[issue25514] Improve IDLE's "subprocess didn't make connection" message

[Terry J. Reedy]

Terry J. Reedy added the comment:

I have seen another report that is likely due to masking.  I don't know why this has suddenly become seemingly much more common, but I have made fixing the problem a priority.  See new issue #26143.

I would like to narrow this issue to the user process, and broaden it to reporting all currently plausible causes of non-connection.  I revised the title to say this.

I am looking  at https://stackoverflow.com/questions/15888186/cant-run-python-via-idle-from-explorer-2013-idles-subprocess-didnt-make-c to see what causes people have found or think they have found.

1. Antivirus/firewall (4 people, linux iptables, Windows firewall, antivisus , so not a myth ;-)
2. Shadow files, as described above, and in the python directory (about as common, tkinter,py, subprocess.py).
3. Registry problem (some people can fix, but most should re-install after complete removal).
4. Zombie pythonw process (kill with Windows Task manager).
5. Permissions (run as admin, though should not be needed with proper install)
?. Multiple installed versions clash due to misconfiguration?

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/874757/python-idle-subprocess-error
Add:
?. example program that reads and writes (test)
6. Running after stopping run with ^C (temporary, I believe Restart Shell will fix)  Call this a timing issue.
<<Note: I have experienced temporary connection failures myself, but have not written what I did>>
7. Modem rebot (rather obsolete answer for most of us).

There are plenty of miscellaneous possibilities to add even if masking, the most common reason, is fixed.

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title: better startup error messages in IDLE when stdlib modules shadowed -> Improve IDLE's  "subprocess didn't make connection" message

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Python tracker <report at bugs.python.org>
<http://bugs.python.org/issue25514>
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