(slightly OT): Python and linux - very cool

[TuxTrax]

On Thu, 01 Aug 2002 08:42:20 -0400, Peter Hansen Wrote in
Steve Ballmers hair grease:

> TuxTrax wrote:
>> 
>> I said that it seems to just work better in Linux. I should have said,
>> there are snags in windows that have to do with the way windows
>> handles things. For instance, the line:
>> 
>> from nntplib import *
>> 
>> should make all of nntplib's methods available to the calling
>> program. However, a known problem (for which there is a workaround -
>> as is the way with windows) is that due to windows file system quirks,
>> the libraries are not always in the same place, or with the same
>> names. for instance, according to the docs, windows often will
>> capitalize an 8.3 filename all on it's own, or not treat spaces
>> correctly. The trolls will jump on this, but I trust the python docs
>> more than I trust the word of trolls. And it is in line with my
>> experiences.
>> 
>> Stuff just works better in Linux. What else can you say.
> 
> Nice post, and welcome to Python, but in this I think you leapt
> to conclusions a little.  None of the above are actually common
> issues in Windows with Python.  "from x import *" certainly works
> properly, even though it's almost never a good idea (hint to newbies:
> don't do that!).  Windows does sometimes capitalize filenames,
> but it's actually Explorer (the GUI shell) which does that, not
> the filesystem, so Python does not really suffer from it.  A
> standard installation would run your code about as well as Linux.
> (Yes, there are some issues, like the Windows TCP/IP stack is 
> worse under Win98 than under Linux.  I just mean that the items
> you point out above are not issues.)
> 
> I'm actually almost OS-agnostic as a result of using Python for
> so much.  No small feat, that.
> 
> -Peter

I hope both my Comp.os linux.advocacy friends, and those in CLP will
forgive the crosspost. I am just so jazzed about python, and it's
incredible power and ease of use, that I wanted to spread the word.

I am also a big supporter of Linux, having been weaned off of
windows. I certainly didn't want to start a windows vs. linux flame
war in either group.

At any rate, I am a self professed newbie in python, and was passing
on information I had read in the python docs. It is certainly possible
that my interpretation of what I read was incorrect. 

as for the NNTP module: I just couldn't get over how easy it was to
access NNTP with python. When I was learning visual basic, this would
have been a nightmare, and only for the advanced necromancer. As I
said; it couldn't have been done at all with the $100.00 version of VB
6.0 (learning edition) I had (yes I paid for it),  because microsoft 
didn't include the neccessary libraries for socket
implementations. They wanted you to upgrade to the ($400.00?)
developer version for that.

I'm giddy with delight. Python is free. FREE! And it beats VB
senseless! (IMHO)

There is justice in life.

Thank you Guido!

Cheers,

Mathew

-- 
TuxTrax   (n.) An invincible, all terrain, Linux driven armored assault
vehicle that can take as much fire as it gives ;-)

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