Faq-O-Matic Faq-O-Matic: README

Faq-O-Matic Faq-O-Matic: README

<a href="">Faq-O-Matic Faq-O-Matic</a> : <a href="">Administrators' Guide</a> : <a href="">Install</a> :
README
====================
What is FAQ-O-Matic?
====================

The Faq-O-Matic is a CGI-based system that automates the process of
maintaining a FAQ (or Frequently Asked Questions list). It allows
visitors to your FAQ to take part in keeping it up-to-date. A
permission system also makes it useful as a help-desk application,
bug-tracking database, or documentation system.

This documentation itself is, naturally, maintained with Faq-O-Matic:

<http://faqomatic.sourceforge.net/>

===============
Latest Version:
===============

Before you get in too deep, make sure you have the latest version
of the FAQ-O-Matic. Check the main website to see which version it is
running:

<http://faqomatic.sourceforge.net>

Especially the Administrators' Guide:

<http://faqomatic.sourceforge.net/cgi-bin/fom?file=3>

And check the download site for the most recent revision:

<http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=10674>
<http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/faqomatic/>

===========
Quickstart:
===========

% perl Makefile.PL
% make
% make install
% mv fom /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/fom
(or wherever your CGIs live.)
% netscape http://localhost/cgi-bin/fom
(or whatever browser you prefer)
(or whatever the URL would be to execute the CGI)

* subscribe to faqomatic-users (see link to FOMFOM at bottom).

* add your Faq-O-Matic (a description is fine if it's not public) to
the List of Faqomatics (on the FOMFOM).

* send Jon a postcard, if you're feeling generous.

======================
Themes and Variations:
======================

* If you don't have the privilege to install the modules in an "official"
place, tell Makefile.PL that before you start:

% mkdir ~/user_perl
% perl Makefile.PL PREFIX=~/user_perl
% make
...

* If your web server requires CGIs to have a certain suffix, simply
rename the generated file "fom" to something like "fom.cgi":

...
% mv fom /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/fom.cgi
% netscape http://localhost/cgi-bin/fom.cgi

* If the user that CGIs run as can't write to the directory in which
CGIs reside (a wise security move), create a writable meta/ directory
(or a link to one) there in advance:

...
% mv fom /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/fom
% mkdir /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/meta
% chown nobody /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/meta
% netscape http://localhost/cgi-bin/fom

or

...
% mv fom /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/fom
% mkdir /somewhere/else/meta
% chown nobody /somewhere/else/meta
% ln -s /somewhere/else/meta /usr/local/etc/httpd/cgi-bin/meta
% netscape http://localhost/cgi-bin/fom

* If you'd rather not even put a link in that directory, modify the
fom CGI stub to name the meta directly:

% vi fom
% cat fom
#!/usr/local/bin/perl
use Faq::Omatic::dispatch
Faq::Omatic::dispatch::main('/somewhere/else/meta/');
% mv fom ...

Either of the above two techniques are also suitable for running
multiple FAQ-O-Matics on one server. Keep in mind that if the FAQs
are related, they should probably be kept together as one FAQ with
a few main categories, so searches will search the entire lot.

=====
Bugs:
=====

Bugs and problems are best reported at
<http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?func=add&group_id=10674&atid=110674>

============
Author Info:
============

Jon Howell
[email protected]
http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~jonh

This document is at: http://www.jonh.net/cgi-bin/faqomatic/fom?file=1026
Generated by FAQ-O-Matic 2.715d,
available at http://faqomatic.sourceforge.net/