[PyQt] Re: PyQt4 and Python 3.0

[Doug Bell]

Phil Thompson wrote:
> On Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:29:12 -0700, Glenn Linderman
> <v+python at g.nevcal.com> wrote:
> > On approximately 10/6/2008 10:07 PM, came the following characters
> > from the keyboard of Phil Thompson:
> >> On Mon, 6 Oct 2008 21:30:49 -0500, "Arthur Pemberton"
> >> <pemboa at gmail.com> wrote:
> >>> Take some time with the community, collect opinion on all the bad
> >>> parts of PyQt, and then make a clean break to rewrite PyQt4 for
> >>> Python 2.6, making use of future features whenever possible.
> >> 
> >> I definitely won't be targeting 2.6 for anything. The idea that
> >> people will move their 2.x code to 2.6, and then move it again to
> >> 3.0 is, to me, crazy.

But the idea that people will do a major move to a new PyQt and then do
a major move to Python 3.0 isn't crazy?  Personally, I'd rather get it
over with all at once.

> > I think PyQt4 as is, with bug fixes if Python 2.6 breaks anything, is 
> > adequate for 2.6.
> > 
> >> I will set something up to gather opinion and to present my current
> >> thinking. I will particularly need help in identifying individual
> methods
> >> that should be made more Pythonic.

> >> Note that a side effect of all this is that Python3 support drops down
> >> the
> >> priority list (by a long way) as making PyQt4 for Python2 more Pythonic
> >> will benefit significantly more users.
> >
> > I can't speak for other users, but I'm mostly interested in seeing 
> > something for Py3 for new applications.  Note that making PyQt4 on Py2 
> > more Pythonic only helps those users that are willing to make a porting 
> > or rewrite investment on that platform.
> > 
> > I'd actually rather see a port of PyQt4 to Py3 without (many) new 
> > features, and then see the Pythonic rewrite happen there.
> 
> I think most people today will be planning to use Python 2 for new
> (non-trivial) developments. Presumably that will change over time.

But will people sticking with Python 2 be the ones who want to move to
a new, incompatible PyQt???

Personally, I will be sticking with current PyQt and with Python 2 for
projects that need to be compatible with a wide range of Linux distros.
For personal projects or new large projects that will take time to
stabilize, I'd want the latest and greatest of both.

I don't know all of the changes you have in mind for a more-pythonic
PyQt, but it seems like QString unification is a major part of it.
Wouldn't it make more sense to combine that with Python 3's new strings?

Doug.