Help! Host is reluctant to install Python

[Jeff Shannon]

Daniel Bickett wrote:

> I've been trying to convince my host to install python/mod_python on
> his server for a while now, however there are a number of reasons he
> is reluctant to do so, which I will outline here:
> 
> 1. His major reason is optimization. He uses Zend's optimization of
> PHP as an example, and he has stated that python is rather resource
> consuming.

This depends, as all things, on what's being done with it -- it's 
certainly possible to write resource-hogging Python apps, but it's 
possible to do that in any language.  And I'm not aware of Python 
being particularly worse in this regard than any other web-scripting 
language.  I suspect this translates to "I'm avoiding anything that I 
don't already know".

> And, in light of point #1, I suggested that if there wasn't any
> optimization immediately available, he could just enable it for my
> account (thus lessening potential resource consumption at any given
> time), to which he retorted "Do /you/ know how to do that?", and I
> must say, he has me cornered ;-)

I don't know how to do that offhand... but then, I don't expect people 
to pay me for web-hosting expertise.  I would expect, from the little 
that I *do* know of Apache configuration, that it wouldn't be too 
difficult to allow Python CGIs to run out of only one specific 
directory, that being within your webspace.

If you're paying for this service, then I'd agree with everyone else 
that you should be paying for a different service.  There's plenty of 
webhosts around who *will* do Python.  If this is a friend, then point 
him to the Python Success Stories (http://www.pythonology.com/success) 
and suggest that if there's that many Python web apps around, it can't 
be too horrible on resources/management, and that he shouldn't be so 
afraid to try something new...

Jeff Shannon
Technician/Programmer
Credit International