[Python-Dev] PEP 389: argparse - new command line parsing module

[Michael Foord]

M.-A. Lemburg wrote:
> Antoine Pitrou wrote:
>   
>> Hello,
>>
>> I am neutral on the idea of adding argparse. However, I'm -1 on deprecating
>> optparse. It is very widely used (tons of scripts use it), and ok for many uses;
>> deprecating it is totally unhelpful and gratuitous.
>>     
>
> You can add me to that camp as well:
>
> +0 on adding argparse
> -1 on deprecating wide-used modules such as getopt and optparse
>
> Note that the last -1 only applies to the module APIs, not the
> code in those modules.
>
> If argparse provides an API compatibility layer for getopt and
> optparse, the original code of getopt and optparse could go
> without problem, IMHO, leaving only the mostly empty modules
> together with compatibility layers.
>
> OTOH, as discussed on the stdlib SIG list, those two modules
> hardly ever require any maintenance, so keeping them as they
> are is certainly an option as well.
>
>   
Although as also discussed on the stdlib-sig there is also a cost to 
leaving unmaintained and unneeded modules in the standard library. As we 
are 'end-of-lifing' Python 2.X there seems to be little point in going 
down the deprecation route (there won't be enough releases to ever get 
to module removal) but discussion about the standard library in 
situations like this is badly needed for 3.X.

Certainly a slow deprecation procedure, as suggested by Steven, is 
warranted.

Michael

-- 
http://www.ironpythoninaction.com/
http://www.voidspace.org.uk/blog