[[!meta  title="Distributing Python"]]

The "right" way to distribute [[Python]] packages seems to have moved
on since I last checked.  There seem to be two parallel efforts,
[Tarek Ziadé][TZ]'s [Distutils2][] and [Ian Bicking][IB]'s [pip][].
Tarek has a nice summary of the [state of affairs as of March
2010][overview].  His summary refers confused developers to the
[Hitchhiker's Guide to Packaging][HGP] which describes the [evolution
of Python packaging sytems][state] and gives lots of helpful packaging
advice.  The technical details of the new packaging framework are
described in [PEP 376][] slated for inclusion in Python 2.7 and 3.2.

I'm not sure how Ian has `pip` fitting into this, except that he
[wants to stay out of the stdlib][no-stdlib].

[TZ]: http://tarekziade.wordpress.com/
[Distutils2]: http://distutils2.notmyidea.org/
[IB]: http://blog.ianbicking.org/
[pip]: http://www.pip-installer.org/
[overview]: http://tarekziade.wordpress.com/2010/03/03/the-fate-of-distutils-pycon-summit-packaging-sprint-detailed-report/
[HGP]: http://guide.python-distribute.org/
[state]: http://guide.python-distribute.org/introduction.html#current-state-of-packaging
[PEP 376]: http://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0376/
[no-stdlib]: http://mail.python.org/pipermail/distutils-sig/2010-May/016299.html

[[!tag tags/python]]
[[!tag tags/programming]]