[Python-Dev] imputil and modulefinder replacements

[Samuele Pedroni]

Hi

[Greg Ward]
> > One question: should these ZIP-archives filenames be placed in 
> > sys.path or should Python scan for ZIP-archives within the
> > dirs on sys.path ?
> 
> I think the archive file should be listed in sys.path.

the latest jython code base (2.1a3) allow to put jar/zip
in the sys.path or reference of the form

jarfile!pkgdir1/pkgdir2

This are used to set meaningful __path__ attrs for the packages
and should allow to deal with code that change __path__ 
pointing to some relative subdir according to some context
property.

> Note that my experience of this in Java was largely negative, because
> Java doesn't have a standard way of putting .class files in the
> filesystem (AFAIK) -- so everything has to be in a .jar file, and those
> .jar files can be anywhere you please.  

I don't get the point :(

> So you end up with a mile-long
> CLASSPATH that's very fragile and forever needing fixing.  As long as
> most Python modules are accessed the ordinary way (files in a
> directory), then Python won't have a problem.  But if somebody makes a
> Python installation with "stdlib.zip", "distutils.zip",
> "mxDateTime.zip", etc. etc., then the poor users will be in the same
> boat as Java users.
> 


> The main concerns I have with scanning sys.path directories for ZIP
> files are performance and transparence.  (It ain't necessarily obvious
> where a particular module will come from if sys.path can be searched in
> two ways.)

I agree.

regards.