On Sun, Apr 13, 2008 at 12:31:08PM -0400, Stephen Waterbury wrote:
What I am proposing:
1) the OS comes with its own "system Python", which is installed not as the "python" package, but as some OS-required package (maybe call it "system-python" or something) and it goes into /usr/system/bin/python or whatever -- it doesn't matter what the path is as long as it's not /usr/bin or anything on the default path. And system utilities that are python scripts should have their own system-specific, hard-coded shebang line.
2) separately from the "system Python", the available packages shown by the system's package manager include one or more "python.x" packages which are python interpreters that the user or sysadmin can optionally install, and which go into /usr. And the system package manager -- e.g., apt on Debian/Ubuntu systems) would have all its usual nicely-packaged python apps (python-this, python-that, ...) that would also install into /usr and use the nicely-packaged python (not to be confused with the "system Python" of 1).
OK. I am starting to see what you mean. I agree it does make sense. It seems to me that you are bringing in a distinction between "system Python scripts" and user Python script. For me the system Python scripts should live in "/bin" and use the system Python, and the users should live in "/usr/bin" and use "/usr/bin/env python". But that's just me. Inspecting my boxes did show that this is quite close to the way it is already on Debian systems. I don't have accounts on other kind of Unix, so I can't see how it is done elsewhere. Cheers, Gaƫl