1 | <HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Macintosh Python crash course</TITLE></HEAD>
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2 | <BODY>
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3 | <H1><IMG SRC="html.icons/python.gif">Macintosh Python crash course</H1>
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4 | <HR>
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5 |
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6 | <p>This set of documents provides an introduction to various aspects of
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7 | Python programming on the Mac. It is assumed that the reader is
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8 | already familiar with Python and, to some extent, with MacOS Toolbox
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9 | programming. Other readers may find something interesting here too,
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10 | your mileage may vary. </p>
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11 |
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12 | <p>As the previous paragraph reveals to the careful observer these examples
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13 | are dated, most of them were writting before OSX and haven't been updated
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14 | afterwards. They still show how to use the Carbon wrappers but aren't
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15 | necessarily the best way to use the Carbon API's in OSX.</p>
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16 |
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17 | Another set of Macintosh-savvy examples, more aimed at beginners, is
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18 | maintained by Joseph Strout, at Python Tidbits in <A
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19 | HREF="http://www.strout.net/python/">
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20 | http://www.strout.net/python/</A>.
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21 | <P>
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22 |
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23 | The <a href="http://www.python.org/doc/lib/Top.html">Python Library
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24 | Reference</a> contains a section on <a
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25 | href="http://www.python.org/doc/lib/Macintosh-Specific-Services.html">Macintosh-specific
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26 | modules</a> that you should also read. Documentation is also available
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27 | in PostScript and other forms, see the <a
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28 | href="http://www.python.org/doc/">documentation</a> section on the
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29 | webserver. <p>
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30 |
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31 | <p>The W widget set by Just van Rossum, does not have complete documentation as
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32 | of this writing, but Corran Webster has documented most of it on his
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33 | <A HREF="http://www.nevada.edu/~cwebster/Python/">Python Page</A>.</p>
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34 |
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35 | There are also some documentation links, as well as other MacPython-related
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36 | pages, in the
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37 | <A HREF="http://dmoz.org/Computers/Systems/Macintosh/Development/Scripting/Python/">
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38 | Open Directory</A>.
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39 |
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40 |
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41 | <H2>Table of contents</H2>
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42 |
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43 | <blockquote><B>Note:</B>
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44 | Some of these documents were actually written a long time ago and have seen
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45 | little maintainance, so use with care. </blockquote>
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46 | <UL>
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47 | <LI>
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48 | <A HREF="example0.html">Using python to create Macintosh applications,
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49 | part zero</A> whets your appetite by showing you how to ask the user
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50 | for a filename, and how to display a message. It explains about end-of-line
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51 | confusion while doing so.
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52 |
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53 | <LI>
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54 | <A HREF="example1.html">Using python to create Macintosh applications,
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55 | part one</A> explains how to create a simple modal-dialog application
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56 | in Python. It also takes a glance at using the toolbox modules Res and
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57 | Dlg, and EasyDialogs for simple question-dialogs.
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58 |
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59 | <LI>
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60 | <A HREF="example2.html">Using python to create Macintosh applications,
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61 | part two</A> turns the previous example program into a more complete
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62 | mac application, using a modeless dialog, menus, etc. It also explains
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63 | how to create applets, standalone applications written in Python.
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64 |
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65 | <LI>
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66 | <A HREF="freezing.html">Freezing Python programs</A> extends on this concept,
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67 | and shows you how to create applications that can be used on machines without
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68 | a full Python installed. This one is probably best skipped on first contact
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69 | with MacPython.
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70 |
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71 | <LI>
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72 | <A HREF="textedit.html">Using FrameWork and TextEdit</A> shows you
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73 | how to use <code>FrameWork</code> application framework and the
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74 | <code>TextEdit</code> toolbox to build a text editor.
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75 |
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76 | <LI>
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77 | <A HREF="plugins.html">Creating a C extension module on the Macintosh</A>
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78 | is meant for the hardcore programmer, and shows how to create an
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79 | extension module in C. It also handles using Modulator to create the
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80 | boilerplate for your module, and creating dynamically-loadable modules
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81 | on PowerPC Macs. It assumes you use CodeWarrior for you development.
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82 |
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83 | <LI>
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84 | <A HREF="mpwextensions.html">Creating C extension modules using MPW</A>
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85 | is a companion document, written by Corran Webster, which explains how you
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86 | can develop Python extensions using Apple's free MPW compiler environment.
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87 |
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88 | <LI>
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89 | <A HREF="applescript.html">Using Open Scripting Architecture from Python</A> explains
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90 | how to create a Python module interfacing to a scriptable application,
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91 | and how to use that module in your python program.
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92 |
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93 | <LI>
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94 | <A HREF="cgi.html">Using python to create CGI scripts</A> is a preliminary
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95 | introduction to writing CGI scripts in Python and to writing scriptable applications
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96 | in Python.
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97 |
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98 | <LI>
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99 | <A HREF="building.html">Building Mac Python from source</A> explains
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100 | how to build a PPC or 68K interpreter from a source distribution.
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101 |
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102 | <LI>
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103 | <A HREF="embed.html">Embedding Python on the Mac</A> is a minimal example of
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104 | how to embed Python in other Mac applications.
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105 |
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106 | </UL>
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107 |
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108 | The Python distribution contains a few more examples, all unexplained:
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109 | <UL>
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110 | <LI>
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111 | <I>PICTbrowse</I> is an application that locates PICT
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112 | resources and displays them, it demonstrates some quickdraw and the
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113 | resource and list managers. In the same folder you will find the very
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114 | similar scripts ICONbrowse and cicnbrowse. oldPICTbrowse is the same program
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115 | but form the pre-Appearance era, it uses a dialog with a user item and
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116 | creates and manages its own List object.
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117 |
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118 | <LI>
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119 | <I>Imgbrowse</I> displays image files in
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120 | many different formats (gif, tiff, pbm, etc). It shows how to use the
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121 | img modules on the mac.
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122 |
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123 | <LI>
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124 | <I>Quicktime</I> has the standard <code>MovieInWindow</code> and
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125 | <code>VerySimplePlayer</code> examples, re-coded in Python.
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126 |
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127 | <LI>
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128 | <I>Resources</I>, <I>Sound</I> and <I>Speech</I> have some examples
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129 | on using the respective managers. In the <i>Mac:Lib</i> folder you
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130 | will also find modules that do useful things with the Communications
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131 | Toolbox, the Finder interface, etc.
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132 |
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133 | <LI>
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134 | <I>Printing</I> has an example on using the Printing module to, you guessed
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135 | it, print from Python. The code is somewhat self-documenting. Donated
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136 | by Just van Rossum, who also donated the Printing module itself.
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137 | </UL>
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138 |
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139 | At some point in the (possibly distant) future, I will add chapters on
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140 | how to use bgen to create modules completely automatic and how to make
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141 | your Python program scriptable, but that will have to wait. <p>
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142 |
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143 | <HR>
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144 |
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145 | Please let me know if you miss critical information in this
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146 | document. I am quite sure that I will never find the time to turn it
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147 | into a complete MacPython programmers guide (which would probably be a
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148 | 400-page book instead of 10 lousy html-files), but it should contain
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149 | at least the information that is neither in the standard Python
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150 | documentation nor in Inside Mac or other Mac programmers
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151 | documentation. <p>
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152 |
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153 | <HR>
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154 | <A HREF="http://www.cwi.nl/~jack">Jack Jansen</A>,
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155 | <A HREF="mailto:jack@cwi.nl">jack@cwi.nl</A>, 22-Apr-00.
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156 | </BODY></HTML>
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