[Python-ideas] Anyone working on a platform-agnostic os.startfile()

[Hobson Lane]

There is significant interest in a cross-platform
file-launcher.[1][2][3][4]  The ideal implementation would be
an operating-system-agnostic interface that launches a file for editing or
viewing, similar to the way os.startfile() works for Windows, but
generalized to allow caller-specification of view vs. edit preference and
support all registered os.name operating systems, not just 'nt'.

Mercurial has a mature python implementation for cross-platform launching
of an editor (either GUI editor or terminal-based editor like vi).[5][6]
 The python std lib os.startfile obviously works for Windows.

The Mercurial functionality could be rolled into os.startfile() with
additional named parameters for edit or view preference and gui or non-gui
preference. Perhaps that would enable backporting belwo Python 3.x. Or is
there a better place to incorporate this multi-platform file launching
capability?

  [1]:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1856792/intelligently-launching-the-default-editor-from-inside-a-python-cli-program
  [2]:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/434597/open-document-with-default-application-in-python
  [3]:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1442841/lauch-default-editor-like-webbrowser-module
  [4]:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/434597/open-document-with-default-application-in-python
  [5]: http://selenic.com/repo/hg-stable/file/2770d03ae49f/mercurial/ui.py
  [6]: http://selenic.com/repo/hg-stable/file/2770d03ae49f/mercurial/util.py
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