[Python-Dev] Re: Rewriting PEP4 (original) (raw)

Terry Reedy tjreedy at udel.edu
Wed Dec 8 02:41:45 CET 2004

""Martin v. Löwis"" <martin at v.loewis.de> wrote in message news:41B556FE.20504 at v.loewis.de...

As a (currently) casual user of Python, this is my view of the standard library dilemma and its solution:

  1. It is too small: I may someday want to use a module not yet added.

  2. It is too big: I cannot keep everything in mind at once and cannot remember, without referring back to the lib manual or pydev, which modules are currently or slated to become deprecated.

  3. I do not wish to have other people's code broken,or books made obsolete, without sufficient reason (ie, the code is actively dangerous versus merely broken or superceded).

My preferred solution is to apply the 'out of sight, out of mind' principle.

  1. Move obsolete modules to a separate directory (lib_old sounds fine) and put that directory in pythonpath.

When I ran Python (1.3) from a 20 meg disk, I would have preferred complete removal, but with 60+ gigs, the small extra space is no longer an issue. If someone needs the space or wants to guarantee non-use of old modules, deleting lib_old is easy enough.

  1. Remove the docs for obsolete modules from the main part of the current lib reference. Sub-choices for legacy chapters are either complete removal or segregation into a separate document or apppendix to current one.

Terry J. Reedy

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