[Python-3000] [Python-Dev] What should the focus for 2.6 be?

[Josiah Carlson]

martin at v.loewis.de wrote:
> 
> Zitat von Josiah Carlson <jcarlson at uci.edu>:
> 
> > > To the contrary, you seem to have a basic disagreement with the plan to
> > > make all the core language changes at once and to clear the decks of old
> > > baggage so we can move forward with a learner language that is a bit easier
> > > to learn and remember.
> >
> > I disagree with the "all the changes at once", but if Guido didn't agree
> > with a gradual upgrade path, then the 2.6-2.9 series wouldn't even be
> > considered as options, and we'd be looking at 3.0 coming out after 2.5,
> > and there not being a 2.6 .  Since 2.6 is planned, and other 2.x
> > releases are at least possible (if not expected), then I must agree with
> > someone, as my desires haven't previously been sufficient to change
> > Python release expectations.
> 
> That conclusion is invalid. 2.6, 2.7, ... are not made to gradually
> move towards 3.0, but because it is anticipated that 3.0 will not
> be adopted immediately, but, say, 3.2 might be. To provide new
> features for 2.x users, new 2.x releases need to be made
> (of course, the features added to, say, 2.7 will likely also
> be added to, say, 3.3).

See Guido's reply here:
http://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-3000/2006-August/003105.html

Specifically his reponse to the "Here's my suggestion:" paragraph. 
Unless I completely misunderstood his response, and his later asking
whether I want to help author the transition PEP (presumably for at
least dict.keys(), bur more likely from 2.x to 3.x), I can't help but
believe that he also wants at least an attempt at some gradual change
for users with cold feet about breaking everything in one go.

Also, in the talk he gave at Google on July 21, somewhere around the
7:45-11 minute mark, he talks about how 3.x features are to be
backported to 2.7 or so, specifically so that there is a larger subset
of Python that will run in both 2.x and 3.x .  Smells like an attempt at
gradual migration to me.


 - Josiah