[Python-Dev] Include ctypes into core Python?

["Martin v. Löwis"]

Guido van Rossum wrote:
> On the other hand it breaks one of the most fundamental Python
> guidelines: if you get a core dump (segfault etc.) it's a bug in
> Python or in a 3rd party extension, not in *your* Python code. An
> exception would have to be made for any code that uses ctypes, as it
> is usually trivial to cause core dumps with ctypes (I'd venture it's
> hard to avoid them ;-).
> 
> I don't expect this to count against including ctypes; but I do want
> it to be dealt with somehow!

I think the strongest point *for* ctypes is the inclusion of dl
in the source distribution, which has the very same flaws as
ctypes in terms of crashability.

So as for dealing with it "somehow": I would make ctypes a dynamically
loaded module (ctypes.pyd), so administrators could remove it, and
I could also make it a separate option in the Windows installer,
so administrators could reject to install it.

Regards,
Martin