Module _socket not found in python3.6 "No module named _socket"

[Bryan Zimmer]

I have been getting this message, "No module named '_socket'", since I
installed python 3.6, about two months ago.

My platform is Slackware Linux (14.2). I compiled python3.6 from source,
because binary python packages aren't distributed by python.org for Linux.
I have the same experience on multiple Slackware computers, not just one.
Actually, this problem hits the 64-bit distribution. I have a 32-bit
Slackware box that has no trouble with _socket.

I can not 'import socket' into a program, nor can I use 'pip' to install
modules. These require the _socket module, which doesn't exist. What does
exist is a shared library object called '_
socket.cpython-36m-i386-linux-gnu.so'. This looks tantalizingly like the
missing module, but it is for a 32-bit architecture.

This is not the only missing module for 64-bit Slackware Linux. I can not
find a trace of the 'math' module, which, again, works fine on my 32-bit
computer.

I am far from an expert on installing python modules, so I am asking for
advice on how I should proceed to find these modules.

Thanks in advance.

"BryGuy" (my handle on linuxquestions.org)