Compiled to bytecode like java?

"Martin v. Löwis" martin at v.loewis.de
Thu Jan 23 12:31:13 EST 2003


Joel May wrote:
> * What would be downloaded to the device?  Would it be the actual source
> code, which the interpreter would then parse and run?  Or is it a byte-code
> like Java?  

Python executes byte code as well. Up-front compilation, like in Java, 
isn't needed; compilation happens on-the-fly. However, it is possible to 
only provide and execute the byte code.

> * How complex is the Python source code?  

What kind of metrics should one use to answer this question? Readers 
often comment that the Python source code is easy to understand and follow.

 > If I port it to an
> python-unsupported processor (a dsp), would I kill myself trying to get it
> to work?  

Probably not; Python has been used in embedded systems before.

 > How many lines of source code are we talking about here?

Depends on how much you need. Much of Python's source code is extension 
libraries that wrap some system functionality. The "bare" interpreter 
mostly lives in the Python subdirectories, although you should discount 
the various thread and dynload implementations.

Regards,
Martin





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