[Python-Dev] [Pydotorg] Should we help pythonmac.org? (original) (raw)

fuzzyman at mail2.webfaction.com fuzzyman at mail2.webfaction.com
Tue Aug 19 09:45:43 CEST 2008

Bill Janssen wrote:

I strongly recommend that we NOT make macports.org the main, official Mac OS X version of Python. Secondary is fine, but not primary. Macports is what the name says: it's a system of Mac ports of Linux packages, mostly command-line only.

I agree with David about this.

The official Mac Python should be an OS X application, with an icon, living in /Applications, ideally with a Mac-standard editor app (the 2.5.1 I have has IDLE), etc. No, probably not. Frankly, I think the official Mac Python should be (and is) /usr/bin/python, the version that Apple ships with the system. I always try to make my stuff work with that Python, instead of installing a different version, which in my experience usually leads to grief somewhere down the road. I've certainly heard many tales of Mac users coming to grief because they decided to overwrite their system Python, or tried to be clever and run multiple interpreters (which is usually somewhat less disastrous).

The Mac system depends a lot on stuff that comes installed with the system version of Python - including specific versions of Twisted etc.

I thought (relative Mac newbie), the standard advice was that if you want to install extension modules then you should install your own version of Python and not mess with the system version.

Meaning that you have to maintain two Python installs - something that hasn't been a problem for me yet. So even if Mac OS ships with Python 2.6, many users will still want to install their own version.

The default page for Python on the Mac is horribly out of date: http://python.org/download/mac/

No mention of Leopard.

Michael

I guess this underlines the fact that Apple don't really want the hoi polloi tinkering with their systems; it's somewhat tedious when code is released for later Python versions and you have to privately backport, though, isn't it?

There have been hints dropped that if the 2.6 release hits its deadline it will be incorporated into vendor builds. Let's hope one of them is MacOS, then at least it'll be relatively up to date. regards Steve -- Steve Holden +1 571 484 6266 +1 800 494 3119 Holden Web LLC http://www.holdenweb.com/

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