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Chapter 1. Installing Python

Welcome to Python. Let's dive in. In this chapter, you'll install the version of Python that's right for you.

1.1. Which Python is right for you?

If you're using an account on a hosted server, your ISP may have already installed Python. Most popular Linux distributions come with Python in the default installation. Mac OS X 10.2 and later includes a command-line version of Python, although you'll probably want to install a version that includes a more Mac-like graphical interface. Windows does not come with any version of Python, but don't despair! There are several ways to point-and-click your way to Python on Windows.

As you can see already, Python runs on a great many operating systems. The full list includes Windows, Mac OS, Mac OS X, and all varieties of free UNIX-compatible systems like Linux. There are also versions that run on Sun Solaris, AS/400, Amiga, OS/2, BeOS, and a plethora of other platforms you've probably never even heard of. What's more, Python programs written on one platform can, with a little care, run on any supported platform. For instance, I regularly develop Python programs on Windows and later deploy them on Linux. So back to the question that started this section, "Which Python is right for you?" The answer is whichever one runs on the computer you already have.

1.2. Python on Windows

On Windows, you have a couple choices for installing Python.

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Active State makes a Windows installer for Python called Active Python, which includes a complete version of Python, an IDE with a Python-aware code editor, plus some Windows extensions for Python that allow complete access to Windows-specific services, APIs, and the Windows Registry.

Active Python is freely downloadable, although it is not open source. It is the IDE I used to learn Python, and I recommend you try it unless you have a specific reason not to. One such reason might be that Active State is generally several months behind in updating their Active Python installer when new version of Python are released. If you absolutely need the latest version of Python and Active Python is still a version behind as you read this, you'll want to use the second option for installing Python on Windows.

The second option is the "official" Python installer, distributed by the people who develop Python itself. It is freely downloadable and open source, and it is always current with the latest version of Python.

Here is the procedure for installing ActivePython:

• Download Active Python from http://www.activestate.com/Products/ActivePython/

• If you are using Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows ME, you will also need to download and install Windows Installer 2.0 (http://download.microsoft.com/download/WindowsInstaller/Install/2.0/W9XMe/EN-US/InstMsiA.exe) before installing ActivePython.

• Double-click the installer, ActivePython-2.2.2-224-win32-ix86.msi.

• Step through the installer program. If space is tight, you can do a custom installation and deselect the documentation, but I don't recommend this unless you absolutely can't spare the 14MB.

• After the installation is complete, close the installer and choose Start->Programs->ActiveState ActivePython 2.2->PythonWin IDE. You'll see something like the following:

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