python3 on mac-mavericks (was trying idle)

[Cameron Simpson]

On 16Oct2014 06:29, rusi <rustompmody at gmail.com> wrote:
>On Thursday, October 9, 2014 2:56:56 PM UTC+5:30, Terry Reedy wrote:
>> One may have to install activestate tkc/tk on mac, depending on osx
>> version.  This page has details:
>>   https://www.python.org/download/mac/tcltk
>
>Ok Ive some more information:
>The people in the audience using macs are using mavericks
>
>Whats the best way to setup python3 for that?
>
>I remember seeing some two different repos (if that what they are called
>in mac-land) for python. With some different tradeoffs which I dont understand.

I use MacPorts. Also popular are Brew and Fink. You can even use them all at 
once; they install to separate trees.

My Python 3 comes from MacPorts.

>Another related question for mac-python usage:
>I asked one of the mac-users:
>Please start your default python in a shell and tell me what version it is.
>Answer: Mac has no shell.
>
>I find this hard to believe. Is a shell called something else
>in mac-maverick?? Where/how to find it?

As pointed out elsewhere, OSX ships with "Terminal" as a terminal emutator.  
Another popular terminal emulator is iTerm2, which is what I prefer. You can 
run X11 also, and use any of the many terminal emulators that run in it, though 
the experience is clunkier.

As far as shells go, OSX ships with /bin/sh, /bin/bash and /bin/zsh. Or for the 
perverse, /bin/csh and /bin/tcsh (it is, after all, a BSD derived OS). I use 
zsh, getting my copy from MacPorts instead of OSX's native one.

So it is a perfectly normal UNIX system in this regard.

Cheers,
Cameron Simpson <cs at zip.com.au>

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