[Tutor] Module Utility

[Jeff Shannon]

Tom Churm wrote:

>hi,
>
>before when i used to have ActivePython installed i'd discovered a utility
>somewhere in the package that, in a console window, displayed what modules
>where available on some kind of site-repository.  if i wanted to, this tool
>would then connect to this site and download the module.
>

You're probably thinking of PPM (Python Package Manager, IIRC).  This is 
indeed an ActivePython-specific tool, which is installed by default with 
ActivePython.  I don't know if it's available separately, however.

The one issue I have with this tool is that the (ActiveState-hosted) 
site-repository doesn't hold many of the packages that I've needed -- it 
only holds packages that ActiveState has had the motivation (and the 
legal right) to put there.  (I don't know how much of the lack of 
packages is due to ActiveState not having the time/motivation/resources 
to host a wider variety, and how much is due to copyright and other 
legal issues.)  Another side-effect of this is that many of the packages 
that *are* there, do not have the latest version available, so that 
anyone needing the latest version (as I have) must go to the package's 
maintainers anyhow.  This is hardly ActiveState's fault -- I'm sure 
they're doing the best they can under the circumstances -- but it 
severly limits the usefulness of the tool, at least to me.  YMMV, of course.

Jeff Shannon
Technician/Programmer
Credit International