[Pythonmac-SIG] Python.framework under OS X

[Jack Jansen]

> 
> 
> 
> What benefit do you see in packaging python into a framework ?
> 
> I can see the benefit of packaging it into an application bundle 
> with a local framework for python libs: simple drag and drop 
> install, among other things -- but what benefit do you get from
> a library framework ? 

My thinking is now somewhat along the following lines for how Python will look 
on OSX (note that this is unix-Python, what is now MacPython may continue to 
live alongside this for a while, or even be incorporated into it).

1) In /Library/Framework there's a Python.framework. This will look a lot like 
a standard Apple framework bundle, but it's really only a lot of symlinks 
around a normal Unix Python tree (as would be found in /usr/local/python), 
somewhere down in /Library/Framework/Python.framework/Versions/2.2/Resources/py
thon . Maybe the last directory should move one level up, I'm not sure 
(comments?).
I think that if a user has no admin privileges they could install all this in 
~/Library/Framework and it would still work. Also, when Apple starts shipping 
Python with OSX 10.3 (half a :-) they can put it in /System/Library/Frameworks.

2) In /usr/local/bin there's a symlink "python" to 
/Library/Framework/Python.framework/Versions/2.2/Resources/python/bin/python.
This makes commandline Python completely happy. Actually, maybe the link 
should go to /Library/Framework/Python.framework/python, with that in turn 
linking to the path above, so that installing Python 2.3 will automatically 
make the /usr/local script point to the right place.

3) In /Applications there's a Python.app application bundle. This has all the 
a small executable, the icon and plist mumbojumbo, and that's probably all. It 
is probably the same main program as what was used to create the commandline 
interpreter deep down the framework specified in (1), but this time it is 
linked against the whole framework in stead of against the python shared 
library only. Hmm, on second thoughts it might be a slightly different main 
program, see below.

4) If the main program above checks for a "PYC " resource and runs that (just 
like MacPython does nowadays) if it exists we can use something similar to the 
old MacPyhton scheme for createing applets. Just copy the 
/Applications/Python.app bundle, drop a PYC resource file in its Resources 
folder and off you go.

Ok, lots of verbiage but still no answer to your question:-)

Two advantages to using a library framework. Easy applets (point 4 above) and 
also easy creation of extension modules and easy embedding of Python (simply 
link against Python.framework). The latter needs a little reorganisation 
(like, python/Mac/Include should move to Python/Include/Mac, probably) but 
we're almosty there.
--
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