Effective Perl Programming: Ways to Write Better, More Idiomatic Perl, Second Edition

9. Distributions

Although anything that you distribute is rightly a “distribution,” in Perl that takes on a special meaning to most people. For Perl, a distribution typically refers to a collection of Perl files and supporting files, including a build program that can install them.

Perl distributions are the culmination of many skills and techniques, all wrapped together in a nice package that you can put on CPAN, send in e-mail, put in source control, or do anything else you like with. It could take us an entire book to go through the collected wisdom of regarding putting together your distribution. You’ll find some of that advice spread out throughout this book when that advice fits in nicely with another chapter. This chapter has the distribution ...