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Mandar Gokhale
90 lines
3.7 KiB
ReStructuredText
90 lines
3.7 KiB
ReStructuredText
.. _install-linux:
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Installing Python on Linux
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==========================
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The latest versions of Ubuntu and Fedora **come with Python 2.7 out of the box**.
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The latest versions of Redhat Enterprise (RHEL) and CentOS come with Python 2.6.
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Some older versions of RHEL and CentOS come with Python 2.4 which is
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unacceptable for modern Python development. Fortunately, there are
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`Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux`_ which include high
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quality additional packages based on their Fedora counterparts. This
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repository contains a Python 2.6 package specifically designed to install
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side-by-side with the system's Python 2.4 installation.
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.. _Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux: http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/EPEL
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You do not need to install or configure anything else to use Python. Having
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said that, I would strongly recommend that you install the tools and libraries
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described in the next section before you start building Python applications
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for real-world use. In particular, you should always install Setuptools, as
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it makes it much easier for you to use other third-party Python libraries.
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Setuptools & Pip
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----------------
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The most crucial third-party Python software of all is Setuptools, which
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extends the packaging and installation facilities provided by the distutils
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in the standard library. Once you add Setuptools to your Python system you can
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download and install any compliant Python software product with a single
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command. It also enables you to add this network installation capability to
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your own Python software with very little work.
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To obtain the latest version of Setuptools for Linux, refer to the documentation
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available here: `unix-setuptools <https://pypi.python.org/pypi/setuptools#unix-wget>`_
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The new ``easy_install`` command you have available is considered by many to be
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deprecated, so we will install its replacement: **pip**. Pip allows for
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uninstallation of packages, and is actively maintained, unlike easy_install.
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To install pip, simply open a command prompt and run
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.. code-block:: console
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$ easy_install pip
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Virtualenv
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----------
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After Setuptools & Pip, the next development tool that you should install is
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`virtualenv <http://pypi.python.org/pypi/virtualenv/>`_. Use pip
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.. code-block:: console
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$ pip install virtualenv
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The virtualenv kit provides the ability to create virtual Python environments
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that do not interfere with either each other, or the main Python installation.
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If you install virtualenv before you begin coding then you can get into the
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habit of using it to create completely clean Python environments for each
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project. This is particularly important for Web development, where each
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framework and application will have many dependencies.
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To set up a new Python environment, change the working directory to where ever
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you want to store the environment, and run the virtualenv utility in your
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project's directory
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.. code-block:: console
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$ virtualenv venv
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To use an environment, run ``source venv/bin/activate``. Your command prompt
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will change to show the active environment. Once you have finished working in
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the current virtual environment, run ``deactivate`` to restore your settings
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to normal.
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Each new environment automatically includes a copy of ``pip``, so that you can
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setup the third-party libraries and tools that you want to use in that
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environment. Put your own code within a subdirectory of the environment,
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however you wish. When you no longer need a particular environment, simply
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copy your code out of it, and then delete the main directory for the environment.
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--------------------------------
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This page is a remixed version of `another guide <http://www.stuartellis.eu/articles/python-development-windows/>`_,
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which is available under the same license.
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