python on Mac

**James Stroud** · Apr 6 '06, 01:05 AM

Re: python on Mac

Thomas Nelson wrote:[color=blue]
> I just purchased a new macbook (os 10.4.6), and I'm trying to install
> python 2.4 on it. I downloaded and ran the two installers recommended
> at http://www.python.org/download/mac/. Now I have IDLE, which runs
> 2.4.1, but typing "python" at a terminal still opens 2.3.5, because it
> points to /usr/bin/python. Is there a way to run python 2.4 without
> idle? If I want to do a unix style script, something like
> #!/usr/bin/python
> print "hello world"
> what can I put on the first line that will cause python 2.4 to
> interpret my code?
>
> Thanks a lot.
> THN
>[/color]

The python in /usr/bin is a link (to a link). You can do this:

sudo rm /usr/bin/python
sudo ln -s \
/System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framewor k/Versions/2.4/bin/python \
/usr/bin/python

This stupid firebird editor word-wraps (and I don't know how to turn
this completely annoying behavior off. Appearantly this is because it is
impossible to soft wrap text on the reader side, annoying NNTP veterans
everywhere--we just can't count on this hard to program behavior in most
mail readers because its so impossible to program for. Its been this way
since reader-client word wrapping was predicted to exist at MIT in the
1970's.) so get a unix guru to help you with that last command if you
really don't know what's going on.

James

--
James Stroud
UCLA-DOE Institute for Genomics and Proteomics
Box 951570
Los Angeles, CA 90095

http://www.jamesstroud.com/

**Thomas Nelson** · Apr 6 '06, 01:25 AM

Re: python on Mac

There is no 2.4 in my Versions folder, only 2.3 and current. Should
one of the installers have created this directory? Which one?

THN

**Alex Martelli** · Apr 6 '06, 02:25 AM

Re: python on Mac

Thomas Nelson <thn@mail.utexa s.edu> wrote:
...[color=blue]
> at http://www.python.org/download/mac/. Now I have IDLE, which runs[/color]

Darn, that page needs to be fixed -- it's out of date!-( Sorry...

See instead <http://www.python.org/download/releases/2.4.3/> and
download
<http://www.python.org/ftp/python/2.4.3/Universal-MacPython-2.4.3.dmg>,
you should be much happier.

Alex

**Thomas Nelson** · Apr 6 '06, 02:55 AM

Re: python on Mac

Thanks to you both. I downloaded the dmg suggested, and trustingly
typed:
sudo rm /usr/bin/python
sudo ln -s /usr/local/bin/python2.4 /usr/bin/python
And now my command line and scripts behave the way I expect. Thanks
again.

THN

**pierreth** · Apr 6 '06, 03:25 AM

Re: python on Mac

You removed /usr/bin/python! This is a really bad idea. You should
never modify /usr/bin because the system is expecting it. This is why
the new installation is in /usr/local/bin.

Modify your /usr/local instead are change your .login file instead. It
is much safer.

**Robert Kern** · Apr 6 '06, 03:45 AM

Re: python on Mac

James Stroud wrote:[color=blue]
> Thomas Nelson wrote:
>[color=green]
>>I just purchased a new macbook (os 10.4.6), and I'm trying to install
>>python 2.4 on it. I downloaded and ran the two installers recommended
>>at http://www.python.org/download/mac/. Now I have IDLE, which runs
>>2.4.1, but typing "python" at a terminal still opens 2.3.5, because it
>>points to /usr/bin/python. Is there a way to run python 2.4 without
>>idle? If I want to do a unix style script, something like
>>#!/usr/bin/python
>>print "hello world"
>>what can I put on the first line that will cause python 2.4 to
>>interpret my code?
>>
>>Thanks a lot.
>>THN[/color]
>
> The python in /usr/bin is a link (to a link). You can do this:
>
> sudo rm /usr/bin/python
> sudo ln -s \
> /System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framewor k/Versions/2.4/bin/python \
> /usr/bin/python[/color]

No, for the love of all that is holy, don't do that! OS X depends on stuff in
/usr/bin/. Don't pull the carpet out from under your OS!

The python executables from the Python 2.4 installer are installed to
/usr/local/bin/. I believe that the Universal binary that Alex linked to takes
care of adjusting the PATH environment variable such that this is exposed.

--
Robert Kern
robert.kern@gma il.com

"I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma
that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had
an underlying truth."
-- Umberto Eco

**Robert Kern** · Apr 6 '06, 03:45 AM

Re: python on Mac

Robert Kern wrote:[color=blue]
> James Stroud wrote:[/color]
[color=blue][color=green]
>>The python in /usr/bin is a link (to a link). You can do this:
>>
>>sudo rm /usr/bin/python
>>sudo ln -s \
>> /System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framewor k/Versions/2.4/bin/python \
>> /usr/bin/python[/color]
>
> No, for the love of all that is holy, don't do that! OS X depends on stuff in
> /usr/bin/. Don't pull the carpet out from under your OS![/color]

C.f.:

"FAQ 5.7 Describe Apple's Framework implementation of Python and how that
affects me adding new Python implementations "

MacPython/FAQ

http://pythonmac.org/wiki/FAQ#head-392d16c2e6e49d6de6555634fc94759989464b5a

--
Robert Kern
robert.kern@gma il.com

"I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma
that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had
an underlying truth."
-- Umberto Eco

**Lou Pecora** · Apr 6 '06, 11:15 AM

Re: python on Mac

In article <e11ou7$git$1@d aisy.noc.ucla.e du>,
James Stroud <jstroud@ucla.e du> wrote:
[color=blue]
> Thomas Nelson wrote:[color=green]
> > I just purchased a new macbook (os 10.4.6), and I'm trying to install
> > python 2.4 on it. I downloaded and ran the two installers recommended
> > at http://www.python.org/download/mac/. Now I have IDLE, which runs
> > 2.4.1, but typing "python" at a terminal still opens 2.3.5, because it
> > points to /usr/bin/python. Is there a way to run python 2.4 without
> > idle? If I want to do a unix style script, something like
> > #!/usr/bin/python
> > print "hello world"
> > what can I put on the first line that will cause python 2.4 to
> > interpret my code?
> >
> > Thanks a lot.
> > THN
> >[/color]
>
> The python in /usr/bin is a link (to a link). You can do this:
>
> sudo rm /usr/bin/python
> sudo ln -s \
> /System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framewor k/Versions/2.4/bin/python \
> /usr/bin/python[/color]

YIKES! Don't do that. Don't mess with Apple's python. Not
recommended. Check the MacPython FAQ and Wiki pages. Python 2.4 was
installed in /usr/local/bin. You should put that in your $PATH variable
Before /usr/bin. That will cause the new Python to be launched.

-- Lou Pecora (my views are my own) REMOVE THIS to email me.

**gene tani** · Apr 6 '06, 02:15 PM

Re: python on Mac

Lou Pecora wrote:[color=blue]
> YIKES! Don't do that. Don't mess with Apple's python. Not
> recommended. Check the MacPython FAQ and Wiki pages. Python 2.4 was
> installed in /usr/local/bin. You should put that in your $PATH variable
> Before /usr/bin. That will cause the new Python to be launched.
>[/color]

some afterthoughts:

- look at Oreilly's "OS X Tiger for Unix Geeks" before you do anything
that'll break OS X. Just in case you get the idea to upgrade the perl
that OS X installed, don't remove the one in /usr/bin either.

- investigate the Activestate disk image for OS X/Intel. I say
"investigat e" cause i don't have any experience with OS X/Intel, but
the Activestate releases i've used for Windows and OS X in the past
have all been very high quality.

**Thomas Nelson** · Apr 6 '06, 03:45 PM

Re: python on Mac

Well, as I stated in post, I've already replaced the link at
/usr/bin/python. I'm not clear why that's unhealthy. Should I change
it back to whatever it was before? I guess maybe it was
/System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framewor k/Versions/Current/bin/python
?
Thanks,
THN

**Robert Kern** · Apr 6 '06, 04:15 PM

Re: python on Mac

Thomas Nelson wrote:[color=blue]
> Well, as I stated in post, I've already replaced the link at
> /usr/bin/python. I'm not clear why that's unhealthy.[/color]

The FAQ describes why it's unhealthy in detail.

"FAQ 5.7 Describe Apple's Framework implementation of Python and how that
affects me adding new Python implementations "

MacPython/FAQ

http://pythonmac.org/wiki/FAQ#head-392d16c2e6e49d6de6555634fc94759989464b5a

[color=blue]
> Should I change
> it back to whatever it was before? I guess maybe it was
> /System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framewor k/Versions/Current/bin/python
> ?[/color]

[src]$ ls -l /usr/bin/python
lrwxr-xr-x 1 root wheel 9 May 1 2005 /usr/bin/python -> python2.3
[src]$ ls -l /usr/bin/python2.3
lrwxr-xr-x 1 root wheel 72 May 1 2005 /usr/bin/python2.3 ->
.../../System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framewor k/Versions/2.3/bin/python

--
Robert Kern
robert.kern@gma il.com

"I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma
that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had
an underlying truth."
-- Umberto Eco

**Thomas Nelson** · Apr 6 '06, 11:15 PM

Re: python on Mac

Ok, I fixed my /usr/bin/python and added /usr/public/bin/ to my PATH in
..profile. Everything seems ok now.
Thanks again to everyone for their help.

THN

**Lawrence D'Oliveiro** · Apr 7 '06, 08:55 PM

Re: python on Mac

In article <1144293362.889 863.146200@i39g 2000cwa.googleg roups.com>,
"pierreth" <pthibault33@ya hoo.ca> wrote:
[color=blue]
>You removed /usr/bin/python! This is a really bad idea[/color]

Is there any way to put it back, short of a full system reinstall?

**Alex Martelli** · Apr 10 '06, 10:46 PM

Re: python on Mac

Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@geek-central.gen.new _zealand> wrote:
[color=blue]
> In article <1144293362.889 863.146200@i39g 2000cwa.googleg roups.com>,
> "pierreth" <pthibault33@ya hoo.ca> wrote:
>[color=green]
> >You removed /usr/bin/python! This is a really bad idea[/color]
>
> Is there any way to put it back, short of a full system reinstall?[/color]

There's a free 3rd party tool known as Pacifist to extract part-installs
from Apple's system DVDs, but I'm not sure how you'd apply it to Apple's
Python -- try asking around on the Pacifist mailing list or site...

Alex

python on Mac

python on Mac

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