[vtk-developers] python install prefix in setup.py

[Prabhu Ramachandran]

>>>>> "David" == David Gobbi <dgobbi at atamai.com> writes:

    David> Prabhu Ramachandran wrote:
    >> distros.  Debian basically adds the local prefix to site.py.
[...]
    David> Does debian have any way of telling distutils of the new
    David> location?  If we are using setup.py to install the python
    David> modules, then it seems that our default location should be
    David> the same as the one used by setup.py (otherwise, why would
    David> we use setup.py at all wh

Not that I know of but this could be used:

 import site
 print site.prefixes

 import sys
 print sys.path

    >> I am not sure that David's approach is *the* optimal one.  Many
    >> VTK users are unlikely to have root access therefore installing
    >> to /usr/ is entirely out of question.  In these cases it is
    >> best to do what is currently done -- install to CMAKE_PREFIX.
    >> Basically the install should work for most common situations.
    >> 
    >> 
    David> I disagree that we should install to
    David> ${CMAKE_PREFIX}/lib/pythonx.x/site-packages, as is
    David> currently done.  It might make sense to install in
    David> ${CMAKE_PREFIX}/lib/vtkx.x/python

${CMAKE_PREFIX}/lib/vtkx.y/python is completely non-standard.  No
Python module ever installs importable Python modules in
lib/libname/python.  Any normal distutils based Python package is
installed like so:

 python setup.py install --prefix=$pth

and everything is installed in 

 $pth/lib/site-packages/pythonx.y/package
 $pth/bin/script.py

The alternative is 

 python setup.py install --home=$pth

In which case the files are installed in 

 $pth/lib/python/package
 $pth/bin

So, that is the default behavior of distutils.  What are you
suggesting?

    David> The "make install" should work out-of-the-box for as many
    David> python users as possible.  Right now, it only works
    David> "out-of-the-box" for Redhat users that are installing VTK
    David> in /sys or for Debian users who are installing VTK in
    David> /usr/local.  Everyone else needs to set the PYTHONPATH
    David> befor it will work.

Everyone else needs to set PYTHONPATH anyway to get any possible
option working unless they are the super user and can install into
sys.prefix or /usr/local (on more fortunate distros).

    David> We can do much better than that!

Yes but I'm not quite clear what you want to do and how you want to do
it.

cheers,
prabhu