Cygwin and Python 2.6

Question

New to python (and programming). What exactly do I need from Cygwin? I'm running python 2.6 on winxp. Can I safely download the complete Cygwin? It just seems like a huge bundle of stuff.

Well, I keep running into modules and functionality (i.e. piping output) which suggest downloading various cygwin components. Will cygwin change or modify any other os functionality or have any other side effects?

Answer 1

I would say the simplest option is to try a Linux Distro. I know if your new Linux can be intimidating, but when I looked at Ubuntu and started developing there my life was changed. Ubuntu is bloated (for linux) however, it comes with the things that I would expect a Microsoft based OS to come pre-packaged with. The limitless amount of free software written by creative minds for creative minds is a wonder. The open-source community is great to get involved in for learning and experience. I can vouch that programming on Linux in any language (except myabe . . . .NET ?) will be a much pleasurable experience from the go. One is windows paths, sure you can still create portable Python applications that will port to windows, it just requires another couple lines of replacing characters and escaping them. If they are personal apps this can be bothersome if you do not plan to distribute them.

I found Ubuntu to be a nice balance suited towards both general usability, and development.

Stock Distro: Python 2.7 Perl XTerm MP3 Player that kills WMP and Winamp =+ V.3.0 E-Mail w/ Thunderbird ( much like outlook express by the makers of Fire Fox browser with add-on and extensions) Empathy (Internet Chat Client for AIM, ICQ, FACEBOOK, MySpace, etc . . it also keeps all your contacts on one list and operates just like AIM for all accounts) Gwibber (social networking app that compiles the posts made on your twitter and your Facebook wall into a nice desktop widget that also allows you to reply and comment right from the app.)

Multiple Desktop Support: You can change your "desktop view" by pressing a hot key. Each desktop only has the windows you want on it. So you can create a work space, a chat space, a web browsing space and alternate between them quickly. You can also move windows around between work spaces quickly as needed.

Global Hot-Key Mapper: In your administration options you have an OS wide hot-key map. You can launch programs, and many other tasks simply by assigning a hot-key through the default interface.

Bash, Terminal, Shell, XTerm: These CLI (command line interfaces) offer much more functionality as you found than can be generally found in windows. Yes you can pipe output in windows but that's not what this is about. These CLIs allow you to create scripts that can take user input and perform complex tasks that usually would have to be done manually. The BASH is somewhat a programming language of itself; allowing for the assignment of functions, variables, if statements, etc.

I was very surprised that not only was Ubuntu well and ready to handle the developer but it was also plenty user friendly for your grand-parents. It comes with everything you need out of the box (for an average user not a developer) and the developer only requires a few installs. You're also working in open-source software remember. So you are going to be dealing with bugs and you may be stuck waiting on a ticket to be resolved in Windows for some time. If ever.

Also, Ubuntu is boot-able from CD and you can check out the main interface just by doing so. You can also dual-boot it with a screen asking you which partition/disk to boot after POST boot. There is also a tutorial on running it off a thumb drive.

Linux and the speed of your computer: Linux compared to say Windows 7 is EXTREMELY lightweight. What is considered to be a MID level computer such as an AMD Phenom 955 Black Edition x4 and it will run like a high level computer. 1 gib of memory goes quite a bit further in Linux than it does in windows.

The best way to try a Linux distro is as follows. You do not have to install it on the system. You can sandbox it with a virtual environment if you like it and want the speed and overhead improvements of running it stand-alone maybe consider the dual-boot at first followed by the "change".

Download the Linux Dist ISO of your choosing. For new users again Ubuntu, Mint, something simple. Something debian. Mostly due to the ease of using a good package manager. Download Oracle Virtual Box . Follow the instructions, create a new virtual disk, then start the virtual disk with install media placed in DVD drive or virtual DVD drive and install like a normal OS.

In my experience unless it is essential that you be using windows all the time, there is no reason not to try a Linux Distro. Just be careful because something like ArchLinux or SlackWare may scare you off right away; where as distros like Ubuntu, Mint, and others have built in GUI right off the bat. Linux comes in many varieties. It is more loosely coupled than windows you for example you can use any desktop environment you want. Linux is just a kernal. The distros are collections of tools the group maintaining the distro thinks will fit their over-all goal and purpose. Desktop Environments, programming tools, package managers, and other freely licensed pieces of software.

Answer 2

cygwin is effectively a Unix subkernel. Setup and installed in its default manner it won't interrupt or change any existing Windows XP functionality. However, you'll have to start the cygwin equivalent of the command prompt before you can use its functionality.

With that said, some of the functionality you're talking about is available in Windows. Piping definitely is. For instance:

netstat -ano | findstr :1433

is a command line I use to make sure my SQL Server is listening on the default port. The output of netstat is being piped to findstr so I only have to see any lines containing :1433.

Answer 3

There are builds of python which don't require cygwin. For instance (from python.org):

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Also, there is the .NET version called Iron Python:

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