Python's distutils allows you to package Python programs and extensions in several ways, and to install programs and extensions to work with your Python installation. As I mentioned in "Building and Installing C-Coded Python Extensions" on page 614, distutils also affords the simplest and most effective way to build C-coded extensions you write yourself, even when you are not interested in distributing such extensions to anybody else. This chapter covers distutils, as well as third-party tools that complement distutils and let you package Python programs for distribution as standalone applications, installable on machines with specific hardware and operating systems without a separate installation of Python. A simpler and more powerful way to package Python programs and extensions is offered by the freely downloadable third-party framework covered in "Python Eggs" on page 151. |