[Tutor] Writing scripts and apps for Internet consumption

[David Hutto]

On Sat, Jul 31, 2010 at 2:27 PM, Eric Hamiter <ehamiter at gmail.com> wrote:
> Not sure if this is the right place for this, since this is a tutor list,
> but I think it is because it involves learning Python and the application of
> knowledge.
>
> I've just started learning it as my initial programming language as of two
> months ago. I like to think I'm making steady progress, and I now understand
> the most rudimentary level of the basics. What I keep reading is how Python
> is most powerful on server side applications, in the cloud, so to speak. The
> portability of Python is also widely evangelized.
>
> Here's my problem with this so far-- I can write a basic script, have it
> take in data, rearrange it, and spit it back out. Following along in a book,
> I can write a basic GUI or game. It's all wine and roses on my Windows
> laptop, where I have everything configured just right, with all of the
> modules in place where they need to be.
>
> Moving this to a server or even another computer so far has been a seemingly
> impossible task. There's a lot of documentation for CGI scripting (which is
> now frowned upon, with every page recommending looking into wsgi), and there
> have been applications devoted to transforming scripts into Windows
> executables (py2exe, etc.) but it seems like this is much more confusing
> than need be, and I can't get them to work regardless. When I try and google
> for solutions, choosing any terms like "web" or "server" point me to massive
> framework solutions like Django or Pylons, which seem extraordinarily
> complex for what I want.
>
> Specific examples: I have a livewires/pygame GUI game I wrote along with
> folowing the book "Python Programming for the Absolute Beginner" and it
> works great on my laptop. I tried installing Python/pygame on a work
> computer and copying my scripts over, but it endlessly fails with errors so
> obtuse I can't troubleshoot. I'm not even sure if I have the correct modules
> installed here. Should they be under "Lib" or "libs" or "includes"?  Trying
> to use py2exe fails because I can't figure out how to include non-scripts in
> the final program, like .pngs or .jpgs. How would I even begin to put this
> on a server? I'm clueless.
>
> Another program I am using on my laptop is a convenience script-- it takes
> in a text list of groceries, and spits out a formatted list based on aisle
> locations so I can get in and out of the grocery store faster. My laptop is
> the only place I can use this. I've tried using multiple CGI examples, and
> it always results in a "File Not Found" error. Not even sure how I can debug
> it. I can have the server do a simple one-line of printing "Hello World" but
> anything more complicated than that makes it implode.
>
> The most frustrating thing is how flippantly experienced programmers say to
> use Django for Python web apps because it's so simple to use. It took me a
> good half-day to just install it, and unless I'm writing a sample code or if
> I want to clone a newspaper service, I have absolutely no idea how I would
> use it efficiently. I want to learn the basics before running off to learn a
> new framework. I'm trying to find good resources so I can continue self
> teaching, but everything I find seems to be tailored to two classes: the
> complete newbie who doesn't know how to print a line, or an advanced
> programmer who is using list comprehension within a recursion with multiple
> modules.
>
> In short, is there a "simple" method for putting python scripts onto a
> server that I do not host myself? I've seen web2py and it looks like it
> would be more my speed, but support is lacking and doesn't seem too
> compatible with my host. I use Dreamhost, and they are very adaptable and
> configurable, but so far I can't find an easy way to accomplish what I want.
>
> Thanks for reading this far if you did! I welcome any suggestions
> whatsoever.
>
> Eric
>
>
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Get a linux hosting account, and a web address, most linux hosting
comes with python, so practice in the 'cloud'.