Python 1.4beta3 for Windows NT 3.5 and Windows 95 ================================================= The zip file pyth14b3.zip contains a preliminary binary release of Python 1.4beta3 for Windows NT 3.5 and Windows '95, with Tcl/Tk support. The installation has not been tested on Windows 3.1 with Win32s. For general information on Python, see http://www.python.org/. To install ---------- Unzip the archive in the root of a file system with enough space. It will create a directory \Python1.4b3 containing subdirectories Bin and Lib and some files, including setup.bat, setup.py, uninstall.bat, and uninstall.py. (If you don't have a zip program that supports long filenames, get the file winzip95.exe and install it -- this is WinZip 6.1 for 32-bit Windows systems.) Run the SETUP.BAT file found in directory just created. When it is done, press Enter. Tcl/Tk support requires additional installation steps, see below. To use ------ Python runs in a console (DOS) window. From the File Manager, run the file python.exe found in the Bin subdirectory. You can also drag it to a program group of your choice for easier access. Opening any file ending in .py from the file manager should run it. To use with Tkinter ------------------- Get the file win41p1.exe from /pub/python/nt/ on ftp.python.org or from ftp site ftp.sunlabs.com, directory /pub/tcl/. This is a self-extracting archive containing the Tcl/Tk distribution for Windows NT. Don't use an older version. Using the control panel, set the TCL_LIBRARY and TK_LIBRARY environment variables. E.g. if you installed Tcl/Tk in C:\TCL (the default suggested by the installer), set TCL_LIBRARY to "C:\TCL\lib\tcl7.5" and set TK_LIBRARY to "C:\TCL\lib\tk4.1". On Windows '95, you need to edit AUTOEXEC.BAT for this, e.g. by adding the lines SET TCL_LIBRARY=C:\Program Files\TCL\lib\tcl7.5 SET TK_LIBRARY=C:\Program Files\TCL\lib\tk4.1 (substituting the actual location of the TCL installation directory). On Windows '95, you also need to add the directory "C:\TCL\bin" (or whereever the Tcl bin directory ended up) to the PATH environment variable in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Do this by editing the AUTOEXEC.BAT file, e.g. by adding this line to the end: SET PATH="%PATH%";"C:\Program Files\TCL\bin" (substituting the actual location of the TCL installation directory). Once Tcl/Tk is installed, you should be able to type the following commands in Python: >>> import Tkinter >>> Tkinter._test() This creates a simple test dialog box (you may have to move the Python window a bit to see it). Click on OK to get the Python prompt back. Troubleshooting --------------- The following procedure will test successive components required for successful use of Python and Tkinter. The steps before "import _tkinter" can be used to verify the proper installation of the Python core. - First, run the Python interpreter (python.exe). This should give you a ">>>" prompt in a "MS-DOS console" window. This may fail with a complaint about being unable to find the file MSVC40RT.DLL. This file (along with several other files) is included in the MSOFTDLL.EXE self-extracting archive available in the /pub/python/wpy directory on ftp.python.org. After extraction, move MSVCRT40.NT to \Windows\System\MSVCRT40.DLL (note the change of extension). - If you can't get a ">>>" prompt, your core Python installation may be botched. Reinstall from the ZIP file (see above) and run SETUP.BAT. - At the ">>>" prompt, type a few commands. Each command should succeed without complaints. Remember that Python is a case sensitive language, so type the commands exactly as shown ("tkinter" and "Tkinter" are two very different things). >>> import sys If this fails, you can't type :-) (Explanation: this is a built-in module that is pre-initialized before the first ">>>" prompt is printed. There is no way that this import can fail except by a typo.) >>> import string If this fails, the Python library cannot be found. Reinstall Python. (Explanation: the registry entry for PythonPath is botched. Inspect sys.path to see what it is. If it is something like ['.', '.\\lib', '.\\lib\\win'], the setup.py script has not run successfully and you may get away with rerunning the SETUP.BAT file.) >>> import _tkinter This can fail in a number of ways: ImportError: No module named _tkinter The Python module file _tkinter.dll can't be found. Since it is installed by default, the installation is probably botched. Reinstall Python. ImportError: DLL load failed: The specified module could not be found. (Possibly with a dialog box explaining that TCL75.DLL or TK41.DLL could not be found.) Probably a Tcl/Tk installation error. Reinstall Tcl/Tk. Note that on Windows '95, you may need to add the Tcl bin directory to the PATH environment variable. Other failures: It may be possible that you have an early prerelease TCL75.DLL or TK41.DLL, which is incompatible with the _tkinter module in the Python distribution. This will most likely result in error messages that don't make a lot of sense. Try installing Tcl/Tk from the win41p1.exe self-extracting archive found in /pub/python/nt on ftp.python.org. >>> import Tkinter If this fails, your Python library or sys.path is botched. Your best bet, again, is to reinstall Python. >>> Tkinter._test() This should pop up a window with a label ("Proof-of-existence test for TK") and two buttons ("Click me!" and "QUIT"). If you get nothing at all (not even a ">>>" prompt), the window is probably hiding behind the Python console window. Move the console window around to reveal the test window. If you get an exception instead, it is most likely a verbose complaint from Tcl/Tk about improper installation. This is usually caused by bad or missing values for the environment variables TK_LIBRARY or TCL_LIBRARY. See the installation instructions above. To uninstall ------------ Run the batch file UNINSTALL.BAT. This will run the Python script uninstall.py, which undoes the registry additions and removes most installed files. The batch file then proceed to remove some files that the Python script can't remove (because it's using them). The batch file ends with an error because it deletes itself. Hints on how to avoid this (and also on how to remove the installation directory itself) are gracefully accepted. September 3, 1996 --Guido van Rossum (home page: http://www.python.org/~guido/)