[Python-Dev] Include ctypes into core Python?

[Georg Brandl]

Delaney, Timothy (Tim) wrote:
> Guido van Rossum wrote:
> 
>> On 1/10/06, Thomas Heller <theller at python.net> wrote:
>>> I would like to suggest to include ctypes into core Python, starting
>>> with the 2.5 release.
>> 
>> On the one hand I agree that this is a useful module, popular, mature
>> etc. 
>> 
>> On the other hand it breaks one of the most fundamental Python
>> guidelines: if you get a core dump (segfault etc.) it's a bug in
>> Python or in a 3rd party extension, not in *your* Python code. An
>> exception would have to be made for any code that uses ctypes, as it
>> is usually trivial to cause core dumps with ctypes (I'd venture it's
>> hard to avoid them ;-).
>> 
>> I don't expect this to count against including ctypes; but I do want
>> it to be dealt with somehow!
> 
> As was pointed out on c.l.py, the `dl` module suffers the exact same
> problem (I don't know myself, as I've never used it). There are no
> warnings about this in the `dl` module documentation.
> 
> I can't see how it would be possible to guarantee that such a module
> could not cause crashes. I'm of the opinion that having a big red
> warning at the top of the module documentation that this is a
> contributed module, and incorrect use could cause segmentation
> faults/crashes, etc would be sufficient.

+1.

A warning for dl might not be the worst thing.

Georg