[Python-Dev] wish list

[Fred L. Drake, Jr.]

Guido van Rossum writes:
 > I got the wish list below.  Anyone care to comment on how close we are
 > on fulfilling some or all of this?

Claudio Ramón <rmn70@hotmail.com> wrote:
 > * Incorporate WxWindows (wxpython) and/or Gtk+ (now exist a win32 port) GUI 
 > in the standard distribution. For example, Wxpython permit an html browser. 
 > It is very importan for document presentations. And Wxwindows and Gtk+ are 
 > faster than tk.

  And GTK+ looks better, too.  ;-)
  None the less, I don't think GTK+ is as solid or mature as Tk.
There are still a lot of oddities, and several warnings/errors get
messages printed on stderr/stdout (don't know which) rather than
raising exceptions.  (This is a failing of GTK+, not PyGTK.)  There
isn't an equivalent of the Tk text widget, which is a real shame.
There are people working on something better, but it's not a trivial
project and I don't have any idea how its going.

 > * Incorporate a database system in the standard library distribution. To be 
 > possible with relational and documental capabilites and with import facility 
 > of DBASE, Paradox, MSAccess files.

  Doesn't sound like part of a core library really, though I could see 
combining the Win32 extensions with the core package to produce a
single installable.  That should at least provide access to MSAccess,
and possible the others, via ODBC.

 > * Incorporate a XML/HTML/Math-ML editor/browser with graphics capability (to 
 > be possible with XML how internal file format). And to be possible with 
 > Microsoft Word import export facility. For example, AbiWord project can be 
 > an alternative but if lacks programming language. If we can make python the 
 > programming language for AbiWord project...

  I think this would be great to have.  But I wouldn't put the
editor/browser in the core.  I would stick something like the
XML-SIG's package in, though, once that's better polished.


  -Fred

--
Fred L. Drake, Jr.	     <fdrake@acm.org>
Corporation for National Research Initiatives