Reorganization: ripped util.py to shreds, creating in the process:
  - file_util.py: operations on single files
  - dir_util.py: operations on whole directories or directory trees
  - dep_util.py: simple timestamp-based dependency analysis
  - archive_util.py: creation of archive (tar, zip, ...) files
The functions left in util.py are miscellany that don't fit in any of the
new files.
diff --git a/Lib/distutils/dir_util.py b/Lib/distutils/dir_util.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c049bbd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Lib/distutils/dir_util.py
@@ -0,0 +1,196 @@
+"""distutils.dir_util
+
+Utility functions for manipulating directories and directory trees."""
+
+# created 2000/04/03, Greg Ward (extracted from util.py)
+
+__revision__ = "$Id$"
+
+import os
+from distutils.errors import DistutilsFileError
+
+
+# cache for by mkpath() -- in addition to cheapening redundant calls,
+# eliminates redundant "creating /foo/bar/baz" messages in dry-run mode
+PATH_CREATED = {}
+
+# I don't use os.makedirs because a) it's new to Python 1.5.2, and
+# b) it blows up if the directory already exists (I want to silently
+# succeed in that case).
+def mkpath (name, mode=0777, verbose=0, dry_run=0):
+    """Create a directory and any missing ancestor directories.  If the
+       directory already exists (or if 'name' is the empty string, which
+       means the current directory, which of course exists), then do
+       nothing.  Raise DistutilsFileError if unable to create some
+       directory along the way (eg. some sub-path exists, but is a file
+       rather than a directory).  If 'verbose' is true, print a one-line
+       summary of each mkdir to stdout.  Return the list of directories
+       actually created."""
+
+    global PATH_CREATED
+
+    # XXX what's the better way to handle verbosity? print as we create
+    # each directory in the path (the current behaviour), or only announce
+    # the creation of the whole path? (quite easy to do the latter since
+    # we're not using a recursive algorithm)
+
+    name = os.path.normpath (name)
+    created_dirs = []
+    if os.path.isdir (name) or name == '':
+        return created_dirs
+    if PATH_CREATED.get (name):
+        return created_dirs
+
+    (head, tail) = os.path.split (name)
+    tails = [tail]                      # stack of lone dirs to create
+    
+    while head and tail and not os.path.isdir (head):
+        #print "splitting '%s': " % head,
+        (head, tail) = os.path.split (head)
+        #print "to ('%s','%s')" % (head, tail)
+        tails.insert (0, tail)          # push next higher dir onto stack
+
+    #print "stack of tails:", tails
+
+    # now 'head' contains the deepest directory that already exists
+    # (that is, the child of 'head' in 'name' is the highest directory
+    # that does *not* exist)
+    for d in tails:
+        #print "head = %s, d = %s: " % (head, d),
+        head = os.path.join (head, d)
+        if PATH_CREATED.get (head):
+            continue
+
+        if verbose:
+            print "creating", head
+
+        if not dry_run:
+            try:
+                os.mkdir (head)
+                created_dirs.append(head)
+            except OSError, exc:
+                raise DistutilsFileError, \
+                      "could not create '%s': %s" % (head, exc[-1])
+
+        PATH_CREATED[head] = 1
+    return created_dirs
+
+# mkpath ()
+
+
+def create_tree (base_dir, files, mode=0777, verbose=0, dry_run=0):
+
+    """Create all the empty directories under 'base_dir' needed to
+       put 'files' there.  'base_dir' is just the a name of a directory
+       which doesn't necessarily exist yet; 'files' is a list of filenames
+       to be interpreted relative to 'base_dir'.  'base_dir' + the
+       directory portion of every file in 'files' will be created if it
+       doesn't already exist.  'mode', 'verbose' and 'dry_run' flags are as
+       for 'mkpath()'."""
+
+    # First get the list of directories to create
+    need_dir = {}
+    for file in files:
+        need_dir[os.path.join (base_dir, os.path.dirname (file))] = 1
+    need_dirs = need_dir.keys()
+    need_dirs.sort()
+
+    # Now create them
+    for dir in need_dirs:
+        mkpath (dir, mode, verbose, dry_run)
+
+# create_tree ()
+
+
+def copy_tree (src, dst,
+               preserve_mode=1,
+               preserve_times=1,
+               preserve_symlinks=0,
+               update=0,
+               verbose=0,
+               dry_run=0):
+
+    """Copy an entire directory tree 'src' to a new location 'dst'.  Both
+       'src' and 'dst' must be directory names.  If 'src' is not a
+       directory, raise DistutilsFileError.  If 'dst' does not exist, it is
+       created with 'mkpath()'.  The end result of the copy is that every
+       file in 'src' is copied to 'dst', and directories under 'src' are
+       recursively copied to 'dst'.  Return the list of files that were
+       copied or might have been copied, using their output name.  The
+       return value is unaffected by 'update' or 'dry_run': it is simply
+       the list of all files under 'src', with the names changed to be
+       under 'dst'.
+
+       'preserve_mode' and 'preserve_times' are the same as for
+       'copy_file'; note that they only apply to regular files, not to
+       directories.  If 'preserve_symlinks' is true, symlinks will be
+       copied as symlinks (on platforms that support them!); otherwise
+       (the default), the destination of the symlink will be copied.
+       'update' and 'verbose' are the same as for 'copy_file'."""
+
+    from distutils.file_util import copy_file
+
+    if not dry_run and not os.path.isdir (src):
+        raise DistutilsFileError, \
+              "cannot copy tree '%s': not a directory" % src    
+    try:
+        names = os.listdir (src)
+    except os.error, (errno, errstr):
+        if dry_run:
+            names = []
+        else:
+            raise DistutilsFileError, \
+                  "error listing files in '%s': %s" % (src, errstr)
+
+    if not dry_run:
+        mkpath (dst, verbose=verbose)
+
+    outputs = []
+
+    for n in names:
+        src_name = os.path.join (src, n)
+        dst_name = os.path.join (dst, n)
+
+        if preserve_symlinks and os.path.islink (src_name):
+            link_dest = os.readlink (src_name)
+            if verbose:
+                print "linking %s -> %s" % (dst_name, link_dest)
+            if not dry_run:
+                os.symlink (link_dest, dst_name)
+            outputs.append (dst_name)
+            
+        elif os.path.isdir (src_name):
+            outputs.extend (
+                copy_tree (src_name, dst_name,
+                           preserve_mode, preserve_times, preserve_symlinks,
+                           update, verbose, dry_run))
+        else:
+            copy_file (src_name, dst_name,
+                       preserve_mode, preserve_times,
+                       update, None, verbose, dry_run)
+            outputs.append (dst_name)
+
+    return outputs
+
+# copy_tree ()
+
+
+def remove_tree (directory, verbose=0, dry_run=0):
+    """Recursively remove an entire directory tree.  Any errors are ignored
+       (apart from being reported to stdout if 'verbose' is true)."""
+
+    from shutil import rmtree
+
+    if verbose:
+        print "removing '%s' (and everything under it)" % directory
+    if dry_run:
+        return
+    try:
+        rmtree(directory,1)
+    except (IOError, OSError), exc:
+        if verbose:
+            if exc.filename:
+                print "error removing %s: %s (%s)" % \
+                       (directory, exc.strerror, exc.filename)
+            else:
+                print "error removing %s: %s" % (directory, exc.strerror)