From: Damphyr <damphyr@...>
Date: 2003-04-07T17:20:57+09:00
Subject: Re: Call for standardised package installation procedure

Well I've gone through the whole thread and put some points together 
(plus my own ideas).
Here's what I would do:

An application that simplifies installation procedures would consist 
primarily of two parts. Let's call them the creator and installator scripts.

The creator script is run by the developer/maintainer who wants to 
publish something.
As a general guideline it should do the following:

- Detect requirements
    (one way is to scan for require statements)
- Define version and/or platform independency/dependency
    (default behaviour would be to force the version and platform of the 
machine that creates the bundle)
- Create the creator script
- Bundle the application

Now the user that gets the bundle has the app and the installator script 
which:

- by default installs in lib/ruby/site_ruby/<version>/<platform> unless 
specified by creator otherwise
- Does 'fake' installs e.g. in a user defined directory
- For applications does 'targeted' installs (application goes to a 
directory, libs go to /lib/ruby/site_ruby/<version>/<platform>
- detects missing requirements (and lists them)
- run with no arguments it just prints a helpful message
    (like "Hi, I am your friendly installer. I carry application 
so-and-so version 0.12 for Linux and Ruby 1.6. Unfortunately you have 
Ruby 1.8 - Goodbye")

Now, since I haven't mixed myself in C extensions, what I outline above 
is an app that would automate installation and distribution of pure Ruby 
  applications (and perhaps binaries).
Anyone care to expand/comment?
V.-


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