Hi,
We had a really interesting meeting last night and we were talking about
the problem of 'prickliness' in the Perl community and being welcoming to
newcomers etc.
Lyle identified the problem of the 'teetering mushroom' of Perl mindshare
- I'll let him explain the details.
Mindshare is really important for Perl - it means jobs, more CPAN
modules, grants, tests, meetings, conferences, buzz, progress etc[1].
So how can we gain more mindshare? I think the first step is to not
squander it. "Don't make me think!!" is why Ruby-on-Rails and the IPhone
work [2].
We've all been on CPAN and floundered around looking for something that
can scratch an itch. What search term should I use? Is that module any good?
Aaargh the POD is too long! This module looks massive I just want it to do
X. Oh stuff it -- I'll write it myself. Can you hear that sound? If you
listen closely you'll hear thousands of newbies screaming. You may even hear
yourself in there. ;-)
Earlier this year I came up with an idea for a new type of CPAN module
that extracts the "::Gist" out of other modules. It's kind of like Adam
Kennedy's ::Tiny modules except it is optimised for programmer wetware not
software[3].
::Gist modules are simple, user-friendly and "don't make me think".
To carry the ::Gist brand - the module should:
* Don't Make Me Think!!
* include a cut-and-paste synopsis - that just runs
* POD less than one page - guaranteed
* minimal methods (never more than 2?)
* assume a newbie target audience
* solve the 9 out of 10 times use case
* give proper credit to the wrapped author and module [4]
* be approved by the wrapped author
* be search engine optimised (SEO) for the problem space - not the
solution space - people searching Google should find these modules.
Potential new users get introduced to a module via the ::Gist route - as
their needs and knowledge inevitably expands - they find the monolithic
module/POD behind the scenes.
For users ::Gist modules offer a user-friendly way to scratch an itch fast -
without overloading them.
For module authors ::Gist modules offer an on-ramp for new users arriving at
their module.
I'm personally planning ::Gist modules for my favourite two CPAN modules:
DBIx::Simple and Template::Simple - but there's lots more.
I'm hoping others from Bristol&Bath.pm will help the cause - can you think
of any modules that need the ::Gist taken out of them?
I'm happy for the ::Gist project to be hosted by a user-friendly group, that
encourages new people entering the Perl world.
If other people in the group think it's a good idea then I would like to add
a project page to the group's wiki?
Nige
[1] It's why I care about Perl's brand and trade marks
[2] This also helps solve Perl's marketing problem.
[3] I realise module wrappers introduce an unnecessary layer of indirection
- but programmer not computational efficiency is the goal
[4] Ideally CPAN authors would be lining up to have the ::Gist taken out of
their module - ::Gist modules point users in their direction. I think as a
courtesy to the original module author ::Gist modules should always come
with the approval of the original module author and a matching licence.
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