[Edu-sig] IDLE and VPython

[HotToPot@aol.com]

Markus writes >

>I think it is easier to step-through a script with a debugger if it is =
>startet in the same process.  Otherwise you had to communicate with the =
>script via some sockets or something like this.

Efforts are well under way on various fronts to provide the professional
Python developer with powerful environments, including advanced debugging.
There are and will be continue to be, it seems clear, almost an embarrassment 
of riches to choose from for the Python pro - the process driven by 
commercial competition.

IDLE was conceived from day one as an introductory IDE for educational
purposes.  I guess since I have gotten a decent way into Python without 
having touched a debugger -  a strategically placed "print" command usually is
sufficient to tell me what I need to know - I would suggest that some marginal
loss of performance or features of the IDLE debugger to achieve more
"openness""  is well worth it.  

Though I am saying this not understanding exactly how far those trade-offs 
might go. 

And certainly I am not suggesting an IDLE without some decent debugging
capabilities.
 
I can in fact understand how the debugger could be used quite effectively
in an educational setting, allowing folks to get a  sense of what is happening
behind the scenes.  Probably could have shortened some of my own
learning curves significantly had I availed myself of it. 

And of course my argument ignores the necessary install of Numeric in
any case.  It has always been the first thing I reach for in doing a
Python install, and this from early on.  So I guess to me it has
become almost a quasi-official part of a standard Python configuration.

But it would be great to see something get done here - as they say down on 
Mulberry Street -  "for the kids".


ART