[Python-Dev] Re: Stability and change (original) (raw)

Fred L. Drake, Jr. fdrake@acm.org
Mon, 8 Apr 2002 11:37:42 -0400

Guido van Rossum writes:

Weren't weakrefs an external module in 2.1? Can't you distribute that separately with PyXML (under a different name)?

They were an external module in that the types as well as the Python-level access was in Modules/_weakref.c, but invalidating references required cooperation from the core, since action is taken when the refcount goes to 0. It cannot work for 2.0 under any name.

Yeah, but there were some very loud supporters who mostly wanted it for political reasons at the time. I think I may have fallen for their arguments a little too fast. ;-)

Maybe. I still think providing XML support out of the box is a good thing, the questions for me are related to how that should be done rather than whether it should be. But that's a separate discussion.

-Fred

-- Fred L. Drake, Jr. PythonLabs at Zope Corporation