[Gnumed-devel] MacPorts python_select, also double-clickable alternatives to PythonLauncher

[James Busser]

In the process of my using MacPorts to install py25-psycopg2 (and which led MacPorts to also install Python 2.5.4 as a dependency) MacPorts also advised me:

To fully complete your installation and make python 2.5 the default, please run

sudo port install python_select  

sudo python_select python25

However at http://python_select.darwinports.com/ it says

python_select lets you switch the default python interpreter.

python_select symlinks the standard python executables

in the MacPorts prefix to the selected version.

- link info at http://trac.macports.org/ticket/17205

- link info (10.6) at http://trac.macports.org/ticket/20285

- note it has a parameter 

Might the above be relevant to the developer method of running GNUmed from system components? I am thinking that even if python_select is Mac-only, part of what it does it create symlinks that may be relevant, but am not sure how it would point GNUmed, depending on what the client is relying on.

Also I am not sure though how symlinks that might be created under the above method would be "transferable" to the binary disk image.

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I also examined (opened) PythonLauncher which is both present as part of the Mac system install as well as (an extra copy) along with the newer Mac Python as a dependency consequence of installing MacPorts' py25-psycopg2.

Upon opening it, I was issued a File type binding alert, that "PythonLauncher is not the default application for all Python script types. You should fix this with the Finder's "Get Info" command". Also auto-opening was a Preferences dialog, offering to reconfigure the default path to an Interpreter

   /usr/local.bin.pythonw

1) Anyone know why the "interpreter" would point by default  to pythonw, as I understand that the dependency on pythonw for GUI operations went away in 2.4, and that pythonw is now kept around solely for compatibility with older scripts that still refer to it.

2) I am not sure PythonLauncher is relevant to GNUmed where the user would not anyway be double-clicking a python script.

3) In researching PythonLauncher it was recommended that it should *not* be made the default:

http://www.mail-archive.com/address@hidden/msg54949.html

There are several [other / safer] ways for running python scripts by

double-clicking on them. Two examples:

* Use py2app to create an .app bundle

* Give the script a ".command" suffix and a '#!/usr/bin/python' prefix.