Distributing django applications
I had a report that version 1.2 of my codehosting package did not
include all of the required files. It turns out I messed up the
setup.py file and left out the templates, images, and CSS files. Oops.
In the process of trying to fix the setup file, I discovered that distutils does not include package data in sdist. Not a big deal, since I just created a MANIFEST.in file to get around it.
My next challenge (for this project) is how to write the templates in a way that would let anyone actually reuse them. For example, the project details page shows info about the most current release and a complete release history. It uses a 2 column layout for that, but the way I have it implemented the layout is defined in the base template for my site. I want to move that layout from the site base template down into the application base template, but I do not want to repeat myself if I can avoid it. Maybe I need to get over that and just repeat the layout instructions. Or refactor the site base template somehow. Obviously that needs more thought. I did find some useful advice in DosAndDontsForApplicationWriters, but have not implemented all of those suggestions.
In the mean time, release 1.4 of codehosting is more flexible than the previous releases and is probably closer to something useful for people other than me.
[Updated 28 Sept 2007 to correct typo in title]