Python on imac

[John Velman]

I'm considering moving from Linux to imac. I've recently returned to
Python (was never very expert) to develop a small gui application. At
present I plan to use PyGTK with Pango and Cairo.

What surprises may I be in for

(Currently using slackware 11.0 on an old (8 years) slow (400mhz) machine.)

Thanks,

John Velman

 

[Adam Atlas]

I'm considering moving from Linux to imac. I've recently returned to
Python (was never very expert) to develop a small gui application. At
present I plan to use PyGTK with Pango and Cairo.

What surprises may I be in for

(Currently using slackware 11.0 on an old (8 years) slow (400mhz) machine.)

Thanks,

John Velman

Well... I think OS X currently comes with Python 2.3 or 2.4. I
recommend getting Fink (fink.sourceforge.net), which is basically a
DPKG/APT repository for OS X plus an added system for automatically
building packages from source. It'll keep the system up to date with
the latest 2.5 release (and future versions).

If you're using PyGTK, you will need to install Apple X11 (can't
remember if it's installed by default yet), since OS X's window
manager is not X11-based. Fink can also install GTK+, etc. for you.
Other than that, most things should work as on Linux, more or less.

 

[Tommy Nordgren]

I'm considering moving from Linux to imac. I've recently returned to
Python (was never very expert) to develop a small gui application. At
present I plan to use PyGTK with Pango and Cairo.

What surprises may I be in for

(Currently using slackware 11.0 on an old (8 years) slow (400mhz)
machine.)

Thanks,

John Velman

Mac OS X Tiger comes with Python 2.3 installed.
Installers for later versions are available at www.python.org
No need to use package managers

 

[James Stroud]

I'm considering moving from Linux to imac. I've recently returned to
Python (was never very expert) to develop a small gui application. At
present I plan to use PyGTK with Pango and Cairo.

What surprises may I be in for

(Currently using slackware 11.0 on an old (8 years) slow (400mhz) machine.)

Thanks,

John Velman

For OS X 10.4, wx has come as part of the stock python install. You may
want to consider going that route if you develop exclusively for OS
X--it will keep the size of your distribution down.

James

--
James Stroud
UCLA-DOE Institute for Genomics and Proteomics
Box 951570
Los Angeles, CA 90095

http://www.jamesstroud.com

 

[byte8bits]

For OS X 10.4, wx has come as part of the stock python install. You may
want to consider going that route if you develop exclusively for OS
X--it will keep the size of your distribution down.

James

wx works well on Macs... Linux and Windows too. I second this
suggestion.

 

[Alex Martelli]

For OS X 10.4, wx has come as part of the stock python install. You may

I use Mac OSX 10.4 and this assertion seems unfounded -- I can't see any
wx as part of the stock Python (2.3.5). Maybe you mean something else?


Alex

 

[Kevin Walzer]

I use Mac OSX 10.4 and this assertion seems unfounded -- I can't see any
wx as part of the stock Python (2.3.5). Maybe you mean something else?


Alex

It's a very old version of wxPython: 2.5.3, I think. Run ls /usr/lib |
grep wx and see what you get. Do likewise for ls /Library/Python/2.3 |
grep wx.

 

[Raffaele Salmaso]

I use Mac OSX 10.4 and this assertion seems unfounded -- I can't see any
wx as part of the stock Python (2.3.5). Maybe you mean something else?

Very old version, see
/System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.3/Extras/lib/python/wx-2.5.3-mac-unicode

 

[Alex Martelli]

Very old version, see
/System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.3/Extras/lib/python
/wx-2.5.3-mac-unicode

Ah, I see it now, thanks.


Alex

 

[John Velman]

Thanks to all. I'll look into wx before I get too much further.

John V.

 

[Erik Jones]

Well... I think OS X currently comes with Python 2.3 or 2.4. I
recommend getting Fink (fink.sourceforge.net), which is basically a
DPKG/APT repository for OS X plus an added system for automatically
building packages from source. It'll keep the system up to date with
the latest 2.5 release (and future versions).

If you're using PyGTK, you will need to install Apple X11 (can't
remember if it's installed by default yet), since OS X's window
manager is not X11-based. Fink can also install GTK+, etc. for you.
Other than that, most things should work as on Linux, more or less.

He doesn't need Fink for up to date Python version as os x binaries
are available from the www.python.org.

Erik Jones

Software Developer | Emma®
(e-mail address removed)
800.595.4401 or 615.292.5888
615.292.0777 (fax)

Emma helps organizations everywhere communicate & market in style.
Visit us online at http://www.myemma.com

 

[w.greg.phillips]

I'm considering moving from Linux to imac. I've recently returned to
Python (was never very expert) to develop a small gui application. At
present I plan to use PyGTK with Pango and Cairo.

You should be aware that unless something has changed recently, PyGTK
runs under X11 and is not native Aqua. This makes it a bit clunky to
deal with.

Greg

 

[has]

Thanks to all. I'll look into wx before I get too much further.

- For prebuilt binaries of the Python framework and various third-
party packages, including wxPython, see:

http://www.pythonmac.org/packages/py25-fat/index.html

(Note that some of the packages provided there may not be the very
latest versions, so you might want to check their respective sites as
well.)


- Also check out py2app for building standalone executables:

http://cheeseshop.python.org/pypi/py2app/
http://svn.pythonmac.org/py2app/py2app/trunk/doc/index.html


- If you're going to be writing Mac-only applications, you might want
to consider using PyObjC, which provides a two-way bridge between
Python and ObjC, giving you full access to OS X's Cocoa APIs:

http://pyobjc.sourceforge.net/


- The PythonMac-SIG mailing list is the main forum for Python-on-Mac
discussions:

http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/pythonmac-sig


HTH

has