[pmwiki-users] End of official ZAP support...

The Editor editor at fast.st
Mon Aug 6 11:24:31 CDT 2007


As a few of the recent posts have hinted, I'm finding it increasingly
difficult to continue support for ZAP while also developing ZAPwiki,
and I've been forced to the conclusion I simply can't do both.

So with a fair bit of sadness, I've decided to fully relinquish ZAP,
as well as all my other PmWiki recipes to whoever cares to maintain
them. Ben S. and others have expressed interest in continuing ZAP's
development, and I wish them the best success. Exploring ZAPwiki would
be a fruitful effort for anyone wanting a glimpse of what ZAP might
one day become. On the other hand, Pm's recent improvements to forms
processing make me wonder whether the focus should be on building ZAP,
or extending PmWiki's core capabilities. Either way I have uploaded
nearly 150k of documentation to Cookbook/ZAP and will be shutting down
zapsite.org in the near future.

I still wish it would have been possible to continue developing ZAP
within PmWiki, for I've truly enjoyed the community here. :) But after
many friendly, and helpful discussions with Pm, it has become clear
the underlying philosophy of PmWiki simply will not allow the changes
it would require to bring ZAP to the next level. That of course is
Pm's strength--a clear strategy which he executes with discernment and
fidelity. As such, my highest respect to Pm for his penetrating
analysis and the internal consistency of his positions. It just posed
a rather frustrating limitation for me.

ZAPwiki DOES require a shift in underlying philosophy. It's
experimental--but so far it has led to software quite comparable to
PmWiki in most basic functionalities--yet with a download 1/4th its
size. It also has some big plusses in terms of wildly customizable
site actions, and a systemically hierarchical, case-insensitive
system, among others. Most of the specific initial issues raised about
ZAPwiki have long since been resolved, and it is (seemingly) quite
stable, secure, and fast. Whether or not ZAPwiki will remain so,
however, built on the divergent, experimental philosophy it is,
remains to be seen. Perhaps Pm will prove right after all!

Anyway, my deepest gratitude to Pm and the rest of the PmWiki
community, for many enlightening discussions and much learning. I am
very thankful for my time here.

Cheers,
Dan



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