179 lines
7.3 KiB
Plaintext
179 lines
7.3 KiB
Plaintext
How to install Python 1.5.2b1 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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There are still problems with cfm68k Python. 68K Mac users should
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probably try to use the cfm68k distribution first, and revert to the
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classic 68k distribution in case the bugs make their Python
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unworkable. The main problem is that packages ("dotted import") and
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NumPy printing don't work.
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What to install
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---------------
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There are three flavors of Python: PowerPC, cfm68k and Classic 68k
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(the FAT flavor is just a combination of the first two, which is handy
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if you want to install Python on a fileserver or so). 68K-mac owners
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should definitely use the cfm68k version if possible, since it enables
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the use of applets and dynamically loaded modules and usually has a
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smaller memory footprint. If you have an older system than MacOS 8 it
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does however need the CFM68K Runtime Enabler which is available from
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Apple (available for free from
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<http://support.info.apple.com/ftp/swhome.html>, included since MacOS
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7.6.1 and builtin to the system since MacOS 8). If your machine is
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pre-68020 you cannot use cfm68k and you can install the classic 68k
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Python.
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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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installation (except for classic 68K installations, where no extra
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configuration is needed).
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If you have a pre-system 7 macintosh: sorry, this release will not work
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on your system. Too many sys7 features are used to make a sys6 python
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easy to create.
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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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A final note to CFM68K (and possibly PPC) users: the Code Fragment
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Manager can (incorrectly) produce "library not found" and other strange
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error messages when it really means that there is not enough room in the
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system heap. Decreasing (yes, *de*creasing) the size of the interpreter
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and/or enabling virtual memory may solve these problems.
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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 any
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errors. 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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PPC and CFM68K users have a couple of applets in the main folder they
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may want to try, (68K users can use the corresponding scripts from the
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"scripts" folder):
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- EditPythonPrefs allows you to edit the preferences file, to change the
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python home folder or modify the initial sys.path setting. The default
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settings are somewhat arbitrary, you can remove tkinter if you don't use
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it and possibly add Extensions:img:Lib. - mkapplet creates a python
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applet, a tiny application written in python. Drop a python source on it
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and out comes the application. More information can be found in the
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"Mac:Demo" folder.
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If you have a slow machine you may want to disable automatic site.py import
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since site.py does not do too much on the mac (unless you make it do
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something), and it can take a few seconds.
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PPC and CFM68K users will see one more file in the python folder:
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PythonApplet. This is the template for building applets, leave it alone.
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The applet is "fat", containing both PPC and CFM68K code. Hence, applets
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built with it can be transported to machines with the other
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architecture.
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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 1.5.2b1" lives in the Extensions folder and the
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"Python 1.5.2b1 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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There are 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. See the file Readme-mac for mac-specific
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notes. 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, including a Real Programming Environment and some AppleScript
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related modules.
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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 1.5.2b1 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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"1.5.2b1".
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The installer
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-------------
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The installer for this product was created using Installer VISE Lite
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from MindVision Software. For more information on Installer VISE Lite,
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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 installer.
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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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Centrum voor Wiskunde en Informatica
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Kruislaan 413
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1098 SJ Amsterdam
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the Netherlands
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<jack@cwi.nl>, http://www.cwi.nl/~jack
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