There was and still is the portable version 2.2 binary. It says "Standalone Executable". If you want to compile it from source, maybe there are instructions for that in the source files.
I'm afraid you are incorrect. The "standalone" version can be installed in any directory you wish. But it still looks for the wallets and config files in a common data directory that is different from the executable directory depending on your OS. The "portable" looks for the data directory to be in the same directory as the executable. So if I install the "standalone" on my USB drive and run it, it will still expect to see the data directory on my PC. I need the "portable" version so I can hae Electrum operate from my USB drive without regard to the computer that it is plugged into.
Secondly I'm on a netbook. To ask me to build my own version on this machine is akin to me asking my grandmother to build a nuclear reactor.
