[Python-Dev] "setuptools has divided the Python community"

[Paul Moore]

2009/3/27 Guido van Rossum <guido at python.org>:
> - keep distutils, but start deprecating certain higher-level
> functionality in it (e.g. bdist_rpm)
> - don't try to provide higher-level functionality in the stdlib, but
> instead let third party tools built on top of these core APIs compete

Please don't move bdist_wininst out of the core, though!

I'd argue that Windows is a special case, as many Windows users don't
have the ability to build their own extensions, so they rely heavily
on binary installers. And there's no "Windows packagers" organisation
to produce such things in the way that Linux has people building debs,
rpms, etc. Making it as easy as possible for a random developer to
build a Windows installer (by including bdist_wininst or equivalent in
the core) is therefore significantly more beneficial than doing the
same for a Linux/Mac/Solaris/... installer (Mac users or anyone else
speak up here if I'm misrepresenting you!)

>From what I understand of the issues, the problems with
bdist_rpm/deb/etc have always been the need to conform to externally
defined standards such as the Linux filesystem policy, or Debian's
policies. As Windows has no such policies (or any that do exist are
routinely ignored :-)) there is no pressure to "fix" bdist_wininst as
policies change.

Sorry if this was discussed at the session already.

Paul.

PS I'm using bdist_wininst as an example here. If someone were to come
up with an alternative (core) means of building Windows installers for
Python packages (maybe based on a common binary format such as eggs)
that would be equally good. It's having no way in the core of building
Windows installers that I'm arguing against.