[Pythonmac-SIG] [Python-Dev] Problems building Python on OSX 10.4.6?

[Ronald Oussoren]

Most, if not all, of this is deemed off-topic of python-dev, I'm  
continuing this conversation on the mac-sig.

On 27-jun-2006, at 16:38, J. Jeffrey Close wrote:

>
> Hi Ronald,
>
> Thanks very much for the feedback.
>
> A few points and answers --
>
>>>>
> Which sources are you using? The 2.4.x tarballs don't support --
> enable-universalsdk (and yes, configure won't complain about unknown
> or misspelled options, that's an entirely different subject). Those
> SDKs also don't support mixing --prefix and --enable-framework, the
> prefix argument will be ignored completely. Python 2.5 does support --
> enable-universalsdk and specifiying other prefixes when using --
> enable-framework. I have a patch that backports this to 2.4.x, but
> haven't applied this yet because I haven't had time to fully test
> this yet, hopefully I'll manage this week.
>
> BTW. --enable-framework --with-pydebug is all you need, the others
> are either default or deduced from the platform information by
> configure.
>
> And completely off-topic: please don't install your own build of
> python as /usr/bin/python. IMHO this is conceptually bad, but more
> importantly Apple uses python in some parts of the OS (PDF workflows
> for example) and this change could well break that.
> <<<
>
> [JJC]
> OK, I may try 2.5, see if that helps.  yes I was warned about /usr,  
> and actually wasn't using that anymore

I'm glad to hear that.

>
>>>>
> What version of the developer tools are you using? And are you
> building on PPC or Intel?
>
> One way to work around the problems you're having is to install the
> binary install of 2.4.3.
> <<<
>
> [JJC]
> The reason that I need the source build is that I am trying to  
> build mod_python, and the binary does not install the libpython. 
> 2.4.a library that mod_python needs.

Building from source won't help with that. If you do a framework  
install you will not get a libpython*.a, or even a libpython*.dylib.  
Most if not all projects that require such a library are wrong and  
should add support code for OSX. I am however tempted to add a  
symlink inside the Python.framework to get rid of discussions about  
this.

>
> I'm using an Intel machine and another modification I have to do is  
> to edit the Makefile to change "arch_only" to i386 (apparently an  
> error in configure).

Nah, it's a feature ;-).
>
>>>>
> Obviously someone must have managed, there's a binary installer for
> the OS :-).  And before you nobody that ran into this problem found
> it important enough to actually tell us about is.
> Ronald
> <<<
>
> Yes, the binary installer works great but as I mentioned, does not  
> install all needed dev pieces.  And before me, MANY people have run  
> into this (do a google for some of the errors that I've mentioned,  
> like +"___eprintf" +"OS X" , or mod_python and OSX, and you will  
> find many.

And yet you're the first one that actually mentions these issues at a  
venue where they may get resolved :-(. I'll see what I can do to get  
mod_python to build (but no promises at to when that will happen)

As I mentioned above, building from source won't install more files  
than are installed right now, unless you use a normal unix install of  
python.

Ronald