[Python-Dev] FW: Fixing os.popen on Win32 => is the win32pipe stuff going to be adopted?

[James C. Ahlstrom]

Tim Peters wrote:
> Screw the docs.  Pretend you're a newbie and *try* it.

I did try it.

> 
> import os
> p = os.popen("dir")
> while 1:
>     line = p.readline()
>     if not line:
>         break
>     print line
> 
> Type that in by hand, or stick it in a file & run it from a cmdline
> python.exe (which is a Windows console program).  Under Win95 the process
> freezes solid, and even trying to close the DOS box doesn't work.  You have
> to bring up the task manager and kill it that way.  I once traced this under

Point on the curve:  This program works perfectly on my
machine running NT.

> libc pipes ares as flaky as libc popen under Windows, Jim!  MarkH has the
> only versions of these things that come close to working under Windows (he
> wraps the native Win32 spellings of these things; MS's libc entry points
> (which Python uses now) are much worse).

I believe you when you say popen() is flakey.  It is a little
harder to believe it is not possible to write a _popen()
replacement using pipes which works.

Of course I wanted you to do it instead of me!  Well, if
I get any time before 1.6 comes out...

JimA