[Distutils] easy_install: #egg taking priority

[Ian Bicking]

So, first the setup.  We wanted to require PIL for a package.  PIL goes 
by the name "PIL" and "Imaging".  Specifically, the file you download is 
named "Imaging", and the actual package installed is named "PIL".  You 
can install Imaging (as long as you use easy_install -f 
http://effbot.org/downloads/) , but it doesn't work as a requirement 
because Imaging itself does not fulfill an Imaging requirement.

So, I figured we'd put in a link like this in someplace listed in -f (we 
have a local set of links we maintain): 
http://effbot.org/downloads/Imaging-1.1.5.tar.gz#egg=PIL-1.1.5

But, this doesn't work.  easy_install pays attention to 
"Imaging-1.1.5.tar.gz" and ignores the "#egg=..." portion.  This seems 
wrong, since the only reason for #egg to be there is to help 
easy_install, so it should take priority (or both names could be read, 
as long as the #egg info isn't thrown away).

We worked around this by creating a shortened link with rubyurl.com 
(irony!  tinyurl.com apparently doesn't allow non-browser user agents, 
and rubyurl was the next thing I could think of), and adding the #egg to 
that.  A little silly and indirect, but a workaround for now.

-- 
Ian Bicking  /  ianb at colorstudy.com  /  http://blog.ianbicking.org