[Idle-dev] The Future of Python

Bruce Sherwood Bruce_Sherwood at ncsu.edu
Tue Feb 11 18:00:00 CET 2014


Good question, Terry. I just installed Python 2.7.6 (Nov. 10, 2013), and
there are two issues with its IDLE. I don't know whether you're referring
to this IDLE or to an experimental version (and I've mislaid the
instructions for how to get the experimental version).

The two issues in Python 2.7.6 in order of importance are these:

(1) atexit isn't honored when I run from IDLE. I've copied Steve
Spicklemire to ask him to comment on this issue, as it was he who last year
had an exchange with the IDLE development community about this, and I think
he said at the time that the bug was acknowledged, but I don't know where
the bug is documented. Steve addressed this problem in VIDLE.

(2) http://bugs.python.org/issue19042 -- this excellent proposal by you
isn't in Python 2.7.6.

The importance of issue (1) for us is that the big change in VPython last
year, carried out by Steve and me, was to base VPython on wxPython. It was
essential to use atexit to keep the VPython graphics window alive at the
end of a user's program, but when running from IDLE somehow atexit doesn't
function.

Bruce


On Tue, Feb 11, 2014 at 8:26 AM, Terry Reedy <tjreedy at udel.edu> wrote:

> On 2/10/2014 10:12 PM, Bruce Sherwood wrote:
>
>> Yes, we're currently using VIDLE, but the differences between VIDLE and
>> IDLE are not significant in the context of the criticisms of IDLE, and
>> moreover, thanks to Terry's and other work, I'm hopeful that it will
>> soon be possible to abandon VIDLE.
>>
>
> What are the Vidle features not in Idle that you consider 'must-have' in
> order to make the switch? If more than one, try giving them priorities. Are
> feature requests already on the tracker?
>
> --
> Terry Jan Reedy
>
>
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