FreeBSD or OpenBSD for Python?

[Eddie Corns]

Patrick Useldinger <p at trick.lu> writes:

>On Sat, 20 Mar 2004 06:28:40 GMT, kbk at shore.net (Kurt B. Kaiser) wrote:

>>However, they do patch Python slightly by adding Modules/setup.local
>>to get around a non-standard naming of the tcl/tk libraries.

>That is what worries me with OpenBSD. They patch everything in order to
>make things more secure, which is their main focus. But doesn't this
>bring a lot of compatibility issues along? 
>If you compile "plain" Python from www.python.org  with the patched gcc,
>who guarantees that it will work?
>If you installed a patched Python, how can you be certain no bugs have
>been added?
>In any case, you're running a configuration that's less tested than the
>"original".

The reason for the patching is not security but compatability.  In fact they
explicitly warn you that external packages do not go through the security
audit.  The patches are to cover any differences between BSD and the intended
target Unix (eg change Linuxisms to BSDisms).  In other words compiling plain
Python won't work.

Eddie