModuleMaker was created by R Geoffrey Avery in 2001. I took over maintenance of the distribution in July 2005. The central focus of ExtUtils::ModuleMaker remains unchanged, as do its modalities. The recommended way to get started with ExtUtils::ModuleMaker is the modulemaker command-line utility which prompts the user to enter a module name and other information and then creates the directories and files needed to bring that module to life. modulemaker is extremely easy for novice module authors to use and, as such, typifies the Perl virtue of laziness. The user can also provide modulemaker with command-line arguments. ExtUtils::ModuleMaker can also be called from within a Perl program via its new() and complete_build() methods.

In the past three months, however, there have been significant enhancements to ExtUtils::ModuleMaker's functionality as well as improvements to the distribution itself.

New Options

Fourteen new attributes have been added to ExtUtils::ModuleMaker's default values. Five of these provide the user with more fine-grained control over the directories and files created by running ExtUtils::ModuleMaker:

    INCLUDE_SCRIPTS_DIRECTORY
    INCLUDE_MANIFEST_SKIP
    INCLUDE_TODO
    INCLUDE_LICENSE
    INCLUDE_FILE_IN_PM

Eight of the new default values provide the user with greater control over which test files to include, how to name them and how many modules each test file tests:

    FIRST_TEST_NUMBER
    TEST_NUMBER_FORMAT
    TEST_NAME
    EXTRA_MODULES_SINGLE_TEST_FILE
    TEST_NAME_DERIVED_FROM_MODULE_NAME
    TEST_NAME_SEPARATOR
    INCLUDE_POD_COVERAGE_TEST
    INCLUDE_POD_TEST

Finally, a new default value is provided to enable the user to save selections made via modulemaker as new default values:

    SAVE_AS_DEFAULTS

By enabling the user to save his/her selections as new default values, the latest version of ExtUtils::ModuleMaker significantly enhances the user's ability to customize its use.

But wait, there's more!

Improved Subclassability

While ExtUtils::ModuleMaker always was subclassable, its subclassability is now easier and better documented. ExtUtils::ModuleMaker's default values and private methods, formerly found entirely in 'lib/ExtUtils/ModuleMaker.pm', have been moved into three separate packages based on functionality:

    lib/ExtUtils/ModuleMaker/Defaults.pm
    lib/ExtUtils/ModuleMaker/Initializers.pm
    lib/ExtUtils/ModuleMaker/StandardText.pm

Private methods called within ExtUtils::ModuleMaker::new() are found in Initializers.pm. Private methods within ExtUtils::ModuleMaker::complete_build() are found within StandardText.pm. A potential subclasser's attention is therefore more precisely focused on the methods needing overriding.

ExtUtils::ModuleMaker::PBP

As an illustration of how to subclass ExtUtils::ModuleMaker, I have written a companion Perl extension, ExtUtils::ModuleMaker::PBP, also now available on CPAN, which you can use to create the skeleton for a Perl extension in the manner recommended by Damian Conway in his recent book Perl Best Practices (O'Reilly, 2005) http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/perlbp/. ExtUtils::ModuleMaker::PBP includes its own command-line utility, mmkrpbp, which works in the same way as modulemaker.

The net effect of these enhancements is to create a comfortable learning curve for the ExtUtils::ModuleMaker user.

A beginner can create the framework for a Perl distribution by typing modulemaker at the command-prompt and then filling in a few blanks.
An advanced beginner can provide command-line arguments to reduce the amount of editing of files needed once the distribution has been created.
An intermediate user can save his/her modulemaker selections as new default values, thereby saving keystrokes in the creation of future distributions.
An advanced intermediate user can achieve finer control over the directories and files created by using ExtUtils::ModuleMaker within a Perl program and calling appropriate methods.
Finally, an advanced user can subclass ExtUtils::ModuleMaker to create templates for other distributions.

But wait, there's still more!

Structural Improvements

As a CPAN distribution ExtUtils::ModuleMaker has been significantly improved with the addition of new tests and documentation. As measured by Devel::Cover, ExtUtils::ModuleMaker's test coverage is now very high. Only the modulemaker utility's interactive mode lacks good coverage.

In particular, the test suite tests to see whether a file containing new default values can be saved in an appropriate location on the user's system and whether such a file, when used, generates values expected to override ExtUtils::ModuleMaker's own default values. In the event that a user is upgrading from one version of ExtUtils::ModuleMaker to another, the test suite also makes certain to leave intact and file of default values the user has already saved on disk so that it is still intact after the upgrade.

During the testing process, new directories and files are now created in temporary directories which are created and then erased via File::Temp.

ExtUtils::ModuleMaker itself is intended to be backwardly compatible with Perl 5.5, but most of its test suite requires Perl 5.6. The tests which require 5.6 are all wrapped in SKIP blocks, so 5.5 users should be able to test and install the distribution with no problem.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Acknowlegements go out to:

Geoff Avery for creating and popularizing ExtUtils::ModuleMaker -- and for willing to put his child up for my adoption!
David Golden for suggestions for enhancements in functionality and for helping to make the 'learning curve' concept more explicit.
Damian Conway for permission to lift sections of his code from Module::Starter::PBP.
The following beta testers, CPAN testers, Perl hackers and Perlmonks, each of whom made suggestions at one or more stages in the development process (see ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS in documentation for details):

    Brian Clarkson
    Scott Godin
    imacat
    Reinhard Urban
    Michael G Schwern
    A Sinan Unur
    Paul Lalli
    davidrw
    tlm
    Anonymous Guest
    CountZero
    xdg
    Tanktalus
    holli
    TheDamian
    nothingmuch
    Alex Gill
    Marc Prewitt
    chromatic
    dave_the_m
    randyk
    njh

SUPPORT

Please report any bugs or feature requests to bug-ExtUtils-ModuleMaker@rt.cpan.org, or through the web interface at http://rt.cpan.org.