[Distutils] Need to install an unzipped version of an existing zipped package

[skip at pobox.com]

At work we have a package (MYSQL-python) which was mistakenly installed with
easy_install as a zip archive.  I'd like to reinstall as a non-zipped
directory-based install.

To guarantee that I get compile and link flags right I've been trying to
experiment in my own site-packages directory but continue to be thwarted by
the presence of the centrally installed zip archive version.  For instance,
if I execute this:

    export PYTHONPATH=$HOME/local/lib/python2.4/site-packages
    easy_install --prefix=$HOME/local -Z -U  MYSQL-python

it executes very quickly, with no obvious attempts to compile or link
anything.  When I look at the easy-install.pth file in my site-packages
directory I find that all it did was drop in a reference to the centrally
installed zip archive version of the package!  That's not what I wanted at
all.

How can I tell easy_install to ignore that centrally installed version?
Failing that, is it okay to simply unzip the package we have provided in the
end it has the same name?

Thanks,

-- 
Skip Montanaro - skip at pobox.com - http://www.smontanaro.net/