[Distutils] Improving distutils' script and GUI app handling

[Trent Mick]

[Thomas Heller wrote]
> > There is a bug in the current cmd.exe (or maybe it is only up to Win2k?
> > can't remember) where shell redirection doesn't work if your script is
> > launched indirectly via a .bat of .cmd file. As well, Ctrl+C signal
> > handling for kill a script is quite annoying if launched via a .bat
> > file: you get a secondary question from the shell
> >
> >     Terminate batch file (Y/N)?
> >
> > or something like that. A .exe launcher/stub is definitely preferred.
> 
> Isn't the shell redirection problem also present if the .py script is
> run via the shell association?

Oh shoot, I think I was wrong and you are right: the shell redirection
problem is for the case of using the PATHEXT stuff. I.e. I think shell
redirection works fine with a .bat or .cmd stub. Sorry about causing
confusion.

> The Ctrl+C behaviour annoys me also because I usually run my scripts
> via batch files (py23.bat, py24.bat, py_d.bat and so on).
> Maybe this problem can be avoided by copying the python.exe's somewhere
> to my path, with names p23.exe, p24.exe and so on.  They only contain a
> pointer to the actual PythonXY.dll name, afaik.  So I don't have to
> update p24.exe when I install 2.4.2 over my 2.4.1.

I tend to copy python.exe to pythonXY.exe (as appropriate) after I
install a new Python. I'm considering doing this by default in the
ActivePython installers I make. (Similar to the pythonX.Y executable
copies that get made on Linux/Un*x.) What do you think?

> 
> Somewhat similar to the exemaker approach, but using the name of the exe
> to specify the Python version instead of a '-i ...' command line option,
> or the #! line in the script.

Agreed.

> The only missing piece so far, for me at least, is that it's not
> possible to use dotted module names with the -m option:
> 
> p24 -m ctypes.wrap.h2xml windows.h

That's too bad. I didn't know "-m" didn't support that... but then I
haven't really used it that much yet.

Trent

-- 
Trent Mick
TrentM at ActiveState.com