PYTHON 1.5 NOTES ON THE AMIGA PORT June 6, 1998. Conversion and Amiga specific code by Irmen de Jong. (Original code by Guido van Rossum and others) Read the file ! It contains the disclaimer for this software, and copyright notices. Contents: ~~~~~~~~~ 1. What's new? 2. General remarks. 3. Troubleshooting. 4. Future. 5. Modification history. +----------------------+ | | | 1. What's new? | | | +----------------------+ IMPORTANT CHANGES SINCE THE PREVIOUS VERSION (version 1.4 Jan 31 1998): - New version based on Python 1.5.1 source code - Included new Python 1.5 library files - Builtin module 'urlop' removed +----------------------+ | | | 2. General remarks | | | +----------------------+ * The Python library contains an extensive test set. To try it yourself, type (after installation): Python -c "import test.autotest" (and have patience...) Python -c "import test.autotest" (and have patience...) (Yes: do it TWICE because the generated .pyc files need to be checked too). Some tests cannot run on the Amiga - they will be skipped. The report at the end should say something like: 31 tests OK. 1 test failed: test_strftime (this is OK; strftime is wrong) 18 tests skipped: ..... If you don't start AmiTCP first, test_socket and test_select will fail. If usergroup.library cannot be opened, crypt, grp and pwd will fail. * To see some command line options, use the -? option, or any other unrecognised option. * To run a speed benchmark, type: Python -c "import test.pystone; test.pystone.main()" and have some patience. On my system, Python1.5 does 368 pystones/second, while Python 1.4 did 228 (so version 1.5 is 1.6 times faster than v 1.4). * In the `Docs/Amiga' directory you can find the docs for the Amiga specific modules and features. Read them, they contain vital information! * In the `Icons' directory there are some icon suggestions. def_py.info is an icon for Python source files (.py) def_pyc.info is an icon for Pytnon bytecode files (.pyc) * The following modules are built-in in this release: amiga arexxll array binascii cPickle cStringIO cmath crypt doslib environment errno grp imp marshal math md5 new operator pcre pwd regex rotor select socket soundex strop struct sys syslog time timing Amiga specific: amiga, arexxll, doslib, environment Needs usergroup.library: crypt, grp, pwd. Needs AmiTCP's bsdsocket.library: select, socket, syslog. * Mail me if you encounter any Amiga specific problems, or if you have any Amiga related questions about Python, or just for fun. General questions are better asked on the usenet newsgroup comp.lang.python. A lot of information, including an online manual, can be obtained from , or if your site is close to the Netherlands. Read the FAQ before asking! * Version 1.4 is no longer supported by me, once V1.5 seems stable. When having problems with 1.4, first try 1.5. +-----------------------+ | | | 3. Troubleshooting | | | +-----------------------+ * When I try to install Python, I get "Unable to open your tool 'installer'"! The Installer® utility is required for installation, but it is not included in the archive. Get it from somewhere else and copy it to your C: directory or somewhere where Workbench can find it. * When I start python, I get "This program requires a math co-processor"! You should upgrade your computer to at least a 68030 with a FPU. * I get "Couldn't open bsdsocket.library" or "Couldn't open usergroup.library" errors! You are trying to use functions that need one of these libraries. AmiTCP is required if you want to use all (network) functions. * Python crashes when executing complex (recursive) code! This should not happen; you should get a MemoryError exception. If it does crash, increase your stack size and try again. Python's default stack size is 20K, which should be enough for most programs. * Functions which use the PIPE: device (like os.popen) seem to work incorrectly! The default l:queue-handler is buggy. Make sure you have installed a fixed l:queue-handler (I'm using util/sys/HWGQueue.lha from Aminet) * Other errors Mail me at apython@geocities.com (preferred) or ijong@gak.nl (please use the other adress) with a clear description of the problem. +----------------------+ | | | 4. Future | | | +----------------------+ A bunch of ideas which might be implemented someday in the future: - interfaces to other Amiga libraries - GUI module for building python apps with a GUI - Support for other networking packages like I-Net - Use Executive's API (sysinfo.library, if available) for process stuff? - split python in several shared libraries +---------------+ | | | 5. History | | | +---------------+ dec. 1995 to dec 1996: version 1.3 releases. History stripped. (1.3 is no longer supported) 12 jan. 1997 - 1st public release of version 1.4 Some minor additional changes since 1.3. Includes doslib & ARexx support. 31 jan. 1998 - 2nd public release of version 1.4 Some minor changes. Included patches. (version 1.5 is in beta). (1.4 is no longer supported) 6 jun. 1998 - 1st public release of version 1.5 Major piece of work: based on new 1.5.1 sources Irmen de Jong (ijong@gak.nl)