Python help: Sending a "play" command to quicktime, or playing a movie in python

[Terry Reedy]

Chris Rebert wrote:
> On Fri, Oct 23, 2009 at 3:07 PM, Varnon Varnon <varnonzero at gmail.com> wrote:
>> I'm sure this is a simple problem, or at least I hope it is, but I'm
>> not an experience programer and the solution eludes me.
>>
>> My realm of study is the behavioral sciences. I want to write a
>> program to help me record data from movie files.
>> Currently I have a program that can record the time of a keystroke so
>> that I can use that to obtain frequency, duration and other temporal
>> characteristics of the behaviors in my movies.
>>
>> What I really want, is a way to start playing the movie. Right now I
>> have to play the movie, then switch to my program. I would love it if
>> it were possible for me to have my program send a message to quicktime
>> that says "play." Or any other work around really. If python could
>> play the movie, that would work just as well.
>>
>> I'm using a mac btw.
>>
>> Any suggestions?
> 
> import subprocess
> subprocess.Popen(["open", "path/to/the/movie.file"])
> 
> Docs for the subprocess module: http://docs.python.org/library/subprocess.html
> For information on the Mac OS X "open" command, `man open` from Terminal.

Or, for more control, look at pygame or other Python game frameworks.