[Python-Dev] Distutils and Distribute roadmap (and some words on Virtualenv, Pip)

[Toshio Kuratomi]

On Thu, Oct 08, 2009 at 06:56:19PM +0200, kiorky wrote:
> 
> 
> Toshio Kuratomi a écrit :
> > 
> > Also note, the ability to have multiple versions makes things easier for
> > system packagers and provides an easy alternative to a virtualenv for
> > end-users.
> > 
> > * System packagers: virtualenv does not provide a method suitable for system
> 
> Yes, there is no doubt virtualenv is useless for system packagers but:
> 
> * System and applications deployment have not to be tied.
> It s up to the user to install things system wide or to use locally isolation
> technics. Virtualenv is one of those.
> As a conclusion, there are not very much problem for system packagers as if
> their users have specific needs, they will do something Outside the system.
> If not, they use their global python with packages installed in that global one.
> 
This misses the point.  If there's two pieces of software to be deployed
via system packages and they use two different versions of a module, it's
currently not very easy to do this.  I do it with setuptools curently even
with all its warts.  Having a way to do this from within the stdlib that
tied directly into the import mechanism would make for a much cleaner
situation.

In other words, the suggestion that there is no need for a method to install
multiple versions of a module because virtualenv is a better solution is
bogus.  virtualenv is a better solution for creating isolated environments.
It is not a solution for all of the cases that being able to install
multiple versions of a library would be.

-Toshio
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