[pmwiki-users] Acme software closing down...

[The Editor]

On 5/21/07, Ben Wilson <dausha at gmail.com> wrote:
> On 5/20/07, The Editor <editor at fast.st> wrote:
> > Due to surprizing success in my attempts to develop an experimental
> > wiki engine, the glory days of the Acme software enterprise appears to
> > be numbered (at least the PmWiki division). I still intend to continue
> > participating in the PmWiki community, but at a reduced level--as I am
> > switching everything over to ZAPwiki.
>
> Just to confirm, ZAPwiki is a fork of PmWiki, right?

If you mean a variation or branch off from the PmWiki code (which is
how I understand the term), the answer is no.  ZAPwiki is built from
the ground up with virtually all new code. It is an entirely new wiki.

I wanted to try a radically different paradigm for a wiki, of using
ZAP to perform all wiki actions. That is, you basically create the
wiki engine within the wiki. Tremendously flexible!  I also wanted
something MUCH simpler than PmWiki which seems to be getting more
complex by the day. Some of these things make ZAP much more difficult
than it needs to be. The ZAPwiki code for example--including the ZAP
engine, is about the same size as the ZAP plugin (ZAP & Toolbox) for
PmWiki, and smaller than the single pmwiki.php script. Yet it is quite
comparable to PmWiki in functionality--and extensibility

It also has *many* creative features not in PmWiki that I'm hoping
will stimulate PmWiki development. At some point I may post a list of
ZAPwiki's more *unique* features, but though working, it's still not
quite ready for release.

Of course, if by fork you mean--someone in the community creating a
competing wiki--I guess you could call ZAPwiki a fork. I don't really
see ZAPwiki as "competition", just meeting a certain niche.  I'd still
recommend PmWiki for large, production sites. With Pm behind it,
PmWiki will always be first rate in terms of security, stability, and
robustness. Those with smaller sites, wanting something simpler,
*might* find ZAPwiki a better alternative. I have found it preferable
for my site--but I designed it specifically for my needs.

> "Here are some of the documents I've pulled together to sketch out
> plans for ZAPwiki, a new "easy" wiki engine that can run ZAP all by
> itself. ZAPwiki is not designed to be a replacement for the wonderful
> security, flexibility, and power in PmWiki, but rather a simpler
> alternative with an easier interface some users may prefer. I'm mostly
> doing it just to see if I can!"
>
> http://www.fast.st/zapbeta/index.php?n=Support-Engine/HomePage

Actually, I have a demo site up right now with more current
documentation. It can be reached at www.zapwiki.org

Cheers,
Dan

PS.  Comments and feedback welcome.