[Tutor] Help with setting path

[Alan Gauld]

"sith ." <sith618 at yahoo.com> wrote

>  For example, here is the traceback for a simple file I made and 
> tried to run in IDLE:
>  # test.py
> x = 1 + 1
> print x

>  In IDLE, I tried to run it by typing test.py

That's the problem.
You cannot run Python scripts in IDLE by calling
them like that. You should open the file using the File->Open menu
and then run it using the Run menu. IDLE is not intended for running
scripts but for writing them. To run a script just use a DOS box or
double click the script from Windows Explorer (but in your example
it will close before you can read the output! - you need to put a
raw_input() call at the end to stop that)

>  However, when I open the file in IDLE using the  menu,
> and then run it also from the menu, it works.

Thats the correct way to do it.
You don't need to use IDLE to run a program, only to edit it.

The >>> prompt in IDLE is a Python interpreter and expects
actual Python commands, not script names. On a recent
thread it was mentioned that IPython (which is another Python
interpreter) has some special commands including a run
command that does accept filenames. If that is something
you need you might like IPython.

HTH,

Alan G.