[Numpy-discussion] Questions about organization

[Paul F. Dubois]

You wrote:

...As I understand it the goals are

1) keep all of the current packages in the distribution
2) the following imports will work individually or together:
   a) import Numeric
   b) import FFT
   c) import LinearAlgebra
   d) import MLab
   e) import Matrix
   f) import Precision
   g) import RandomArray
   h) import UserArray
   i) import ranlib
   j) import umath
   k) import RNG
   l) import MA
3) minimal changes in the source

I just need some direction so that I can get things working.  I think that
the simplest thing is to merge the RANLIB and LALITE packages with the core
of Numeric and make the building and installation of them an option.  This
fits beter with the paradigm of distutils.

---
You are describing exactly what we used to have. We changed it. We had
reasons that haven't disappeared.

(1) is not necessarily a goal. We had a long argument about that, too. If
anything, (1) is an anti-goal.
    Under no circumstances am I willing to move packages back to the core. I
think it more likely that
    all the optional packages will go somewhere else entirely. We need a
more organized structure.
    For historical reasons people did not want to change the way some of the
above are NOT packages.
(2) No, it is not possible to import those modules independently. Some
depend on the others.
(3) is not a goal, but it is not permissible to require changes in CLIENT
code, such as changing where the include files get installed.
(4) Goal: enable people to easily modify LinearAlgebra so that a
user-specified BLAS and/or LAPACK library is used.
(5) Goal: not make it harder to make distributions on the Mac or Windows
just to make RPMs easier.