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Date: Tue, 01 May 2007 10:56:29 -0400
From: Charles Wilson <cygwin AT cwilson DOT fastmail DOT fm>
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Subject: Re: [Ping Python maintainer]: enhancement request
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Christopher Faylor wrote:
> On Tue, May 01, 2007 at 03:15:52PM +0100, Dave Korn wrote:
>> On 01 May 2007 14:59, Charles Wilson wrote:
>>> Because python is a command interpreter,
> 
>>> Similarly, sh.exe
>> I think these are two very strong arguments in favour.
> 
> python.exe isn't anything like the interactive shell that people use on
> a day to day basis and simply stating that it is doesn't mean that it is.

Just to clarify, when I say command interpreter I wasn't necessarily 
implying interactive -- just as nobody (I hope) attempts to use /bin/sh 
in its pure, restricted posix mode, as their native interactive shell. 
[side note: IPython, an interactive shell-like python environment -- is 
really cool].  I just meant that python /interprets/ /commands/ 
(possibly -- usually -- in a script).

For ActivePython, you'll see win32 shortcuts with target:

<path-to-active>/python.exe <some script>

If cygwin's 'python' is a copy of version x.y, then cygwin users can do 
the same: have win32 shortcuts with target:

<path-to-cygwin>/python.exe <some script>

(Now, ActivePython sometimes cheats: it associates .py with itself, and 
often win32 pythoners will just give their scripts a name with that 
extension.  And obviously, windows doesn't, itself, recognize shbang lines)

Granted, there are 57 other, different solutions that don't require 
cygwin's 'python' to be a copy, like invoke version x.y directly from 
the shortcut:

<path-to-cygwin>/python2.5 <some script>

or cgf's use-bash-first:

<path-to-cygwin>/bash.exe python <some script>

or use-bash-first and rely on shbang:
<path-to-cygwin>/bash.exe <some script with #!/bin/python>


But if cygwin does the copy thing, we'd be following the 'principle of 
least surprise' for ActivePython folks (AP is, after all, the other 
major python implementation on win32; IronPython is coming along nicely, 
tho).


'invoke from native win32' means 'from a shortcut OR cmd window' not 
just 'from a cmd window'

--
Chuck

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