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Python GUIs: Abandoning TkInter and welcoming wxPython?

Alex Maranda Alex.Maranda at p98.f112.n480.z2.fidonet.org
Thu Jul 1 09:12:56 EDT 1999 
From: Alex Maranda <amaranda at nospam.com>

Mikael Lyngvig wrote:
 
> In contrast, the wxPython demo is so fast that you probably wouldn't
> realize it is implemented in Python, unless you're used to do GUI
> programming yourself.
I'll second that.

> The wxWindows performance problems must be more of the "this could be
> done better" than "this has to be done better" nature.
I'll second that.

> A very strong plus for wxWindows is that the Python API and the native
> C++ API are so close that it actually makes sense to use Python in the
> design and prototyping phase and then rewrite the Python code to C++,
> if you want to, when you've reached a stable design.
This is the way to go indeed. Of course only the performance sensitive
bits - there's no point in rewriting everything. Then put freeze to work
on the remaining python code, and here you go. I've actually done that
with the (sizable) wxPython demo on Linux (linking everything statically
- libpython, wxPython wrappers, wxGTK, GTK, GLIB, even stdc++; in the
end the only dynamic dependencies of the binary were libc, libdl,
libX11). I got a 4.5 Meg binary, from which 0.5 Meg was the demo
bytecode. 4 Meg of 'runtime' it's not much nowadays, and boy it's fast.
I'm not advocating this for casual use, I just explored packaging
possibilities for the average U*ix platform. The Windows version is
smaller 'cause GDI and the other libs are always there :)

Cheers,
-- 
Alex Maranda         mailto: amaranda at spider dot com
Spider Software Ltd. Tel: +44 (0)131 4757036
Edinburgh, UK        http://members.xoom.com/Alex_Maranda
STREAMS based communications protocols for embedded systems
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