[Python-3000] pickle, cPickle, and the standard library (was Re: [Python-Dev] inst_persistent_id)

[Stephen J. Turnbull]

Brett Cannon writes:
 > On Feb 3, 2008 1:37 PM, Jim Fulton <jim at zope.com> wrote:

 > > I think the standard library is bloated.  I'd much prefer to see a
 > > leaner standard library that really provides features that are close
 > > to the language and provide a packaging system that make it easy to
 > > install other packages as needed.  I think setuptools is a pretty good
 > > start at this.
 > 
 > But we need a solution, not a start. While the stdlib is bloated, it
 > is being trimmed down in Py3K already. If you want to trim more then
 > push for stuff to be removed on a module-to-module basis. But going
 > from "batteries included" to "batteries easily downloaded" is quite a
 > shift for Python.

Trimming the standard library does not necessarily mean "batteries not
included".  It could mean that instead of getting form-fitting super-
high-output custom <whatever the current technology is>, you get a
pair of AA Duracell alkalines that you can buy by the gross at CostCo.

In other words, take whatever the module maintainer is recommending,
run the full test suite, and if everything outside of the "official
stdlib" passes its own unit tests and any random cross-module tests
that happen to touch it, ship it with the main distribution.

This is conceptually a substantial step down in quality control.  But
in practice, is it really so different from what happens now?