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.\" ========================================================================
.\"
.IX Title "CPAN::Meta::History::Meta_1_4 3perl"
.TH CPAN::Meta::History::Meta_1_4 3perl "2023-11-25" "perl v5.36.0" "Perl Programmers Reference Guide"
.\" For nroff, turn off justification.  Always turn off hyphenation; it makes
.\" way too many mistakes in technical documents.
.if n .ad l
.nh
.SH "NAME"
CPAN::Meta::History::Meta_1_4 \- Version 1.4 metadata specification for META.yml
.SH "PREFACE"
.IX Header "PREFACE"
This is a historical copy of the version 1.4 specification for \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR
files, copyright by Ken Williams and licensed under the same terms as Perl
itself.
.PP
Modifications from the original:
.IP "\(bu" 4
Various spelling corrections
.IP "\(bu" 4
Include list of valid licenses from Module::Build 0.2807 rather than
linking to the module, with minor updates to text and links to reflect
versions at the time of publication.
.IP "\(bu" 4
Fixed some dead links to point to active resources.
.SH "SYNOPSIS"
.IX Header "SYNOPSIS"
.Vb 10
\& \-\-\- #YAML:1.0
\& name: Module\-Build
\& abstract: Build and install Perl modules
\& version: 0.20
\& author:
\&   \- Ken Williams <kwilliams@cpan.org>
\& license: perl
\& distribution_type: module
\& requires:
\&   Config: 0
\&   Cwd: 0
\&   Data::Dumper: 0
\&   ExtUtils::Install: 0
\&   File::Basename: 0
\&   File::Compare: 0
\&   File::Copy: 0
\&   File::Find: 0
\&   File::Path: 0
\&   File::Spec: 0
\&   IO::File: 0
\&   perl: 5.005_03
\& recommends:
\&   Archive::Tar: 1.00
\&   ExtUtils::Install: 0.3
\&   ExtUtils::ParseXS: 2.02
\&   Pod::Text: 0
\&   YAML: 0.35
\& build_requires:
\&   Test: 0
\& resources:
\&   license: http://dev.perl.org/licenses/
\& meta\-spec:
\&   version: 1.4
\&   url: http://module\-build.sourceforge.net/META\-spec\-v1.3.html
\& generated_by: Module::Build version 0.20
.Ve
.SH "DESCRIPTION"
.IX Header "DESCRIPTION"
This document describes version 1.4 of the \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR specification.
.PP
The \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR file describes important properties of contributed
Perl distributions such as the ones found on \s-1CPAN.\s0  It is typically
created by tools like Module::Build, Module::Install, and
ExtUtils::MakeMaker.
.PP
The fields in the \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR file are meant to be helpful for people
maintaining module collections (like \s-1CPAN\s0), for people writing
installation tools (like \s-1CPAN\s0.pm or \s-1CPANPLUS\s0), or just for people who
want to know some stuff about a distribution before downloading it and
starting to install it.
.PP
\&\fINote: The latest stable version of this specification can always be
found at <http://module\-build.sourceforge.net/META\-spec\-current.html>,
and the latest development version (which may include things that
won't make it into the stable version) can always be found at
<http://module\-build.sourceforge.net/META\-spec\-blead.html>.\fR
.SH "FORMAT"
.IX Header "FORMAT"
\&\fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR files are written in the \s-1YAML\s0 format (see
<http://www.yaml.org/>).
.PP
See the following links to learn why we chose \s-1YAML\s0 instead of, say,
\&\s-1XML\s0 or Data::Dumper:
.IP "\(bu" 4
Module::Build design plans <http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.makemaker/2002/04/msg407.html>
.IP "\(bu" 4
Not keen on \s-1YAML\s0 <http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.module-authors/2003/11/msg1353.html>
.IP "\(bu" 4
\&\s-1META\s0 Concerns <http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.module-authors/2003/11/msg1385.html>
.SH "TERMINOLOGY"
.IX Header "TERMINOLOGY"
.IP "distribution" 4
.IX Item "distribution"
This is the primary object described by the \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR
specification. In the context of this document it usually refers to a
collection of modules, scripts, and/or documents that are distributed
together for other developers to use.  Examples of distributions are
\&\f(CW\*(C`Class\-Container\*(C'\fR, \f(CW\*(C`libwww\-perl\*(C'\fR, or \f(CW\*(C`DBI\*(C'\fR.
.IP "module" 4
.IX Item "module"
This refers to a reusable library of code typically contained in a
single file. Currently, we primarily talk of perl modules, but this
specification should be open enough to apply to other languages as
well (ex. python, ruby).  Examples of modules are \f(CW\*(C`Class::Container\*(C'\fR,
\&\f(CW\*(C`LWP::Simple\*(C'\fR, or \f(CW\*(C`DBD::File\*(C'\fR.
.SH "HEADER"
.IX Header "HEADER"
The first line of a \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR file should be a valid \s-1YAML\s0 document
header like \f(CW"\-\-\- #YAML:1.0"\fR.
.SH "FIELDS"
.IX Header "FIELDS"
The rest of the \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR file is one big \s-1YAML\s0 mapping whose keys
are described here.
.SS "meta-spec"
.IX Subsection "meta-spec"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 3
\& meta\-spec:
\&   version: 1.4
\&   url: http://module\-build.sourceforge.net/META\-spec\-v1.3.html
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [required] {\s-1URL\s0} This field indicates the location of the
version of the \s-1META\s0.yml specification used.
.SS "name"
.IX Subsection "name"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 1
\&  name: Module\-Build
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [required] {string} The name of the distribution which is often
created by taking the \*(L"main module\*(R" in the distribution and changing
\&\*(L"::\*(R" to \*(L"\-\*(R".  Sometimes it's completely different, however, as in the
case of the libwww-perl distribution (see
<http://search.cpan.org/dist/libwww\-perl/>).
.SS "version"
.IX Subsection "version"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 1
\&  version: 0.20
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [required] {version} The version of the distribution to which the
\&\fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR file refers.
.SS "abstract"
.IX Subsection "abstract"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 1
\&  abstract: Build and install Perl modules.
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [required] {string} A short description of the purpose of the
distribution.
.SS "author"
.IX Subsection "author"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 2
\&  author:
\&    \- Ken Williams <kwilliams@cpan.org>
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [required] {list of strings} A \s-1YAML\s0 sequence indicating the author(s) of the
distribution. The preferred form is author-name <email\-address>.
.SS "license"
.IX Subsection "license"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 1
\&  license: perl
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [required] {string} The license under which this
distribution may be used and redistributed.
.PP
Must be one of the following licenses:
.IP "apache" 4
.IX Item "apache"
The distribution is licensed under the Apache Software License version 1.1
(<http://opensource.org/licenses/Apache\-1.1>).
.IP "artistic" 4
.IX Item "artistic"
The distribution is licensed under the Artistic License version 1, as specified
by the Artistic file in the standard perl distribution
(<http://opensource.org/licenses/Artistic\-Perl\-1.0>).
.IP "bsd" 4
.IX Item "bsd"
The distribution is licensed under the \s-1BSD\s0 3\-Clause License
(<http://opensource.org/licenses/BSD\-3\-Clause>).
.IP "gpl" 4
.IX Item "gpl"
The distribution is distributed under the terms of the \s-1GNU\s0 General Public
License version 2 (<http://opensource.org/licenses/GPL\-2.0>).
.IP "lgpl" 4
.IX Item "lgpl"
The distribution is distributed under the terms of the \s-1GNU\s0 Lesser General
Public License version 2 (<http://opensource.org/licenses/LGPL\-2.1>).
.IP "mit" 4
.IX Item "mit"
The distribution is licensed under the \s-1MIT\s0 License
(<http://opensource.org/licenses/MIT>).
.IP "mozilla" 4
.IX Item "mozilla"
The distribution is licensed under the Mozilla Public License.
(<http://opensource.org/licenses/MPL\-1.0> or
<http://opensource.org/licenses/MPL\-1.1>)
.IP "open_source" 4
.IX Item "open_source"
The distribution is licensed under some other Open Source Initiative-approved
license listed at <http://www.opensource.org/licenses/>.
.IP "perl" 4
.IX Item "perl"
The distribution may be copied and redistributed under the same terms as perl
itself (this is by far the most common licensing option for modules on \s-1CPAN\s0).
This is a dual license, in which the user may choose between either the \s-1GPL\s0 or
the Artistic license.
.IP "restrictive" 4
.IX Item "restrictive"
The distribution may not be redistributed without special permission from the
author and/or copyright holder.
.IP "unrestricted" 4
.IX Item "unrestricted"
The distribution is licensed under a license that is not approved by
www.opensource.org <http://www.opensource.org/> but that allows distribution
without restrictions.
.SS "distribution_type"
.IX Subsection "distribution_type"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 1
\&  distribution_type: module
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [optional] {string} What kind of stuff is contained in this
distribution.  Most things on \s-1CPAN\s0 are \f(CW\*(C`module\*(C'\fRs (which can also mean
a collection of modules), but some things are \f(CW\*(C`script\*(C'\fRs.
.PP
Unfortunately this field is basically meaningless, since many
distributions are hybrids of several kinds of things, or some new
thing, or subjectively different in focus depending on who's using
them.  Tools like Module::Build and MakeMaker will likely stop
generating this field.
.SS "requires"
.IX Subsection "requires"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 3
\&  requires:
\&    Data::Dumper: 0
\&    File::Find: 1.03
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [optional] {map} A \s-1YAML\s0 mapping indicating the Perl
prerequisites this distribution requires for proper operation.  The
keys are the names of the prerequisites (module names or 'perl'), and
the values are version specifications as described in \s-1VERSION
SPECIFICATIONS\s0.
.SS "recommends"
.IX Subsection "recommends"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 3
\&  recommends:
\&    Data::Dumper: 0
\&    File::Find: 1.03
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [optional] {map} A \s-1YAML\s0 mapping indicating the Perl
prerequisites this distribution recommends for enhanced operation.
The keys are the names of the prerequisites (module names or 'perl'),
and the values are version specifications as described in \s-1VERSION
SPECIFICATIONS\s0.
.PP
\&\fI\s-1ALTERNATIVE:\s0 It may be desirable to present to the user which
features depend on which modules so they can make an informed decision
about which recommended modules to install.\fR
.PP
Example:
.PP
.Vb 6
\&  optional_features:
\&    foo:
\&      description: Provides the ability to blah.
\&      requires:
\&        Data::Dumper: 0
\&        File::Find: 1.03
.Ve
.PP
\&\fI(Spec 1.1) [optional] {map} A \s-1YAML\s0 mapping of names for optional features
which are made available when its requirements are met. For each
feature a description is provided along with any of \*(L"requires\*(R",
\&\*(L"build_requires\*(R", and \*(L"conflicts\*(R", which have the same meaning in
this subcontext as described elsewhere in this document.\fR
.SS "build_requires"
.IX Subsection "build_requires"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 3
\&  build_requires:
\&    Data::Dumper: 0
\&    File::Find: 1.03
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [optional] {map} A \s-1YAML\s0 mapping indicating the Perl
prerequisites required for building and/or testing of this
distribution.  The keys are the names of the prerequisites (module
names or 'perl'), and the values are version specifications as
described in \*(L"\s-1VERSION SPECIFICATIONS\*(R"\s0.  These dependencies are not
required after the distribution is installed.
.SS "configure_requires"
.IX Subsection "configure_requires"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 4
\&  configure_requires:
\&    Module::Build: 0.2809
\&    Data::Dumper: 0
\&    File::Find: 1.03
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.4) [optional] {map} A \s-1YAML\s0 mapping indicating the Perl prerequisites
required before configuring this distribution.  The keys are the
names of the prerequisites (module names or 'perl'), and the values are version
specifications as described in \*(L"\s-1VERSION SPECIFICATIONS\*(R"\s0.  These
dependencies are not required after the distribution is installed.
.SS "conflicts"
.IX Subsection "conflicts"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 3
\&  conflicts:
\&    Data::Dumper: 0
\&    File::Find: 1.03
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [optional] {map} A \s-1YAML\s0 mapping indicating any items that
cannot be installed while this distribution is installed.  This is a
pretty uncommon situation.  The keys for \f(CW\*(C`conflicts\*(C'\fR are the item
names (module names or 'perl'), and the values are version
specifications as described in \*(L"\s-1VERSION SPECIFICATIONS\*(R"\s0.
.SS "dynamic_config"
.IX Subsection "dynamic_config"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 1
\&  dynamic_config: 0
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [optional] {boolean} A boolean flag indicating whether a \fIBuild.PL\fR
or \fIMakefile.PL\fR (or similar) must be executed when building this
distribution, or whether it can be built, tested and installed solely
from consulting its
metadata file.  The main reason to set this to a true value is that
your module performs some dynamic configuration (asking questions,
sensing the environment, etc.) as part of its build/install process.
.PP
Currently Module::Build doesn't actually do anything with this flag
\&\- it's probably going to be up to higher-level tools like \s-1CPAN\s0
to do something useful with it.  It can potentially bring lots of
security, packaging, and convenience improvements.
.PP
If this field is omitted, it defaults to 1 (true).
.SS "private"
.IX Subsection "private"
\&\fI(Deprecated)\fR (Spec 1.0) [optional] {map} This field has been renamed to
\&\*(L"no_index\*(R".  See below.
.SS "provides"
.IX Subsection "provides"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 9
\&  provides:
\&    Foo::Bar:
\&      file: lib/Foo/Bar.pm
\&      version: 0.27_02
\&    Foo::Bar::Blah:
\&      file: lib/Foo/Bar/Blah.pm
\&    Foo::Bar::Baz:
\&      file: lib/Foo/Bar/Baz.pm
\&      version: 0.3
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [optional] {map} A \s-1YAML\s0 mapping that describes all packages
provided by this distribution.  This information can be (and, in some
cases, is) used by distribution and automation mechanisms like \s-1PAUSE,
CPAN,\s0 and search.cpan.org to build indexes saying in which
distribution various packages can be found.
.PP
When using tools like Module::Build that can generate the
\&\f(CW\*(C`provides\*(C'\fR mapping for your distribution automatically, make sure you
examine what it generates to make sure it makes sense \- indexers will
usually trust the \f(CW\*(C`provides\*(C'\fR field if it's present, rather than
scanning through the distribution files themselves to figure out
packages and versions.  This is a good thing, because it means you can
use the \f(CW\*(C`provides\*(C'\fR field to tell the indexers precisely what you want
indexed about your distribution, rather than relying on them to
essentially guess what you want indexed.
.SS "no_index"
.IX Subsection "no_index"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 9
\&  no_index:
\&    file:
\&    \- My/Module.pm
\&    directory:
\&    \- My/Private
\&    package:
\&    \- My::Module::Stuff
\&    namespace:
\&    \- My::Module::Stuff
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [optional] {map} A \s-1YAML\s0 mapping that describes any files,
directories, packages, and namespaces that are private
(i.e. implementation artifacts) that are not of interest to searching
and indexing tools.  This is useful when no \f(CW\*(C`provides\*(C'\fR field is
present.
.PP
For example, <http://search.cpan.org/> excludes items listed in \f(CW\*(C`no_index\*(C'\fR
when searching for \s-1POD,\s0 meaning files in these directories will not
converted to \s-1HTML\s0 and made public \- which is useful if you have
example or test PODs that you don't want the search engine to go
through.
.PP
\fIfile\fR
.IX Subsection "file"
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [optional] Exclude any listed file(s).
.PP
\fIdirectory\fR
.IX Subsection "directory"
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [optional] Exclude anything below the listed
directory(ies).
.PP
[Note: previous editions of the spec had \f(CW\*(C`dir\*(C'\fR instead of
\&\f(CW\*(C`directory\*(C'\fR, but I think MakeMaker and various users started using
\&\f(CW\*(C`directory\*(C'\fR, so in deference we switched to that.]
.PP
\fIpackage\fR
.IX Subsection "package"
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [optional] Exclude the listed package(s).
.PP
\fInamespace\fR
.IX Subsection "namespace"
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [optional] Excludes anything below the listed namespace(s),
but \fInot\fR the listed namespace(s) its self.
.SS "keywords"
.IX Subsection "keywords"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 4
\&  keywords:
\&    \- make
\&    \- build
\&    \- install
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [optional] {list} A sequence of keywords/phrases that describe
this distribution.
.SS "resources"
.IX Subsection "resources"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 6
\&  resources:
\&    license: http://dev.perl.org/licenses/
\&    homepage: http://sourceforge.net/projects/module\-build
\&    bugtracker: http://rt.cpan.org/NoAuth/Bugs.html?Dist=Module\-Build
\&    repository: http://sourceforge.net/cvs/?group_id=45731
\&    MailingList: http://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/module\-build\-general
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.1) [optional] {map} A mapping of any \s-1URL\s0 resources related to
this distribution.  All-lower-case keys, such as \f(CW\*(C`homepage\*(C'\fR,
\&\f(CW\*(C`license\*(C'\fR, and \f(CW\*(C`bugtracker\*(C'\fR, are reserved by this specification, as
they have \*(L"official\*(R" meanings defined here in this specification.  If
you'd like to add your own \*(L"special\*(R" entries (like the \*(L"MailingList\*(R"
entry above), use at least one upper-case letter.
.PP
The current set of official keys is:
.IP "homepage" 2
.IX Item "homepage"
The official home of this project on the web.
.IP "license" 2
.IX Item "license"
An \s-1URL\s0 for an official statement of this distribution's license.
.IP "bugtracker" 2
.IX Item "bugtracker"
An \s-1URL\s0 for a bug tracker (e.g. Bugzilla or \s-1RT\s0 queue) for this project.
.SS "generated_by"
.IX Subsection "generated_by"
Example:
.PP
.Vb 1
\&  generated_by: Module::Build version 0.20
.Ve
.PP
(Spec 1.0) [required] {string} Indicates the tool that was used to create this
\&\fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR file.  It's good form to include both the name of the tool
and its version, but this field is essentially opaque, at least for
the moment. If \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR was generated by hand, it is suggested that
the author be specified here.
.PP
[Note: My \fImeta_stats.pl\fR script which I use to gather statistics
regarding \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR usage prefers the form listed above, i.e. it
splits on /\es+version\es+/ taking the first field as the name of the
tool that generated the file and the second field as version of that
tool. \s-1RWS\s0]
.SH "VERSION SPECIFICATIONS"
.IX Header "VERSION SPECIFICATIONS"
Some fields require a version specification (ex. \*(L"requires\*(R",
\&\*(L"recommends\*(R", \*(L"build_requires\*(R", etc.) to indicate the particular
version(s) of some other module that may be required as a
prerequisite.  This section details the version specification formats
that are currently supported.
.PP
The simplest format for a version specification is just the version
number itself, e.g. \f(CW2.4\fR.  This means that \fBat least\fR version 2.4
must be present.  To indicate that \fBany\fR version of a prerequisite is
okay, even if the prerequisite doesn't define a version at all, use
the version \f(CW0\fR.
.PP
You may also use the operators < (less than), <= (less than or
equal), > (greater than), >= (greater than or equal), ==
(equal), and != (not equal).  For example, the specification \f(CW\*(C`<
2.0\*(C'\fR means that any version of the prerequisite less than 2.0 is
suitable.
.PP
For more complicated situations, version specifications may be AND-ed
together using commas.  The specification \f(CW\*(C`>= 1.2, != 1.5, <
2.0\*(C'\fR indicates a version that must be \fBat least\fR 1.2, \fBless than\fR
2.0, and \fBnot equal to\fR 1.5.
.SH "SEE ALSO"
.IX Header "SEE ALSO"
\&\s-1CPAN\s0 <http://www.cpan.org/>
.PP
\&\s-1CPAN\s0.pm
.PP
\&\s-1CPANPLUS\s0
.PP
Data::Dumper
.PP
ExtUtils::MakeMaker
.PP
Module::Build
.PP
Module::Install
.PP
\&\s-1XML\s0 <http://www.w3.org/XML/>
.PP
\&\s-1YAML\s0 <http://www.yaml.org/>
.SH "HISTORY"
.IX Header "HISTORY"
.IP "March 14, 2003 (Pi day)" 4
.IX Item "March 14, 2003 (Pi day)"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Created version 1.0 of this document.
.RE
.RS 4
.RE
.IP "May 8, 2003" 4
.IX Item "May 8, 2003"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Added the \*(L"dynamic_config\*(R" field, which was missing from the initial
version.
.RE
.RS 4
.RE
.IP "November 13, 2003" 4
.IX Item "November 13, 2003"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Added more \s-1YAML\s0 rationale articles.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Fixed existing link to \s-1YAML\s0 discussion thread to point to new
<http://nntp.x.perl.org/group/> site.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Added and deprecated the \*(L"private\*(R" field.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Added \*(L"abstract\*(R", \f(CW\*(C`configure\*(C'\fR, \f(CW\*(C`requires_packages\*(C'\fR,
\&\f(CW\*(C`requires_os\*(C'\fR, \f(CW\*(C`excludes_os\*(C'\fR, and \*(L"no_index\*(R" fields.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Bumped version.
.RE
.RS 4
.RE
.IP "November 16, 2003" 4
.IX Item "November 16, 2003"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Added \f(CW\*(C`generation\*(C'\fR, \f(CW\*(C`authored_by\*(C'\fR fields.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Add alternative proposal to the \*(L"recommends\*(R" field.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Add proposal for a \f(CW\*(C`requires_build_tools\*(C'\fR field.
.RE
.RS 4
.RE
.IP "December 9, 2003" 4
.IX Item "December 9, 2003"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Added link to latest version of this specification on \s-1CPAN.\s0
.IP "\(bu" 2
Added section \*(L"\s-1VERSION SPECIFICATIONS\*(R"\s0.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Chang name from Module::Build::META\-spec to CPAN::META::Specification.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Add proposal for \f(CW\*(C`auto_regenerate\*(C'\fR field.
.RE
.RS 4
.RE
.IP "December 15, 2003" 4
.IX Item "December 15, 2003"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Add \f(CW\*(C`index\*(C'\fR field as a compliment to \*(L"no_index\*(R"
.IP "\(bu" 2
Add \*(L"keywords\*(R" field as a means to aid searching distributions.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Add \*(L"\s-1TERMINOLOGY\*(R"\s0 section to explain certain terms that may be
ambiguous.
.RE
.RS 4
.RE
.IP "July 26, 2005" 4
.IX Item "July 26, 2005"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Removed a bunch of items (generation, requires_build_tools,
requires_packages, configure, requires_os, excludes_os,
auto_regenerate) that have never actually been supported, but were
more like records of brainstorming.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Changed \f(CW\*(C`authored_by\*(C'\fR to \*(L"author\*(R", since that's always been what
it's actually called in actual \fI\s-1META\s0.yml\fR files.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Added the \*(L"==\*(R" operator to the list of supported version-checking
operators.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Noted that the \*(L"distribution_type\*(R" field is basically meaningless,
and shouldn't really be used.
.IP "\(bu" 2
Clarified \*(L"dynamic_config\*(R" a bit.
.RE
.RS 4
.RE
.IP "August 23, 2005" 4
.IX Item "August 23, 2005"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Removed the name \f(CW\*(C`CPAN::META::Specification\*(C'\fR, since that implies a
module that doesn't actually exist.
.RE
.RS 4
.RE
.IP "June 12, 2007" 4
.IX Item "June 12, 2007"
.RS 4
.PD 0
.IP "\(bu" 2
.PD
Added \*(L"configure_requires\*(R".
.RE
.RS 4
.RE