NAME Text::MicroMason - Simplified HTML::Mason Templating DESCRIPTION Text::MicroMason interpolates blocks of Perl code embedded into text strings, using the simplest features of HTML::Mason. Here's an example of Mason-style templating, taken from the HTML::Mason manpage: % my $noun = 'World'; Hello <% $noun %>! How are ya? Interpreting this template with Text::MicroMason produces the same output as it would in HTML::Mason: Hello World! How are ya? A complete discussion of the supported syntax and the way it is compiled is provided in the module's inline POD. MOTIVATION The HTML::Mason module provides a useful syntax for dynamic template interpretation (sometimes called embedded scripting): plain text (or HTML) containing occasional chunks of Perl code whose results are interpolated into the text when the template is "executed." However, HTML::Mason also provides a full-featured web application framework with mod_perl integration, a caching engine, and numerous other functions, and there are times in which I'd like to use the templating capability without configuring a full Mason installation. Thus, the Text::MicroMason module was born: it supports the core aspects of the HTML::Mason syntax ("<%...%>" expressions, "%...\n" and "<%perl>..." blocks, "<& file &>" includes, "%ARGS" and "$_out->()" ), and omits the features that are web specific (like autohandlers) or are less widely used (like "<%method>" blocks). Related Modules You may well be thinking "yet another dynamic templating module? Sheesh!" And you'd have a good point. There certainly are a variety of templating toolkits on CPAN already; even restricting ourselves to those which use Perl syntax for both interpolated expressions and flow control (as opposed to "little languages") there's a fairly crowded field, including Template::Toolkit, Template::Perl, Text::Template, and Text::ScriptTemplate, as well as those that are part of full-blown web application frameworks like Apache::ASP, ePerl, HTML::Embperl, and HTML::Mason. Nonetheless, I think this module occupies a useful niche: it provides a reasonable subset of HTML::Mason syntax in a very light-weight fashion. In comparison to the other modules listed, MicroMason aims to be fairly lightweight, using one eval per parse, converting the template to an cacheable unblessed subroutine ref, eschewing method calls, and containing just over a hundred lines of Perl code. Compatibility with HTML::Mason See the HTML::Mason manpage for a much more full-featured version of the capabilities provided by this module. If you've already got HTML::Mason installed, configured, and loaded into your process, you're probably better off using it rather than this package. HTML::Mason's "$interp->make_component()" method allows you to parse a text string without saving it to disk first. The following sets of HTML::Mason features are not supported by Text::MicroMason: * No %attr, %shared, %method, or %def blocks. * No |h or |u options to escape the result of interpolated expressions. * No $m Mason interpreter context. * No $r request object * No shared files like autohandler and dhandler. * No mod_perl integration or configuration capability. DISTRIBUTION, INSTALLATION AND SUPPORT Version This is version 1.07 of Text::MicroMason. Prerequisites This module should work with any version of Perl 5, without platform dependencies or additional modules beyond the core distribution. Installation You should be able to install this module using the CPAN shell interface: perl -MCPAN -e 'install Text::MicroMason' Alternately, you may retrieve this package from CPAN or from the author's site: * http://search.cpan.org/~evo/ * http://www.cpan.org/modules/by-authors/id/E/EV/EVO * http://www.evoscript.org/Text-MicroMason/dist/ After downloading the distribution, follow the normal procedure to unpack and install it, using the commands shown below or their local equivalents on your system: tar xzf Text-MicroMason-*.tar.gz cd Text-MicroMason-* perl Makefile.PL make test && sudo make install Release Status This module's CPAN registration should read: Name DSLIP Description -------------- ----- --------------------------------------------- Text:: ::MicroMason Rdpfp Simplified HTML::Mason Templating This module should be categorized under group 11, Text Processing (although there's also an lesser argument for placing it 15 Web/HTML, where HTML::Mason appears). This module has been available on CPAN for over two years, with a relatively stable interface and feature set. If you encounter any problems, please inform the author and I'll endeavor to patch them promptly. Tested Platforms This release has been tested succesfully on the following platforms: 5.6.1 on darwin Earlier releases have also tested OK on a wide variety of platforms. You may review the current test results from CPAN-Testers: * http://testers.cpan.org/show/Text-MicroMason.html Support If you have questions or feedback about this module, please feel free to contact the author at the below address. Although there is no formal support program, I do attempt to answer email promptly. I would be particularly interested in any suggestions towards improving the documentation, correcting any Perl-version or platform dependencies, as well as general feedback and suggested additions. Bug reports that contain a failing test case are greatly appreciated, and suggested patches will be promptly considered for inclusion in future releases. To report bugs via the CPAN web tracking system, go to "http://rt.cpan.org/NoAuth/Bugs.html?Dist=Text-MicroMason" or send mail to "Dist=Text-MicroMason#rt.cpan.org", replacing "#" with "@". CREDITS AND COPYRIGHT Author Developed by Matthew Simon Cavalletto at Evolution Softworks. More free Perl software is available at "www.evoscript.org". You may contact the author directly at "evo@cpan.org" or "simonm@cavalletto.org". The Shoulders of Giants Based on the superb HTML::Mason, originally developed by Jonathan Swartz. Feedback and Suggestions My sincere thanks to the following users who have provided feedback: Pascal Barbedor Mark Hampton Philip King Daniel J. Wright William Kern Tommi Maekitalo Copyright Copyright 2002, 2003 Matthew Simon Cavalletto. Portions copyright 2001 Evolution Online Systems, Inc. License You may use, modify, and distribute this software under the same terms as Perl.