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When people complain about Python distribution, having to download different binaries for different operating systems is almost never part of the complaint. So,

by oefrha 4y ago

When people complain about Python distribution, having to download different binaries for different operating systems is almost never part of the complaint. So, the problem has been “solved” by pyinstaller and co. ages ago. Any problems still haunting pyinstaller and co. at this point will also show up for APEs, and solving them when you only have a lowest common denominator toolset at disposal will be harder. I like APEs btw.

ahgamut 4y ago
I got interested in APEs because I got lost in DLL hell a few times with PyInstaller lol. IMO PyInstaller is pretty cool, but a bit overkill sometimes. At present I find APE Python a perfect match for one big use case (a bunch of my thrown-together shell utilities I can take and use everywhere). Like after I wrote this blog post, I wrote a small Python app using Flask/SQLite/D3.js, put everything in a single file, just copied it onto computers with Debian/Fedora/FreeBSD/Win10, and now I just access the info I need on those systems via the browser. Providing a browser GUI makes it easier for my colleagues as well, some of whom don't use terminals at all :) For C extensions (where I've stubbed my toes quite a bit with PyInstaller), I think a nice goal with APE Python would be to have a website like Christoph Gohlke's (https://www.lfd.uci.edu/~gohlke/pythonlibs/ https://www.lfd.uci.edu/~gohlke/pythonlibs/), where you just select the packages you would like, and you download them compiled as a single-file executable you can use anywhere. This is an interesting problem, and there's been some work towards solving it, let's see if we can have an elegant solution.
cxr 4y ago
> When people complain about Python distribution, having to download different binaries for different operating systems is almost never part of the complaint. Have you done a study? This reminds me of when I've seen people say things like, "X is a showstopper for me when it comes to C++ [or whatever]", and someone responds, "That's not a problem in practice. People who write C++ don't care about X". And it's like, "Well, yeah, that's the nature of 'showstoppers'—all the people who do care about X noped out a long time ago." It's an intellectually dishonest way to justify choosing not to confront the X problem.

by oefrha 4y ago

ahgamut 4y ago

I got interested in APEs because I got lost in DLL hell a few times with PyInstaller lol. IMO PyInstaller is pretty cool, but a bit overkill sometimes. At present I find APE Python a perfect match for one big use case (a bunch of my thrown-together shell utilities I can take and use everywhere). Like after I wrote this blog post, I wrote a small Python app using Flask/SQLite/D3.js, put everything in a single file, just copied it onto computers with Debian/Fedora/FreeBSD/Win10, and now I just access the info I need on those systems via the browser. Providing a browser GUI makes it easier for my colleagues as well, some of whom don't use terminals at all :) For C extensions (where I've stubbed my toes quite a bit with PyInstaller), I think a nice goal with APE Python would be to have a website like Christoph Gohlke's (https://www.lfd.uci.edu/~gohlke/pythonlibs/ https://www.lfd.uci.edu/~gohlke/pythonlibs/), where you just select the packages you would like, and you download them compiled as a single-file executable you can use anywhere. This is an interesting problem, and there's been some work towards solving it, let's see if we can have an elegant solution.

cxr 4y ago

> When people complain about Python distribution, having to download different binaries for different operating systems is almost never part of the complaint. Have you done a study? This reminds me of when I've seen people say things like, "X is a showstopper for me when it comes to C++ [or whatever]", and someone responds, "That's not a problem in practice. People who write C++ don't care about X". And it's like, "Well, yeah, that's the nature of 'showstoppers'—all the people who do care about X noped out a long time ago." It's an intellectually dishonest way to justify choosing not to confront the X problem.