[ZF] LWN: Fedora7 dropping Zope due to Python 2.5 incompatibility

[Jeff Rush]

Tres Seaver wrote:
> According to this article:
> 
>   http://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/233347/3bfae735b0e102ff/
> 
> I've done some brief looking at the issues involved;  most of them look
> like BBB fouls to me (things break which did not cause warnings of any
> sort under Python 2.4, and without any mention of the change in
> NEWS.txt).

No matter where you come down on the /usr/bin/python preference, the BBB fouls
should be a significant concern, in that they impact support issues.  You
can't retroactively give notice of API changes when it is fixed.


> Anybody else think we need to look into this?

It has slowed adoption of Zope 3 here and there.  I've seen people hold off on
using Zope 3 waiting for it to support the latest stable version of Python, as
if somehow this means Zope 3 isn't quite ready yet.  I'm a bit unclear and
have no visibility into why so little testing of Zope is done with
developmental versions of Python, considering (a) how tightly wedded Zope is
to the Python API and (b) the large number of users of Zope.  While the core
Zope developers are very busy, I'm sure, statistically I would have expected a
slew of bug reports, of the form of what Tres has done here, filed by the
non-core developers identifying specific failures.

I'll try to get some of the local Zope users to file reports/patches.  The
lack of support for Python 2.5 is having two impacts -- Zope being dropped
from Fedora lowers its profile in certain communities, and the inability to
run applications like Zope with Python 2.5 is causing distributions to hold
off mainlining 2.5, hurting overall adoption of the new 2.5 features.  I've
certainly been unable to switch to 2.5, except for concept demos, due to lack
of support for it in various required packages.

And there is the fact that Jeremy Katz, the Python maintainer for Fedora, is
getting beat up a bit about this.  It'd be a shame for him to burn out or
become antagonistic to Zope due to pressure from Fedora to work with the
upstream and "do something" about a situation too big for one person.  Zope
needs friends.

No magic wand - just my .02 cents.

-Jeff