[Edu-sig] question about livewires package. . .

Arthur ajsiegel at optonline.net
Mon Nov 21 18:39:04 CET 2005


John Zelle wrote:

>
>VPython runs a GTK (I think) event loop in a separate thread, to stay 
>interactive in IDLE. 
>
I believe this is true on Unix, but that VPython uses a native OpenGL 
capable window on Windows.

It has seemed to me that VPython event loop handling is problematic.  
The IDLE event loop, I believe, evolved in part in an effort to 
accommodate VPython - as David Scherer, the author of VPython, was also 
the author of the idle-fork branch that was  eventually merged into IDLE 
proper.

Other IDEs and prompts - Pythonwin, and ipython, for example, cannot 
handle VPython - closing altogether when a VPython window closes. Both 
Pythonwin and ipython are mature and widely used - so I do tend to think 
of it as a VPython issue.

Not sure what  the cake and eat-it possibilities are, i.e. whether it is 
possible to maintain the VPython interactivity while having it play 
better with others.

And I do sometimes wonder whether the IDLE event loop handling has been 
overcomplicated by the effort to accommodate VPython - though I am glad 
the effort has been made.

Lots of this is C, and not something I am configured to understand too 
deeply - though as PyGeo wraps itself around VPython, it is an issue in 
which I am quite interested, and do try to follow.

The other big issue being VPython on the Mac - where I know there are 
installation issues, but I also know progress is being made (I think 
Dethe is looking at it, for one).  I am close to buying a used Mac, 
feeling it necessary to get some handle on what folks are confronting here.

Art




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