[Python-Dev] unicode imports

[Kristján V. Jónsson]

Greetings!
 
Although python has had full unicode support for filenames for a long time on selected platforms (e.g. Windows), there is one glaring deficiency:  It cannot import from paths containing unicode.  I´ve tried creating folders with chinese characters and adding them to path, to no avail.
The standard install path in chinese distributions can be with a non-ANSI path, and installing an embedded python application there will break it.  At the moment this is hindering the installation of EVE on Chinese internet-cafés.
 
A cursory glance at import.c shows that the import mechanism is fairly complicated, and riddled with "char *path" thingies, and manual string arithmetic.  Do you have any suggestions on a clean way to unicodify the import mechanism?
 
A completely parallel implementation on the sys.path[i] level?
 
Are there other platforms beside Windows that would profit from this?
 
Cheers,
 
Kristján
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