py2exe and library.zip

[Simon Brunning]

On 5/4/05, Timothy Smith <timothy at open-networks.net> wrote:
> Simon Brunning wrote:
> >The zip file is a generated artifact. I've always found it a good rule
> >of thumb that you should keep source artifacts in your version control
> >system, not generated artifacts.
> >
> >
> >
> version control systems are used for many purposes. it's just as
> important to keep track of your packaged releases and documentation as
> it is source code.
> its also a very convenient method of keeping people up with the lastest
> version.

Well, they may be used for many things, but what they are *good* at is
what they were designed for. Use them to do a job that they *weren't*
designed for, and they don't do so well.

The zip file essentially contains the whole system in on lump. Change
the system, and naturally your users will have to download the whole
lump again. (In my 'day job', I'm a Java web app developer. We keep
the source for our systems in SVN, any 3rd party JARs, and our build
scripts. We *used* to keep the installable WAR files in there too, but
we've stopped doing that now, for this reason amongst others.)

> i know i've seen what i'm asking for before, but no one seems to be able
> to tell me.

Sorry, but I'm not aware that py2exe can do this, or has ever been
able to. Again, it's designed to build you a minimum-file-count
distributable, and that's what it's good at.

-- 
Cheers,
Simon B,
simon at brunningonline.net,
http://www.brunningonline.net/simon/blog/