| Georg Brandl | 6728c5a | 2009-10-11 18:31:23 +0000 | [diff] [blame] | 1 | ============================================= |
| 2 | "Why is Python Installed on my Computer?" FAQ |
| 3 | ============================================= |
| 4 | |
| 5 | What is Python? |
| 6 | --------------- |
| 7 | |
| 8 | Python is a programming language. It's used for many different applications. |
| 9 | It's used in some high schools and colleges as an introductory programming |
| 10 | language because Python is easy to learn, but it's also used by professional |
| 11 | software developers at places such as Google, NASA, and Lucasfilm Ltd. |
| 12 | |
| 13 | If you wish to learn more about Python, start with the `Beginner's Guide to |
| 14 | Python <http://wiki.python.org/moin/BeginnersGuide>`_. |
| 15 | |
| 16 | |
| 17 | Why is Python installed on my machine? |
| 18 | -------------------------------------- |
| 19 | |
| 20 | If you find Python installed on your system but don't remember installing it, |
| 21 | there are several possible ways it could have gotten there. |
| 22 | |
| 23 | * Perhaps another user on the computer wanted to learn programming and installed |
| 24 | it; you'll have to figure out who's been using the machine and might have |
| 25 | installed it. |
| 26 | * A third-party application installed on the machine might have been written in |
| 27 | Python and included a Python installation. For a home computer, the most |
| 28 | common such application is `PySol <http://pysolfc.sourceforge.net/>`_, a |
| 29 | solitaire game that includes over 1000 different games and variations. |
| 30 | * Some Windows machines also have Python installed. At this writing we're aware |
| 31 | of computers from Hewlett-Packard and Compaq that include Python. Apparently |
| 32 | some of HP/Compaq's administrative tools are written in Python. |
| 33 | * All Apple computers running Mac OS X have Python installed; it's included in |
| 34 | the base installation. |
| 35 | |
| 36 | |
| 37 | Can I delete Python? |
| 38 | -------------------- |
| 39 | |
| 40 | That depends on where Python came from. |
| 41 | |
| 42 | If someone installed it deliberately, you can remove it without hurting |
| 43 | anything. On Windows, use the Add/Remove Programs icon in the Control Panel. |
| 44 | |
| 45 | If Python was installed by a third-party application, you can also remove it, |
| 46 | but that application will no longer work. You should use that application's |
| 47 | uninstaller rather than removing Python directly. |
| 48 | |
| 49 | If Python came with your operating system, removing it is not recommended. If |
| 50 | you remove it, whatever tools were written in Python will no longer run, and |
| 51 | some of them might be important to you. Reinstalling the whole system would |
| 52 | then be required to fix things again. |
| 53 | |