[Edu-sig] Bootable Python CDs?

[kirby urner]

> For something a bit more sophisticated, this is a good argument for
> importing from URLs.  Not inlined into the code, but if you added say
> 'http://svn.classsite.com/repos/student-name' to sys.path, and an import
> hook that knew how to read such sites (I think both importing from svn
> and plain HTTP are possible, since you don't have to do a listdir to
> attempt an import).  Then all you need is a way to edit files on svn
> directly, which is possible with webdav or maybe something programmed
> directly into the IDE.  And if it is an svn repository, you get
> automatic version control (you have to turn autocommit on in svn, and
> your history will be a little chaotic because there's no explicit
> commits, but you still get version control).

Very sophisticated suggestions.  In my open source class for the
police (HPD), we did a little diff and patch, leading up to an
appreciation of what CVS is all about, and by extension, version
control.  I tell students that the entire Python.org website is
version controlled, with checkin privileges going to various
pydotorg-subscribed webmasters (a hat I wore for awhile -- long enough
to experience the furious spam-storm, much of it fed by clueless
virus-bots).

The nice thing about Python source code is the files aren't large, if
you're not trucking around libraries like wx or whatever.  If it's
just pure .py you're into, then a plain old floppy disk is often
sufficient.  I'm one of those who still thinks there's a place for a
floppy drive on a modern computer, even though many newer ones no
longer support same.

Kirby