Python miscellania

Disciple asked me on the forum why I am "going after Python now". Here is part of my response:

I'm thinking about including the "full" Python in Woof, as cutdown as I can get away with, because Python is so heavily used in Linux these days. So many applications require Python, like Inkscape for example. The Rox Filer people have other apps than need Python. If you go to www.gnome-files.org and look around, almost every second app is written in Python and uses PyGTK.

So, I am just bowing to the reality. But, whether I do take the plunge and go for the "full" Python, I still don't know.

Tinypy has nothing to do with the above. It is something that I am playing with in my ongoing search for something to upgrade to from Bash coding. In particular, something that I can myself hack on.
So, tinypy + gtkdialog + low-level-system-hacks is of interest to me.

It could be that I just cannot hack the "full" Python down enough for Woof. Well, we shall see. Python is in the Puppy4 'devx' file, but without extra libraries like PyGTK.

It really is nice to have a printed textbook, so this morning I ordered "Learning Python" from Barnes and Noble (as they accept PayPal):
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Learning-Python/Mark-Lutz/e/9780596513986/?itm=1

Amazon.com has lots of reviews of that book, it rates well, cheaper too, but they don't accept payPal. My local bookshop had no books on Python, which is why I resorted to on-line. For any other Aussies reading this, the airmail charge was US$12.98 -- so in total it probably cost about the same as I would have paid locally.

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Comments

150kB interpreter


Pithon 3.0
Username: raymundo dionicio
"Barry :) Surely you know, but I will say anyway: Guido recommends using version 3 if beginning a new project. Guido blog is in: http://www.artima.com/weblogs/index.jsp?blogger=guido

python 3 != python 2.5
Username: cb88
"python 2.5 is not compatible with 3.0 there may be some compatibility but from what i undestand it is a large rewrite LLVM may be of interest since interpreters can be built on top of it

An "smaller" python language
Username: raymundo dionicio
"Barry: Guido says that: [Python 3k is an smaller language. Makes "fits in your brain" more true] http://www.python.org/doc/essays/ppt/pycon2008/Py3kAndYou.pdf

InspirationPy?
Username: technut
"A few years ago I found a linux distro that uses Python throughout. I was actually looking for a distro that was small, fast, and portable. Still don't know how Pardus turned up in my search. See here - http://www.pardus.org.tr/eng/projects/comar/PythonInPardus.html It's even used for part of the boot process. http://www.pardus.org.tr/eng/projeler/comar/SpeedingUpLinuxWithPardus.html Definitely [i]not[/i] small. I settled on PuppyLinux of course.

Re: Pardus
Username: BarryK
"technut, Heh heh, interesting read. And to think that I'm concerned about Puppy's 'init' script being too big, at about 1000 lines!

Tags: woof