Re: [Discuss-gnuradio] Re: gr_python.m4

[Martin Dvh]

Eric Blossom wrote:

> OK.
>
> Running python on windows, can you please send me the output of this:
>
> $ python
>
> > > > import distutils.sysconfig
> > > > print distutils.sysconfig.get_python_inc(plat_specific=False)

This is similar to what I did before my last post.
If I start the python command promt on windows and just type in:
import distutils.sysconfig
print distutils.sysconfig.get_python_inc(plat_specific=False)

The output is:
D:\Python24\include

Which is probably NOT good.
Since we are building using m4 macros and configure scripts and makefiles which 
all interpret a backslash as a special character.
If the output were /d/Python24/include (or possibly even d:/Python24/include) 
There would probably not be a problem.

Maybe the following will make things clear.
I typed in the following commands at the msys/mingw bash prompt which is the 
environment we are using for the windows build of gnuradio.

address@hidden ~
$ python -c "import distutils.sysconfig; \
> print distutils.sysconfig.get_python_inc(plat_specific=False)"
d:\Python24\include

Now I try to see the contents of the found directory with ls
$ ls d:\Python24\include
ls: d:Python24include: No such file or directory

The backslashes disappear when used as parameter to any command.
So the value returned by distutils is not ok.
This has to do with the fact that this is the binary distribution of python for 
win32 which is not mingw specific.

If I escape the backslashes by doubling the backslashes it works ok

address@hidden ~
$ ls d:\\Python24\\include
Numeric          dictobject.h   longintrepr.h   py_curses.h     stringobject.h
Python.h         enumobject.h   longobject.h    pyconfig.h      structmember.h
abstract.h       errcode.h      marshal.h       pydebug.h       structseq.h
bitset.h         eval.h         metagrammar.h   pyerrors.h      symtable.h
boolobject.h     fileobject.h   methodobject.h  pyfpe.h         sysmodule.h
bufferobject.h   floatobject.h  modsupport.h    pygetopt.h      timefuncs.h
cStringIO.h      frameobject.h  moduleobject.h  pymactoolbox.h  token.h
cellobject.h     funcobject.h   node.h          pymem.h         traceback.h
ceval.h          genobject.h    object.h        pyport.h        tupleobject.h
classobject.h    graminit.h     objimpl.h       pystate.h       ucnhash.h
cobject.h        grammar.h      opcode.h        pystrtod.h      unicodeobject.h
codecs.h         import.h       osdefs.h        pythonrun.h     weakrefobject.h
compile.h        intobject.h    parsetok.h      pythread.h
complexobject.h  intrcheck.h    patchlevel.h    rangeobject.h
datetime.h       iterobject.h   pgen.h          setobject.h
descrobject.h    listobject.h   pgenheaders.h   sliceobject.h

But if you put this in a m4 macro variable  you have to escape every backslash 
again

The more easy solution is to use the special mingw way of accessing windows 
drives which is
/driveletter/path/name/using/forwardslashes
in this case
/d/Python24/include

address@hidden ~
$ ls /d/Python24/include
Numeric          dictobject.h   longintrepr.h   py_curses.h     stringobject.h
Python.h         enumobject.h   longobject.h    pyconfig.h      structmember.h
abstract.h       errcode.h      marshal.h       pydebug.h       structseq.h
bitset.h         eval.h         metagrammar.h   pyerrors.h      symtable.h
boolobject.h     fileobject.h   methodobject.h  pyfpe.h         sysmodule.h
bufferobject.h   floatobject.h  modsupport.h    pygetopt.h      timefuncs.h
cStringIO.h      frameobject.h  moduleobject.h  pymactoolbox.h  token.h
cellobject.h     funcobject.h   node.h          pymem.h         traceback.h
ceval.h          genobject.h    object.h        pyport.h        tupleobject.h
classobject.h    graminit.h     objimpl.h       pystate.h       ucnhash.h
cobject.h        grammar.h      opcode.h        pystrtod.h      unicodeobject.h
codecs.h         import.h       osdefs.h        pythonrun.h     weakrefobject.h
compile.h        intobject.h    parsetok.h      pythread.h
complexobject.h  intrcheck.h    patchlevel.h    rangeobject.h
datetime.h       iterobject.h   pgen.h          setobject.h
descrobject.h    listobject.h   pgenheaders.h   sliceobject.h

mingw also supports paths in the following format (just using forward slashes 
with normal driveletter)
address@hidden ~
$ ls d:/Python24/include
Numeric          dictobject.h   longintrepr.h   py_curses.h     stringobject.h
Python.h         enumobject.h   longobject.h    pyconfig.h      structmember.h
abstract.h       errcode.h      marshal.h       pydebug.h       structseq.h
bitset.h         eval.h         metagrammar.h   pyerrors.h      symtable.h
boolobject.h     fileobject.h   methodobject.h  pyfpe.h         sysmodule.h
bufferobject.h   floatobject.h  modsupport.h    pygetopt.h      timefuncs.h
cStringIO.h      frameobject.h  moduleobject.h  pymactoolbox.h  token.h
cellobject.h     funcobject.h   node.h          pymem.h         traceback.h
ceval.h          genobject.h    object.h        pyport.h        tupleobject.h
classobject.h    graminit.h     objimpl.h       pystate.h       ucnhash.h
cobject.h        grammar.h      opcode.h        pystrtod.h      unicodeobject.h
codecs.h         import.h       osdefs.h        pythonrun.h     weakrefobject.h
compile.h        intobject.h    parsetok.h      pythread.h
complexobject.h  intrcheck.h    patchlevel.h    rangeobject.h
datetime.h       iterobject.h   pgen.h          setobject.h
descrobject.h    listobject.h   pgenheaders.h   sliceobject.h

This last format workes most of the time although libtool has a problem with 
this format for dll absolute pathnames

I think the only way to get things right on windows/mingw is to make an 
exeption for mingw
and parse the output of the command 
distutils.sysconfig.get_python_inc(plat_specific=False)
 and reformat it using sed into the /d/Python24/include format.

An alternative is to not support the binary distribution of python for windows 
but requiring building python on mingw.
(In this case distutils.sysconfig.get_python_inc(plat_specific=False) should 
return /d/Python24/include)
End users would then also need this mingw built version.

> With any luck it's d:\Python24\include and my patch patch should work.
Well unluckily it is d:\Python24\include and your patch will not work, I am 
sorry.
Greetings,
Martin