[Numpy-discussion] recommended way to run numpy on snow leopard

[Ryan May]

On Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 9:09 AM, Zachary Pincus <zachary.pincus at yale.edu> wrote:
>> Wow.  Once again, Apple makes using python unnecessarily difficult.
>> Someone needs a whack with a clue bat.
>
> Well, some tools from the operating system use numpy and other python
> modules. And upgrading one of these modules might conceivably break
> that dependency, leading to breakage in the OS. So Apple's design goal
> is to keep their tools working right, and absent any clear standard
> for package management in python that allows for side-by-side
> installation of different versions of the same module, this is
> probably the best way to go from their perspective.
>
> Personally, I just install a hand-built python in /Frameworks. This is
> very easy, and it is also where the python.org python goes, so 3rd-
> party installers with hard-coded paths (boo) still work.

~/.local was added to *be the standard* for easily installing python
packages in your user account.  And it works perfectly on the other
major OSes, no twiddling of paths anymore.  I understand the desire to
not conflict with the system's python intall (and, in fact, applaud
them for using python).  Indeed, on linux, I do end up conflicting
between my system numpy and my SVN install in ~/.local, and I don't
have a problem with it.  This comes with the territory when I start
doing power-user/developer tasks. It just to me seems odd that the OS
that works so hard to make so many things easier makes this *more*
difficult.

Ryan

-- 
Ryan May
Graduate Research Assistant
School of Meteorology
University of Oklahoma
Sent from Norman, Oklahoma, United States