numeric/numpy/numarray

[Robert Kern]

Terry Reedy wrote:
> "Alex Martelli" <aleax at mac.com> wrote in message 
> news:1hgwwnm.lhpxrs1gkfp6N%aleax at mac.com...
>> I'll voice a heretic thought: me, I'm sticking with good old Numeric
>> until the situation with the newer packages settles down.
> 
> Not much of a heresy, I think.  The numpy site recommends that *new* users 
> start with numpy but I don't remember the numeric/numpy folks recommending 
> that happy, experienced numeric users dump it yet.  The current development 
> version of numpy is still labelled as a development version (0.9.8, I 
> believe) and besides bug fixes, it still made a few tweeks in the user 
> interface and C-API from the previous version.  They are aiming to release 
> a stable NumPy 1.0 by the end of the summer.  Then maybe they will start 
> pushing it, along with a compatible array interface for Python.

My tactic in answering Numeric questions on this list has been to give the numpy 
answer if the asker seems new to the field and give the Numeric answer *and* the 
(obviously superior) numpy answer otherwise.

But that's mostly my natural politeness and tact (quit laughing. I can hear you 
sniggering back there!). We definitely *do* want old hands at Numeric to give 
numpy a try now. It's difficult to find the bugs, work out the transition 
headaches, and make the right design decisions without feedback from you.

We are trying to get out a 1.0b1 in a couple of weeks. Hopefully, we can get to 
1.0b2 by the SciPy conference in mid-August. If you've been holding off on 
trying numpy, the 1.0 betas will be the perfect time to jump in. It will also be 
your last chance to get your 2 cents in.

-- 
Robert Kern

"I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma
  that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had
  an underlying truth."
   -- Umberto Eco