[Python-Dev] What is the rationale behind source only releases?

[Ben Finney]

"Alex Walters" <tritium-list at sdamon.com> writes:

> I'd like to know the rationale behind source only releases of cpython.

Software freedom entails the freedom to modify and build the software.
For that, one needs the source form of the software.

Portable software should be feasible to build from source, on a platform
where no builds (of that particular release) were done before. For that,
one needs the source form of the software.

> I have an opinion on their utility and perhaps an idea about changing
> them, but I'd like to know why they are done

The above rationales seem sufficient to me. Are you looking for
additional ones?

> (as opposed to source+binary releases or no release at all)

I don't see a good justification for adding “source+binary” releases to
the existing ones.

We already have a source release (once), anda separate binary (one per
platform). Why bother *also* making a source+binary release — presumably
an additional one per platform?

As for “no release at all”, it seems that those who want that can
download it very quickly now :-)

> before I head over to python-ideas. Is this documented somewhere where
> my google-fu can't find it?

I am not clear on why this would need specific documentation for Python;
these are not issues that are different from any other software where
the recipients have software freedom in the work.

I hope these answers are useful.

-- 
 \       “My business is to teach my aspirations to conform themselves |
  `\              to fact, not to try and make facts harmonise with my |
_o__)                   aspirations.“ —Thomas Henry Huxley, 1860-09-23 |
Ben Finney