Mac/Relnotes-source

How to build Python from a source distribution.
-----------------------------------------------

You will need a Python source distribution in tar form. So, the
first thing you need is a tar program for the mac. Suntar is
reasonable and can be found at the info-mac sites. Edit the
preferences to make it extract C sources with creator CWIE
and .py files as text files with creator PYTH, this will save
you work later.

You will also need CodeWarrior 7. If you have another development
environment you are on your own, basically.

You may also need the img distribution and the stdwin distribution.
If you don't want them you may have to edit some of the projects
to remove references to them.

When you've extracted everything you may have to unpack the
.hqx files in Mac:Resources and Mac:Mwerks:Projects (but suntar
may have done this for you already).

Next, create your build directories. I use the following naming
convention:
build.macppc.shared		PowerPC shared-library
build.mac68k.stand		68K non-shared
and there are also projects for ppc standalone and some others, they
may be useful at times. The project files expect the build directories
to be located right in the main python folder, if you put them elsewhere
you will have to edit the access paths.

Move MWCRuntimePython.µ, PythonCore.µ, PythonPPC.µ and PythonApplet.µ
(from the Mac:Mwerks:Projects folder) to build.macppc.shared, move
Python68K.µ to build.mac68k.stand.

Build the projects. For the PPC projects, keep the order given above.
Do *not* run the python interpreter yet. First, move the interpreter to
the main python folder. For PPC, also move PythonCore to the main python folder.

Now try your python interpreter, this will create an initial preferences file.

For 68K python you are now done.

For PPC Python, don't try complicated scripts yet, you first have to create
the dynamically loadable modules. Create a folder PlugIns (in the toplevel
python folder) and move all the projects that have "module" or "modules" in
their name there. Build these projects. This will create a number of ".exp"
files, edit these files to contain only all the "init" modules, and build
the projects again. This latter step isn't really essential, so feel free
to skip it.

The next step is to create aliases for the various modules that "live together"
in one shared library. For this, take MkPluginAliases.py and MkPluginAliases.rsrc
from the Mac:scripts folder and move or copy them to the python home folder.
Run the script from there.

If you haven't created all plugins you'll get some errors about files not existing,
don't worry. Don't forget to move the scripts back.

Next, make an alias of PythonCore (also named PythonCore) and put it in 
System Folder:Extensions. This will ensure that you can run python anywhere,
not just from the folder where PythonCore lives.

Most of your environment is now setup. You can try it by running EditPythonPrefs.py
(in Mac:scripts), it should now work from there.

Lastly, you should setup some stuff needed for applet creation. First, you should put
PythonApplet (or an alias to it) in the python home folder. Next, you should turn
mkapplet.py (from mac:scripts) into an applet itself: double-click it and give it itself
as input in the input file dialog.

Now that you have created mkapplet you can use this as a droplet: drag-and-drop python sources
onto it (EditPythonPrefs.py and RunLibScript.py come to mind) and the applets will be
created.

			Jack Jansen, CWI, 20 December 1995.