path: root/web/index.skb

;;;
;;; Skribilo's Wonderful Website.
;;;

(use-modules (skribilo ast)
	     (skribilo engine)
	     (skribilo source lisp)
	     (skribilo package html-navtabs))

(define (html-tabs n e)
  ;; Create one "navigation tab" for each chapter.
  (let ((doc (ast-document n)))
    (map handle
         (container-search-down (lambda (n)
                                  (is-markup? n 'chapter))
                                doc))))


(let ((html (find-engine 'html)))
  (if (engine? html)
      (begin
        ;; Customizing the HTML output...
	(engine-custom-set! html 'css "skribilo.css")
        (engine-custom-set! html 'html-navtabs-produce-css? #f)
        (engine-custom-set! html 'html-navtabs html-tabs))))



;;;
;;; List of useful URLs.
;;;

(define (wikipedia/markup . body)
  (ref :url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markup_language"
     :text body))

(define (wikipedia/markup-less . body)
  (ref :url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightweight_markup_language"
     :text body))

(define (wikipedia/esperanto . body)
  (ref :url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esperanto"
     :text body))

(define (scheme . body)
  (ref :url "http://schemers.org/" :text body))

(define (guile . body)
  (ref :url "http://www.gnu.org/software/guile/guile.html" :text body))

(define (r6rs . body)
  (ref :url "http://r6rs.org/" :text body))

(define (latex . body)
  (ref :url "http://www.latex-project.org/" :text body))
  
(define (context . body)
  (ref :url "http://www.pragma-ade.nl/" :text body))

(define (lout . body)
  (ref :url "http://savannah.nongnu.org/projects/lout/" :text body))

(define (ploticus . body)
  (ref :url "http://ploticus.sf.net/" :text body))

(define (guile-lib . body)
  (ref :url "http://home.gna.org/guile-lib/" :text body))

(define (freedom . body)
  (ref :url "http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html" :text body))

(define (gpl . body)
  (ref :url "http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html" :text body))

(define (emacs/outline . body)
  (ref :url "http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/manual/html_node/emacs/Outline-Mode.html"
     :text body))

(define (skribilo-ml . body)
  (ref :url "http://lists.nongnu.org/mailman/listinfo/skribilo-users"
     :text body))

(define (git . body)
  (ref :url "http://git.or.cz/" :text body))

(define (skribe* . body)
  (ref :url "http://www-sop.inria.fr/mimosa/fp/Skribe/" :text body))

(define (scribe . body)
  (ref :url "http://www-sop.inria.fr/mimosa/fp/Scribe/" :text body))

(define (bigloo . body)
  (ref :url "http://www-sop.inria.fr/mimosa/fp/Bigloo/" :text body))

(define (stklos . body)
  (ref :url "http://www.stklos.org/" :text body))
  
(define %user-sui
  ;; Location of the User Manual's SUI file.
  "doc/user.sui")


;;;
;;; The website.
;;;

(document :title [Skribilo: The Ultimate Document Programming Framework]
   :author #f
   :keywords '("Skribilo" "document programming"
               "document formatting" "authoring"
               "Scheme" "Guile"
               "Skribe" "Lout" "LaTeX" "HTML")

   (mark "intro")

   (p [Skribilo is a ,(freedom [free]) document production tool that
takes a structured document representation as its input and renders that
document in a variety of output formats: HTML for on-line browsing, and
,(lout [Lout]) and ,(latex [LaTeX]) for high-quality hard copies.])

   (p [The input document can use Skribilo's ,(wikipedia/markup [markup
language]) to provide information about the document's structure, which
is similar to HTML or ,(latex [LaTeX]) and does not require expertise.
Alternatively, it can use a simpler, ``,(wikipedia/markup-less
[markup-less])'' format that borrows from ,(emacs/outline [Emacs'
outline mode]) and from other conventions used in emails, Usenet and
text.])

   (p [Last but not least, Skribilo can be thought of as a complete
,(emph [document programming framework]) for the ,(scheme [Scheme
programming language]) that may be used to automate a variety of
document generation tasks.  Skribilo uses ,(guile [GNU Guile]) 1.8 or 2.0 as
the underlying Scheme implementation.])


   (chapter :title [Features] :number #f :file #f

      (itemize
         (item [Output in a ,(ref :skribe %user-sui :ident "engines"
:text [variety of formats]): HTML, XML, ,(lout [Lout]), ,(latex
[LaTeX]), ,(context [ConTeXt]).])
         (item [Input using ,(skribe* [Skribe])'s ,(ref :skribe
%user-sui :ident "skribe-syntax" :text [markup]) (see ,(ref :mark "self"
:text [this example])) or using free form, markup-less text and
conventions similar to those used in ,(ref :skribe %user-sui :ident
"outline-syntax" :text [Emacs' outline mode]).])
         (item [Packages are available to produce: ,(ref :skribe
%user-sui :ident "slides" :text [slides]) (overhead transparencies),
,(ref :skribe %user-sui :ident "pie-charts" :text [pie charts]), ,(ref
:skribe %user-sui :ident "equations" :text [equation formatting]), ,(ref
:skribe %user-sui :ident "programs" :text [syntax highlighting of
computer programs]), and others.])
         (item [,(ref :skribe %user-sui :chapter "Bibliographies" :text
[Bibliography management]), i.e., BibTeX on steroids thanks to the
programmability brought by ,(scheme [Scheme]).])
         (item [Use of a proper module system (currently that of ,(guile
[Guile])) rather than ,(tt [load])-style interactions.])
         (item [And much more!  :-)])))

   (chapter :title [Availability] :number #f :file #f

      (p [Releases are available from the ,(ref :text [download area]
:url "http://dl.sv.nongnu.org/releases/skribilo/").])

      (p [Skribilo is distributed under the terms of the ,(gpl [GNU
General Public Licence]), version 2 or later.  In order to use Skribilo,
you need the following pieces of software:

,(itemize
    (item [,(guile [GNU Guile]) 1.8.3 or later, or 2.0;])
    (item [,(ref :url "http://www.nongnu.org/guile-reader/"
               :text [Guile-Reader]) 0.3 or later;])
    (item [either ,(lout [Lout]) (3.31 or later), ,(latex [LaTeX]) or
,(context [ConTeXt]) to produce hard copies (PostScript/PDF);])
    (item [optionally, ,(ploticus [Ploticus]) to produce pie charts
(alternatively, ,(lout [Lout]) can be used for that purpose).]))]))

   (chapter :title [Documentation] :number #f :file #f ;; FIXME: Do it!

      (p [The user manual is available in the following formats:

,(itemize
    (item (ref :text [HTML] :url "doc/user.html"))
    (item (ref :text [PDF] :url "doc/user.pdf")))]))

   (chapter :title [Example] :number #f :file #f

      (p [Here is a live example: the source code of this web page,
colored using Skribilo's computer program coloring features.])

      (mark "self")
      (tt (prog
	     (source :language skribe
		:file "index.skb"))))

   (chapter :title [Mailing List] :number #f :file #f
      :ident "mailing-list"

      (p [If you want to complain or tell how bright and shinning your
life has become since you discovered Skribilo, then go ahead and
subscribe to the ,(skribilo-ml [,(tt [skribilo-users]) mailing list])!
If you want to suggest improvements, that's also where they should go!]))

   (chapter :title [Development] :number #f :file #f

      (p [Development is done using the ,(git [Git]) distributed
revision control system.  You can fetch a copy of the source code
repository using the following incantation:

,(frame :class "code-excerpt" :border #f :margin #f
    (code [git-clone git://git.sv.gnu.org/skribilo.git]))

You can then happily hack on your side and eventually promote your
changes ,(ref :ident "mailing-list" :text [on the mailing-list]).])
      
      (p [The repository can also be ,(ref :url
"http://git.sv.gnu.org/gitweb/?p=skribilo.git;a=summary" :text
[browsed on-line]).])
      
      (p [A tentative list of milestones and to-do items is in the ,(ref
:url "http://git.sv.gnu.org/gitweb/?p=skribilo.git;a=blob;f=TODO" :text
[,(tt [TODO]) file]).]))

   (chapter :title [History] :number #f :file #f

      (p [Skribilo is a direct descendant of ,(skribe* [Skribe]), a
document production tool written by Manuel Serrano for ,(bigloo
[Bigloo]) and ported to ,(stklos [STkLos]) by Erick Gallesio.
Development of ,(skribe* [Skribe]) started around 2003 as a successor of
Manuel's previous documentation system named ,(scribe [Scribe]).])

      (p [Skribilo derives from Skribe 1.2d but it differs in a number
of ways:

,(itemize
    (item [It contains new packages (pie charts, equation formatting)
and a new engine (the ,(lout [Lout]) engine).])
    (item [Symmetrically to the notion of engine (rendering back-ends),
Skribilo has the concept of ,(emph [readers]).  A reader is the part
that reads an input document in a specific syntax and returns an
abstract syntax tree understandable by the core mechanisms.  Skribilo
currently comes with two readers: one that implements the standard
Skribe syntax, and one that reads free form text with annotations
similar to those found in ,(emacs/outline [Emacs' outline mode]).])
    (item [It's been reworked to be used as a framework or library,
rather than as a stand-alone program.  As a result, the logical
separation of modules has been improved, the globally shared state has
been significantly reduced, and ,(ref :url
"http://srfi.schemers.org/srfi-35/srfi-35.html" :text [SRFI-35
exceptions]) are used rather than plain ,(tt [error]) or ,(tt [exit])
calls.  The idea is to expose ,(emph [all the core mechanisms]) of
Skribilo to the user, thereby blurring the border between the user
program or document and the core of the system.])
    (item [Although Skribilo only runs on ,(guile [GNU Guile]), care was
taken to use mostly portable APIs (,(ref :url "http://srfi.schemers.org/"
:text [SRFIs])) so that the code is intelligible to most Scheme
programmers.]))]))

    (chapter :title [Related Links] :number #f :file #f

       (itemize
          (item [,(skribe* [Skribe]), the father of Skribilo.  Its
predecessor is ,(scribe [Scribe]) and their goals were expressed in
,(ref :url "http://www-sop.inria.fr/mimosa/fp/Scribe/doc/scribe.html"
:text (it [the Scribe white paper])) by Manuel Serrano and �rick
Gallesio.  Their 2005 Journal of Functional Programming (JFP) article
entitled ,(ref :url
"http://www-sop.inria.fr/mimosa/Manuel.Serrano/publi/jfp05/article.html"
:text (it [Skribe: A Functional Authoring Language])) provides further
insight.])
	  (item [,(ref :url
"http://docs.racket-lang.org/scribble/index.html" :text [Scribble]), the
documentation system of Racket, is similar in spirit to Skribilo/Skribe.
It has ,(ref :url
"http://docs.racket-lang.org/scribble/getting-started.html" :text
[different syntax]) and ,(ref :url
"http://docs.racket-lang.org/scribble/base.html" :text [markup]).  ,(ref
:skribe %user-sui :ident "engines" :text [Like Skribilo]), it supports
several ,(ref :url "http://docs.racket-lang.org/scribble/renderer.html"
:text "renderers").  It does not seem to provide an API to work with the
AST, and things like ,(ref :url
"http://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/skribilo.git/tree/src/guile/skribilo/resolve.scm"
:text (tt [resolve])).])
          (item [Andy Wingo's ,(ref :url
"http://wingolog.org/software/guile-lib/texinfo/" :text [STexi]) (,(ref
:text [Texinfo] :url "http://www.gnu.org/software/texinfo/") as
S-expressions), available in ,(guile-lib [Guile-lib]).  The purely
functional ,(ref :text (tt [fold-layout]) :url
"http://home.gna.org/guile-lib/doc/ref/sxml.fold/") operator is also
very interesting.])
          (item [,(ref :url "http://okmij.org/ftp/Scheme/SXML.html"
:text [SXML]), XML as S-expressions.  Oleg Kiselyov's discussion of
,(ref :text [implementation strategies for a purely functional SXML
tree] :url "http://okmij.org/ftp/Scheme/parent-pointers.txt") is a good
source of inspiration.])
	  (item [,(ref :url
	  "http://www.ccs.neu.edu/home/dorai/mistie/mistie.html" :text
[Mistie]), a ``programmable filter'' in Scheme (for MzScheme) that
allows the definition of filters from one markup language to another
one.])
	  (item [,(ref :url "http://www.it.usyd.edu.au/~jeff/nonpareil/"
:text [Nonpareil]), Jeff Kingston's much anticipated successor to ,(lout
[Lout]), both being purely functional document formatting
systems/languages.  Although Nonpareil is more ambitious than Skribilo,
the document entitled ,(it [Nonpareil Document Formatting]) shows
interesting similarities between both systems: separation of document
syntax and programming syntax (``readers'' and Scheme in Skribilo),
representation of document structure separated from the representation
of a laid out document (Nonpareil's ,(it [doc]) objects resemble
Skribilo's ,(tt [<ast>]) objects; its ,(it [scene]) objects have no
equivalent in Skribilo since Skribilo doesn't address text layout by
itself).  It also includes interesting discussions about text selection
and document traversal (Nonpareil's ,(it [doc]) objects have no parent
pointers, unlike Skribilo's ,(tt [<ast>])).])
	  (item [Good ol' ,(ref :url
"http://www.gnu.org/software/texinfo/" :text [GNU Texinfo]) abstracts
the various kinds of back-ends very well (in particular its
cross-reference-related commands).])
          (item [,(ref :url
"http://www.coyotos.org/docs/osdoc/osdoc.html" :text [OSDoc]), a
derivative of ,(ref :url "http://docbook.org/" :text [Docbook]).])
          (item [Systems that produce documents in various formats from
(almost) markup-less input text: ,(ref :url "http://txt2tags.sf.net/"
:text [txt2tags]), ,(ref :url "http://www.maplefish.com/todd/aft.html"
:text [AFT]), ,(ref :url "http://os.inf.tu-dresden.de/~nf2/files/GOSH/"
:text [GOSH]), ,(ref :url "http://mercnet.pt/plaindoc/pd.html" :text
[PlainDoc]), ,(ref :url "http://www.methods.co.nz/asciidoc/" :text
[AsciiDoc]), ,(ref :url "http://docutils.sourceforge.net/rst.html" :text
[reStructured Text (RST)]), ,(ref :url
"http://www.t3x.org/attic/index.html#sd" :text [SD]), ,(ref :url
"http://triptico.com/software/grutatxt.html" :text [Grutatxt]), and many
others.])))
	
   (chapter :title [The Name] :number #f :file #f
      
      (p [Skribilo is an ,(wikipedia/esperanto [Esperanto]) noun, which
literally means ,(ref :url
"http://www.reta-vortaro.de/revo/art/skrib.html#skrib.0ilo" :text [``a
tool to write'']) (prefix ``,(ref :url
"http://www.reta-vortaro.de/revo/art/skrib.html" :text [skrib])''
relates to writing, while suffix ``,(ref :text [-ilo] :url
"http://www.reta-vortaro.de/revo/art/il.html")'' designates a tool).
Interestingly, ``,(skribe* [skribe])'', which is the name of the tool
Skribilo is based on, is an adverb meaning ``writing'' in
,(wikipedia/esperanto [Esperanto]).])))


;;; Local Variables:
;;; coding: latin-1
;;; ispell-local-dictionary: "american"
;;; End:

;;; arch-tag: fd51e0ce-d99f-4b70-8b92-9afbcfcf8855