[MKDoc-dev] Improving MKDoc Installation

[Sam Tregar]

Hello all.  I'm looking into the possibility of joining the MKDoc team
so I'll be posting questions and suggestions here as they occur to
me.

As I'm sure you're all aware MKDoc installation could be a lot easier.
Right now I would guess that installing MKDoc requires both
significant technical experience and several hours of work.  This is
very similar to the problem I faced when I constructed the
installation systems for Bricolage (http://bricolage.cc) and, later,
Krang (http://krang.sf.net).  Both of these are large Apache/mod_perl
database apps which make extensive use of CPAN modules.

Before beginning the design of the Krang installation system I posted
my design notes on PerlMonks which helped crystallize my thinking on
the topic:

  http://perlmonks.org/?node_id=307399

The system I created for Krang is quite similar to the description in
the PerlMonks post, and I think it has been very successful.  It is
possible to install Krang in just a few minutes on a fresh system with
Perl and MySQL installed.  The install documentation is suitably
simple and easy to follow:

  http://krang.sf.net/docs/ops_install.html

I think one possibility for MKDoc would be the wholesale adoption of a
Krang's installation system.  Krang is under a BSD license, so there's
no reason we couldn't take the code and use it in MKDoc with minimal
changes.  The biggest differences from the current system would be:

  - MKDoc would run in its own Apache on a separate IP/port, not in a
    shared Apache process.  For users that need to do virtual hosting
    we could provide documentation on setting up a mod_proxy front-end.

  - MKDoc would come with copies of all the CPAN modules it requires.
    A license audit would be needed to make sure all the modules allow
    for this kind of distribution.  Most open-source licenses include
    the GPL, Artistic and BSD do.

The advantage would be an easier install process with less room for
error.  Easier installation means more users and there's nothing an
open-source project needs more than users!

-sam