185 lines
7.4 KiB
Plaintext
185 lines
7.4 KiB
Plaintext
How to install Python 1.6a2 on your Macintosh
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If this is your first encounter with Python: you definitely need the
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common user documentation (common to all platforms). You can find this
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(in various forms) on www.python.org and ftp.python.org. Through
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there, or via http://www.cwi.nl/~jack/macpython.html you can also find
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the most recent MacPython distribution.
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Mac-specific documentation is included in this distribution in folder
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Mac:Demo. The documentation is sparse, but it will have to serve for
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now. The documentation is in HTML format, start with index.html.
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Caveats
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-------
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This is an alfa version, and for this once it really means that: there
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are quite a few features that have only lightly been tested, and bugs are
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to be expected.
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Aside from the general Python 1.6 features like unicode support the
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main new features of this MacPython release is support for multithreading.
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This has had some preliminary testing, but please report any success or failure
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on the mailing list.
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This installer installs MacPython for PowerPC only, whether a 68K distribution
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of Python 1.6 will happen is not certain at the moment.
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Changes since 1.6a1
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-------------------
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- All core-Python changes, plus a few from after 1.6a2, approximately as the
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Python CVS tree was at May 5.
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- The threading performance bug has been fixed.
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- Tkinter is included again (yeah!), but only lightly tested. Please report
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findings to the mailing list.
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- macfsn.py is auto-imported on startup (unless disabled with a new option).
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This retrofits macfs.StandardGetFile() and friends to use Navigation Services
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in stead of the old Standard File dialogs.
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- I think all installer problems have been fixed. Please report if not so.
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What to install
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---------------
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This installer is PPC only: too many new MacOS features are not available on 68K,
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and doing workarounds, even just #ifdeffing in the code, is too much work for
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me right now. If someone wants to revive 68K-MacPython: please do so. The project
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files still contain the 68K targets (they're simply skipped by the build process)
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so all that is needed is CodeWarrior, a source distribution and commitment.
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The optional parts in this distribution are
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- TK+PIL: Tkinter and support modules, plus Imaging, the Python image manipulation
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package (allows you to read, write and display images and do lots of operations on them).
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- img: another imaging package. Has more file format support and is faster
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than imaging, but has only limited operations on images. There is a bridge
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between the packages.
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- Numeric: the LLNL Numeric Python extension. All sorts of nifty operations
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on matrices and such.
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- Developers kit: all header files and some tools and sample projects to get you started on
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writing Python extensions if you have CodeWarrior.
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All these except the DevKit are installed with Easy Install.
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After the installer finishes it automatically launches the
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ConfigurePython applet, to finish configuration of your Python.
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If you don't have enough memory: the sizes choosen are somewhat
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arbitrary. Try lowering the application sizes in the finder "get info"
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window, and seeing whether the resulting python is still usable. Some
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modules (Tkinter comes to mind) need a lot of memory, so it may also be
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necessary to increase the application size.
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After installing
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----------------
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The first step thing you could try is to run "compileall.py" to create
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all .pyc files, but this isn't very important, as pyc files are
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created on-the-fly as well. You may also want to skip this step if you
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are low on diskspace.
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Next, it is probably a good idea to run the automatic tests. Start
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Python and "import test.autotest". This should not print only one error, about some
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AM/PM format not supported in strftime.
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It will, however, print some messages about optional features
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not supported. Also, if you didn't run compileall before autotesting
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you may run out of memory the first time you run the
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tests. test_socket may also fail if you have no internet
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connection. Please also read the Relnotes file for other minor
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problems with this distribution.
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Using Python is most easily done from the IDE, which has a builtin editor,
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debugger and other goodies. The alternative is to use PythonInterpreter,
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which is the lowlevel interpreter with a console-window only (similar to Unix
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Python).
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Uninstalling
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------------
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Two items are installed in the system folder: the interpreter shared
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library "PythonCore 1.6a2" lives in the Extensions folder and the
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"Python 1.6a2 Preferences" file in the Preferences folder. All the rest
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of Python lives in the folder you installed in.
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Things to see
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-------------
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Start off at Mac:Demo:index.html. Read at least the first few sections.
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There are also some readme files in the "Read me files" folder that may
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contain useful information. There is also a first stab at documentation
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(plus examples) in the Mac:Demo folder. The toplevel Demo folder has
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machine-independent demos.
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The Mac:Lib:test folder also has some programs that show simple
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capabilities of various modules.
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The "scripts" folder has some sample scripts. Some are useful, some are
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just interesting to look at to see how various things work. The MkDistr,
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mkapplet and fullbuild scripts (plus the ones mentioned above) may help
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you to understand how to use AppleEvents and various other toolboxes
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from python.
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The 'img' group of modules, which handles I/O of many different image
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formats is included, but without documentation. You can find docs at
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ftp://ftp.cwi.nl/pub/jack/python/img (or somewhere around there).
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Finally there is a Mac:Contrib folder which contains some contributed
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software.
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Upgrading from older Python releases
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------------------------------------
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Since release 1.4 Python releases are independent of each other, with
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separate Preferences files, shared library names, etc. The good news is
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that this means you can keep your older version around if you are unsure
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whether to upgrade. The bad news is that your old preference settings
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are lost and you have to set them again.
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After you are satisfied that 1.6a2 works as expected you can trash
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anything in the system folder that has "python" in the name and not
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"1.6a2".
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The installer
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-------------
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The installer for this product was created using Installer VISE
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from MindVision Software. For more information on Installer VISE,
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contact:
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MindVision Software
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7201 North 7th Street
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Lincoln, NE 68521-8913
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Voice: 402-477-3269
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Fax: 402-477-1395
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Internet: mindvision@mindvision.com
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http://www.mindvision.com
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Just van Rossum <just@letterror.nl> created the initial version of the
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installer (with Installer Vise Lite), and Jack worked from there.
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Thanks!
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-------
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Thanks go to the whole Python community with Guido in the lead, of course.
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Mac-specific thanks go to the pythonmac-sig, Just van Rossum, Corran Webster,
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Erik van Blokland, Bill Bedford, Chris Stern, Gordon Worley, Oliver Steele, M. Papillon
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and all the other people who provided feedback, code or both!
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Feedback
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--------
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Send bug reports, suggestions, contributions and fanmail to
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<jack@cwi.nl>. However, a better way to discuss MacPython is to join the
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<pythonmac-sig@python.org> mailing list, which is explicitly meant for
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this purpose.
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Alternatively, you can try sending to comp.lang.python or
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python-list@cwi.nl, but since I read the newsgroup, not the mailinglist,
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I may miss it there (but other people may know quite a bit more than me
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anyway:-).
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Jack Jansen
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Oratrix Development BV
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Valeriusplein 30
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Amsterdam
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the Netherlands
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<jack@cwi.nl>, http://www.cwi.nl/~jack
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