MS VC++ Toolkit 2003, where?

[Alex Martelli]

So, I thought I'd tool up to let me build and test Python extensions on
Windows (as well as Mac and Linux) -- I'm trying out Parallels
Workstation beta on my new Macbook Pro (and so far it seems to work very
well), I bought and installed a Win2000 Pro on it (since according to
the grapevine it works better than XP in various kinds of virtual
machines, and almost all SW supports w2k anyway -- I also found out that
one exception is the Google Pack, which does require XP), did all the
upgrades (why MS forces you to do 8+ rounds of download-install, from an
off-the-CD win2k SP2 to a fully upgraded win2k SP4, rather than offering
a single-round option, I just don't undersand!), got Python 2.4.3 --
phew, so far so good.

So, I go to <http://www.vrplumber.com/programming/mstoolkit/> and start
following the instructions, beginning with the download of Visual C++
Toolkit 2003... oops!  I can't find that download any more at
<http://msdn.microsoft.com/visualc/vctoolkit2003/> -- instead, what's at
that URL is a page explaining that
"""
The Visual C++ Toolkit 2003 has been replaced by Visual C++ 2005 Express
Edition.
"""

Hmmm -- I can't build extensions for the standard build of Python 2.4.3
with VC++ 2005, can I?  Express or other, they just use separate and
incompatible C-runtime libraries, I believe.

So -- does anybody know if the 2003-level Toolkit is STILL available for
download somewhere, or can suggest other (legal;-) ways in which I can
build and test Python extensions (with an optimizing compiler --
NON-optimizing ones are right out;-) w/o shelling out beeg moolah to MS?
So far my total investment is about $100 ($40 for Parallels Workstation,
which I preordered after briefly checking out the free-for-1-month beta,
since it worked so well; $60 for the cheapest legal CD+license of w2k I
could find around) -- and I'm not complaining, since the current setup
will still let me TEST many diverse things on Windows; to gain the
further ability of *compiling* Python extensions, I'm not averse to
spending a little more if needed, but certainly not as much as another
$100 (I do prefer free to cheap, but for example the $40 Parallels
product is well worth the money, to me, compared to the free 'Q',
because the latter, while fun to hack around with, was absorbing
countless hours of my time in many attempts to get everything working,
while Parallels essentially "just worked" and saved me LOTS of time).


Thanks in advance for any suggestions!  Just to show that I'm an
oldstyle Usenet dynosaur: suggestions in private mail are also welcome
(but my real mailbox these days is at gmail, not as yahoo as the 'From'
header above says), and I will undertake to summarize and post any
suggestions thus received (unless the suggestions' authors request me to
not repost).


Alex