[AstroPy] AstroPy Digest, Vol 58, Issue 16

[James Turner]

> One thought that came up (this is *only* a suggestion) is should we have
> a basic python package called astropy (when we have agreed on the basic
> packages for it)? If we do this we could use a similar scheme to Scipy's
> Scikits (call it astrokits?). This would ensure that the modules would
> use core astronomy modules. Again, this is just a exploratory idea and
> I would be happy to hear what others have to say.

I believe that was basically the idea of Astrolib -- a place to
collect key modules that others in the community would use. Do you
prefer the AstroPy name, or a different organization (or management)
from Astrolib? Or maybe you're suggesting something new to avoid
endorsing one existing effort over another (since there are other
libraries doing similar things now)? I'm just wondering what needs
doing differently. I know documentation was an issue last year --
STScI did set up a Sphinx server, but its presentation is currently
a bit rough around the edges. I certainly don't want to stall any
discussion or ideas by pushing for one particular thing -- this is
just a genuine question regarding what is still needed and why.

Making it a Scikit might not be a bad idea. Presumably that would
mean adopting SciPy coding standards etc.? We'd then need people
(and/or a BDFL) to buy into those.

Cheers,

James.