Proposal: add vector arithmetic to array module

[Tim Peters]

[Tim]
> Use NumPy -- can't be suppressed <wink>.  Why do you think
> NumPy is a big package?  Doing this right is neither simple nor lean,
> and as soon as one array op is added, the rest are inevitable.

[Paul Rubin]
> Huh?  Adding pointwise addition means you have to add eigenvalues?

I hope you didn't believe that merits a response <0.5 wink>.

> The reason I don't want to use NumPy is that it isn't included in
> standard Python distributions.  It's yet another thing for the user
> to download, and it's maintained and distributed by a separate group
> of people than the Python maintainers.  All in all, it's harder to
> deal with and there's more ways to go wrong.

That's all true of every module that's not in the core distribution.  If the
NumPy maintainers really wanted it in the core, I bet they could prevail --
but I doubt the current crop of core Python maintainers has the bandwidth to
take this over from them (the PythonLabs crew does not), let alone to
reinvent it.  So "really want" includes volunteering ongoing work too.

> If NumPy became part of standard Python, then I'd happily use it.

Same here.

heck-i'd-use-perl-again-if-it-were-part-of-core-python<wink>-ly y'rs
    - tim