[Python-Dev] Documentation enhancement: "MS free compiler"?

[Paul Moore]

On 6/19/06, "Martin v. Löwis" <martin at v.loewis.de> wrote:
> Cameron Laird wrote:
> > I'm channeling a correspondent, who tells me that Python documentation
> > (Python 2.5 announcement, and so on) mentions compatibility of sources
> > with "the MS free compiler"; that's the default toolchain for Windows.
> >
> > Apparently we're in conflict with Microsoft on that:  some hyperlinks
> > refer to <URL: http://msdn.microsoft.com/visualc/vctoolkit2003/ >, which
> > begins,
> >   The Visual C++ Toolkit 2003 has been
> >   replaced by Visual C++ 2005 Express
> >   Edition.
> > The latter is available at no charge, incidentally.
>
> It would be good to know where the hyperlink supposedly is, so we know
> who can update it.

There's one in PCBuild/README - I don't know if that's the one
referred to. However, there is no valid replacement link, so I'm not
sure what it should be replaced with (other than a suggestion that the
only way of getting the toolkit compiler is by "unofficial" means).

> In any case, changing the reference to VS 2005 is the wrong thing to
> do - VS 2005 is *not* the default tool chain on Windows. So the update
> should be that there is no free compiler from MS anymore (or perhaps
> it should point to the .NET SDK, provided that has a free compiler).

As far as I know, there is *no* replacement for the Toolkit compiler
(where replacement implies builds to link with msvcr71.dll, and is an
optimising compiler).

MS withdrew the toolkit compiler right after my patch to document how
to use it was committed :-( I was sufficiently annoyed and demotivated
by this, that I never did anything to fix the documentation,
particularly as I don't have a good suggestion. I'll see if I have
time to look at the README and suggest suitable words.

Paul.