Tidying up Python

[Ryan Carsten Schmidt]

On Jul 11, 2025, at 04:04, Bjarne D Mathiesen wrote:
> 
>> Den 11.07.2025 kl. 10.38 skrev Ryan Carsten Schmidt:
>> 
>>>> On Jul 11, 2025, at 03:27, Bjarne D Mathiesen wrote:
>>> 
>>> port select --set python  python313
>>> port select --set python3 python313
>> 
>> Prefix those commands with "sudo" for normal root MacPorts installations.
> 
> Well, I'm running under "sudo bash" under my admin account to avoid
> having to prefix every admin task w/ "sudo"

Ok but that is not how most users use MacPorts. When writing instructions for users on the mailing list, keep in mind how their systems are likely set up. 


>> 
>> I believe I read somewhere that the python community recommends that "python" always be python 2.x, never python 3.x. Programs that want to use python 3.x should use the program name "python3". If "port select python" currently allows versions of python 3.x to be selected, we may want to change that.
> 
> We did do a concerted effort in getting rid of python27 in macports some
> time back. If I remember correctly, I had a major part in updating a lot
> of stuff to at least python35 at that time.
> 
> Python27 is offically dead. It was only being kept around in a comatose
> state because of a lot of stuff not having been upgraded to python3.x

None of that contradicts what I wrote. Any program running "python" expects it to be python 2.x. Don't make "python" be python 3.x or you will break those programs. 

At least, that was the wisdom I gleaned last time I looked this up some years ago. If the position of the python community has changed since then, please provide a citation.