-=head1 The Maypole Manual
+=head1 NAME
+
+Maypole::Manual - The Maypole Manual
+
+=head1 DESCRIPTION
The Maypole documentation is arranged over several files; this is
the right one to start with, as it provides an overview of the
=item L<Maypole::Manual::About> - Overview of the Project
-This document is a general introduction to Maypole: What it is
-(a framework for Web development), what it does (at the basic
-level, it converts a URL
-(e.g. C<http://www.mysite.com/product/display/12>) into a
-method call (i.e. "perform the C<display> method on item C<12>
-in the C<product> table") and then shows the result (here,
-presumably, a description of item C<12> in your product
-database)), and how it works (by MVC, a design paradigm in
+This document is a general introduction to Maypole: what it is, what it
+does and how it works.
+
+Maypole is a framework for Web development. At the basic level, it
+converts a URL like C<http://www.mysite.com/product/display/12> into a
+method call such as "perform the C<display> method on item C<12> in the
+C<product> table" and then shows the result: here, presumably, a
+description of item C<12> in your product database,
+
+It is based on Model-View-Controller (MVC), a design paradigm in
which each major aspect of an application's operation is
-handled by a different and totally separate system). Basic
-installation instructions are given. A sample Web
+handled by a different and totally separate system).
+
+Basic installation instructions are given. A sample Web
application--the Beer database--is introduced, set up, and
discussed. Finally, the path a Maypole request takes as it
moves through the system is described.
database and provides a variety of convenient methods for
manipulating each table and its relations. It integrates very
smoothly with Maypole's default L<view class|Maypole::Manual::View>,
-the L<Template> Toolkit.
+the L<Template|Template> Toolkit.
=item L<Maypole::Manual::View> - View Classes *
-This document is an extensive discussion of Maypole's I<view
-class>, which takes the data produced by the model (see
-L<above|Maypole::Manual::Model>) and sends it through a templating
+This document is an extensive discussion of Maypole's I<view class>,
+which takes the data produced by the model (see
+above) and sends it through a templating
system in order to produce output. It focusses chiefly on
the L<Template> Toolkit, which is Maypole's default templating
system, but discusses other possibilities.
paged list of a table suitable for browsing, and C<search>, which
handles a search query and generates search results.
-The standard templates (which generate output for display on
-the Web) include C<list>, which displays the entries in a
+The standard templates, which generate output for display on
+the Web, also include C<list>, which displays the entries in a
table, and C<search>, which displays the result of a search.
You'll note that most actions are associated with templates.
actions and templates, showing you how to write your own
so that you can have a highly customized application.
-=item L<Maypole::Manual::Workflow> - Description of the Maypole Workflow
+=item L<Maypole::Manual::Plugins> - writing Maypole plugins
+
+Useful information for plugin authors.
+
+=item L<Maypole::Manual::Terminology> - pinning down usage
+
+As well as defining common terms used in Maypole discussions, this document
+briefly discusses the MVC-ness of Maypole.
+
+=item L<Maypole::Manual::Workflow> - Description of the Request Workflow
This is a technical document that describes the progress of a
request through the entire Maypole system. It should be of
This document gives a close look at the Beer database that
was introduced in L<Maypole::Manual::About>.
-=item L<Maypole::Manual::Request> - The Request Cookbook
+=item L<Maypole::Manual::Cookbook> - The Maypole Cookbook
This extensive document is Maypole's main "How do I do X?" FAQ.
It provides a wide variety of cookbook-like techniques that
variety of customized techniques that make such a system
work.
-=item L<Maypole::Manual::IBuySpy> - Case Study: iBuySpy *
+=item L<Maypole::Manual::BuySpy> - Case Study: iBuySpy *
This is an example of the C<ASP.NET> sample portal application
ported to Maypole. L<http://www.ibuyspy.com> is a fictional
=head1 AUTHOR
-Sebastian Riedel, C<sri@oook.de>
+The Maypole Manual was written by Simon Cozens. A generous grant from the Perl
+Foundation in the first quarter of 2004 funded some of the chapters of this
+manual.
-This overview written by Jesse Sheidlower, C<jester@panix.com>,
+This overview was rewritten by Jesse Sheidlower, C<jester#panix.com>,
based on Simon Cozens' original I<Overview> document.
+In December 2004, Dave Howorth, C<dave.howorth#acm.org> kindly donated some
+of his spare time to improve the structure of the manual and bring it up to
+date.
+
=head1 AUTHOR EMERITUS
-Simon Cozens, C<simon@cpan.org>
+Simon Cozens, C<simon#cpan.org>
=cut