Object/PerlDesignPatterns version 0.01
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PerlDesignPatterns is a free on-line book, forum, and GNU-Savanna project at
http://savannah.nongnu.org/projects/perlpatbook/ .  
This is a collaborative work in progress.

Ideas for keeping programs fun to hack on even after they grow large.
Object, lambda, hybrid structures, Perl specific methods of refactoring, object tricks, 
anti-patterns, non-structural recurring code patterns. 

PerlDesignPatterns is...

* Snapshot of an open-access project
* Subject to constant change
* Huge
* Perl-centric
* Well known patterns and refactorings are missing
* Not an executable module
* Not a finished product
* Not well tested
* Not pretty
* Not proofread or spell checked
* Not official
* Not complete
* Not (yet) reviwed by the community
* Not endorced by the community

This book is full of tricks for old pros and novices a like.

Experts and aspiring experts: 
SkipTheIntroduction is the best places to start browsing, or start at "Object 
Adapter Design Patterns" and work down.

Novices, intermediate programmers: 
The "Object Nuts and Bolts" section is for you. 

An HTML version is included. Due to the rough state of the POD output, this
is the prefered method of viewing this document.

You are encouraged to use the Wiki - after getting your bearings in
the PerlDoc/HTML version. Go ahead and add your comment
or critisism right into the text. Someone - probably me - will consider the
comment and take it under advisement or integrate into the text.
If you aren't familiar with Wiki, it is a simple web forum system.
Anyone can edit any document. Documents autovivicate - they spring into
existance at their first mention. Links are made between documents by
mentioning their name. The markup language is pure ASCII. Formatting
is derived from traditional ASCII text decoration conventions.
Many tools exist to make Wiki usable. The URL for the Wiki hosting
this project is http://www.perldesignpatterns.com

CHANGES

Since the last version, Perl Design Patterns has been better cross referenced, 
the prose cleaned up in many places, and more code added. Few new sections were
promoted from being part of the forum to being part of the book, even
though these satellite sections have received a great deal of care and 
attention.

Bugs were fixed in podparser.pl, so the POD should be better this time
around. A lot of HTML that crept into the original doccuments was
manually removed. Formatting in general was made more consistent.

The next release will likely grow the book in size over this version
by virtue of including more of these sections.

INSTALLATION

To install this module type the following:

   perl Makefile.PL
   make
   make test
   make install

A POD version should then be available:

  perldoc Object::PerlDesignPatterns

An HTML snapshot is also included:

  lynx PerlDesignPatterns.html

An up-to-date version of PerlDesignPatterns.html is maintained at the URL:

  http://www.perldesignpatterns.com/PerlDesignPatterns.ass.html

search.cpan.org seems happy enough to serve the document: Prettier, but twice
converted, so liable to suffer lossage:

  http://search.cpan.org/search?module=Object::PerlDesignPatterns

GETTING INVOLVED

There are a lot of things you can do:

* Read pages and give feedback.
* Make editorial comments in the pages themselves.
* Rate pages with the 1-10 rating bar on the bottom.
* Add links to CPAN modules related to the topic of a page - modules that help with
  the idea, or demonstrate the idea in their code. Things of the format Foo::Bar
  get turned into links to http://search.cpan.org
* Add links to other online documentation on appropriate pages.
* Correct typos and spelling errors. There are a lot of spelling errors.
* Rephrase paragraphs.
* Write code examples.
* Suggest additional sections and ideas.
* Expand on existing sections.
* Write new sections. See http://www.perldesignpatterns.com/?PerlPatternsToDo .
  

Go to the Wiki at http://www.perldesignpatterns.com for access to the project.

DEPENDENCIES

An imagination and a lot of patience.

COPYRIGHT AND LICENCE

Copyright (C) 2002, 2003 Scott Walters (scott@illogics.org) and various 
contributors as noted throughout the document.

See the enclosed file, GnuFreeDocumentationLicense, for terms of use and distribution.

