[Python-bugs-list] Re: SWIG's embed.i and Python 1.5.2 on WinNT (PR#25)

[Guido van Rossum]

> SWIG automatically generates scripting language bindings
> for C libraries.

I knew that :-)

> It provides a feature to build a standalone
> interpreter that contains the wrapper module and all the
> standard builtin modules of Python. For that purpose the
> SWIG-generated module source provides its own `main',
> "grabs" Python's inittab[] structure, adds the wrapper
> module, sets PyImport_Inittab to the patched inittab and
> calls Py_Main(). The generated source looks like this
> (with some omissions):
> 
> 	#define _PyImport_Inittab swig_inittab
> 	/* Grab Python's inittab[] structure */
> 
> 	#include <config.c> /* This is Pythons's config.c! */
> 
> 	#undef _PyImport_Inittab 
> 
> 	/* Now define our own version of it.
> 	   Hopefully someone does not have more than 1000
> 	   built-in modules */
> 
> 	struct _inittab _SwigImport_Inittab[1000];       
> 
> 	[...]
> 
> 	int
> 	main(int argc, char **argv) {
> 		swig_add_builtin(); /* add wrapper module */
> 		PyImport_Inittab = _SwigImport_Inittab;
> 		return Py_Main(argc,argv);
> 	}

I'm not sure I understand what this has to do with your original
request.  Do you still think it requires a patch to Python?

Also Python has a better way to manipulate the inittab than to play
dirty preprocessor tricks.  There's a whole API to deal with it:
PyImport_ExtendInittab(), PyImport_AppendInittab().

> If you allow, I'd like to forward your questions to Dave Beazley
> (beazley@cs.uchicago.edu), the author of SWIG.

Sure, go agead.

> P.S. Sorry for the duplicate PR#26. I was braindead and
>      pressed "Reload".

No problem -- it has happened to each of us.  We conclude that the
Jitterbug interface has a problem, but we can't easily fix it so we'll
live with it.

--Guido van Rossum (home page: http://www.python.org/~guido/)