feat: auto-deploy index browser + simpler README

.github/workflows/deploy-site.yml

@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+name: deploy-site
+
+# Render `pkgs/**/*.lua` into a static HTML browser via xpkgindex and
+# publish to GitHub Pages. Re-runs on any pkgs/ change merged into main,
+# and can be kicked off manually for theme/config tweaks.
+
+on:
+  push:
+    branches: [main]
+    paths:
+      - 'pkgs/**'
+      - '.xpkgindex.json'
+      - '.github/workflows/deploy-site.yml'
+  workflow_dispatch:
+
+# GITHUB_TOKEN scopes for the deploy step.
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+  pages: write
+  id-token: write
+
+# One concurrent run per ref; in-flight runs get cancelled when a new
+# push arrives (the latest deploy is always the one we want live).
+concurrency:
+  group: pages
+  cancel-in-progress: true
+
+jobs:
+  build:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
+      - uses: actions/setup-python@v5
+        with:
+          python-version: '3.12'
+      - name: Install xpkgindex
+        run: pip install git+https://github.com/openxlings/xpkgindex.git
+      - name: Generate static site
+        env:
+          # xpkgindex >= Apr 2026 surfaces these on the About page.
+          XPKGINDEX_BUILD_TIME:       ${{ github.event.head_commit.timestamp }}
+          XPKGINDEX_BUILD_COMMIT:     ${{ github.sha }}
+          XPKGINDEX_BUILD_COMMIT_URL: ${{ github.server_url }}/${{ github.repository }}/commit/${{ github.sha }}
+        run: |
+          # workflow_dispatch leaves head_commit.timestamp empty.
+          if [ -z "$XPKGINDEX_BUILD_TIME" ]; then
+            XPKGINDEX_BUILD_TIME=$(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)
+            export XPKGINDEX_BUILD_TIME
+          fi
+          xpkgindex generate . --output site
+      - uses: actions/upload-pages-artifact@v3
+        with:
+          path: ./site
+
+  deploy:
+    needs: build
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    environment:
+      name: github-pages
+      url: ${{ steps.deployment.outputs.page_url }}
+    steps:
+      - id: deployment
+        uses: actions/deploy-pages@v4

.xpkgindex.json

@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+{
+  "site": {
+    "title": "mcpp Package Index",
+    "description": "Modular C++23 packages for the mcpp build tool",
+    "logo": "mcpp Package Index"
+  },
+  "links": {
+    "github": "https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp-index",
+    "custom": [
+      {"label": "mcpp",          "url": "https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp"},
+      {"label": "xpkg V1 spec",  "url": "https://github.com/d2learn/xim-pkgindex/blob/main/docs/V1/xpackage-spec.md"},
+      {"label": "mcpp ext",      "url": "https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp/blob/main/docs/04-schema-xpkg-extension.md"}
+    ]
+  },
+  "about": {
+    "project_name": "mcpp",
+    "project_url": "https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp",
+    "description": "Modern C++23 build & package management tool — modules-first, xlings-driven, single-binary install",
+    "maintainers": ["mcpp-community"],
+    "license": "Apache-2.0"
+  },
+  "theme": {
+    "primary_color": "#00d4ff",
+    "style": "dark"
+  },
+  "install_command_template": "mcpp add {name}@{version}",
+  "pkgs_dir": "pkgs",
+  "install_commands": {
+    "unix":    "curl -fsSL https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp/releases/latest/download/install.sh | bash",
+    "windows": "iwr https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp/releases/latest/download/install.sh -useb | bash"
+  }
+}

README.md

@@ -1,44 +1,25 @@
 # mcpp-index
 
-> Package index registry for the [`mcpp`](https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp) build tool.
-
-This repository indexes modular C++23 packages that follow the
-[xpkg v1 spec](https://github.com/d2learn/xim-pkgindex/blob/main/docs/V1/xpackage-spec.md)
-plus the [mcpp extension segment](https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp/blob/dev/docs/04-schema-xpkg-extension.md).
-
-## How is this different from xim-pkgindex / mcpplibs-index?
-
-| Repo | Format | Build tool | Status |
-|------|--------|------------|--------|
-| [`d2learn/xim-pkgindex`](https://github.com/d2learn/xim-pkgindex) | xpkg v1 (Lua) | xlings + various | Official xlings index |
-| [`mcpplibs/mcpplibs-index`](https://github.com/mcpplibs/mcpplibs-index) | xmake `package(...)` | xmake | mcpplibs xmake-style index |
-| **`mcpp-community/mcpp-index`** (this) | xpkg v1 + mcpp ext | mcpp | Modular-only, mcpp-driven |
-
-## Layout
-
-```
-pkgs/<letter>/<package>.lua    Each indexed package
-docs/                           Contributor docs
-.github/workflows/              CI: lint, validate, deploy
-```
-
-## Using this index
-
-mcpp registers `mcpp-index` automatically as the default registry. With a
-fresh `mcpp` install:
+> Default package registry for [`mcpp`](https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp).
+> Browse: **https://mcpp-community.github.io/mcpp-index/**
 
 ```bash
-mcpp env                                     # initializes ~/.mcpp/registry/
-mcpp search hello                             # searches mcpp-index
-mcpp add mcpplibs.templates@0.0.1             # adds to your project's mcpp.toml
-mcpp build                                    # mcpp pulls source via xlings, builds
+mcpp add mcpplibs.cmdline@0.0.2     # → updates mcpp.toml
+mcpp build                            # → fetches sources, builds
 ```
 
 ## Adding a package
 
-See [docs/19-creating-mcpp-index.md](https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp/blob/dev/docs/19-creating-mcpp-index.md) in the mcpp repo.
+Drop one [xpkg V1](https://github.com/d2learn/xim-pkgindex/blob/main/docs/V1/xpackage-spec.md)
+descriptor at `pkgs/<first-letter>/<name>.lua`. Existing files (e.g.
+[`pkgs/m/mbedtls.lua`](pkgs/m/mbedtls.lua),
+[`pkgs/l/lua.lua`](pkgs/l/lua.lua)) are the canonical templates;
+the [mcpp extension](https://github.com/mcpp-community/mcpp/blob/main/docs/04-schema-xpkg-extension.md)
+covers the optional `mcpp = { ... }` segment for upstreams that
+don't ship their own `mcpp.toml`. Open a PR — the `validate`
+workflow lint-checks descriptors, the `deploy-site` workflow
+republishes the browse site after merge.
 
 ## License
 
-Package descriptions: CC0 (metadata is uncopyrightable). Each indexed package
-has its own license.
+Descriptors: CC0. Each indexed upstream keeps its own license.