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0 pointsionelm10y ago0 comments

`easy_install` is not a library per se, it's a binary offered by setuptools.

> distutils was a fork of setuptools

This is incorrect. Setuptools is an extension of distutils (it patches and extends distutils to have additional functionality). Distribute was a fork of Setuptools that has been merged back into Setuptools.

Also, `pth` is not a installation method - it's merely a way to customize the import system. It's a very scary feature as it allows one to execute arbitrary code (that can reside in the `.pth` file) when import paths are being set up (when the `site` module is being initialized).

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pyre10y ago

> `easy_install` is not a library per se, it's a binary offered by setuptools.

I thought that I clarified that in my post, but if you could tell me what was confusing, I'll use that to inform future discussions I have on this.

> This is incorrect. Setuptools is an extension of distutils (it patches and extends distutils to have additional functionality). Distribute was a fork of Setuptools that has been merged back into Setuptools.

Correct, and one reason why the landscape has been confusing for a while (confusion between distutils/setuptools/distribute). Thankfully distribute has been merged back into setuptools.

> Also, `pth` is not a installation method

You're right. It's a way to customize the import system, but it's "main" usage in the wild is during installation/setup. The main place that I've seen it used is with easy_install + eggs (IIRC).

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