Talk:History of Python

Controversy [SOLVED]
Does a slow section of a library which has been since fixed really need to be called a controversy? I could understand if it was found to be done intentionally or something, but come on.138.87.141.17 (talk) 02:39, 25 October 2010 (UTC)

Facts that should be in the Article [SOLVED]
Python was named after the show Monty Python's Flying Circus. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.57.60.15 (talk) 14:43, 19 June 2011 (UTC)

This content is included Python_(programming_language) and has since been added to this page. Kdmckale (talk) 21:16, 6 November 2021 (UTC)

detailed comparison of v2->v3 changes? [ADDRESSED]
It would sure be nice to have a detailed comparison (e.g., a table) of changes from Python v2 to v3. I'm brand new to Python, and am finding that some things stated in some tutorials are untrue. I don't know enough about Python to know whether they're just plain wrong, or whether the "truth" changed from v2 to v3. (For example, one tutor states that a variable used to loop through a 'for' loop has as its scope ONLY the 'for' loop; in v3, this is certainly not true [because the looping variable's value can still be accessed after the for loop is completed]. Was it true in v2, and just changed in v3?  I don't know.  Would sure be nice for someone who knows these things to put a table here (or at least a reference to someone else's table) that details differences between v2 and v3.  Thanks in advance to anyone who implements this!  Aloha, philiptdotcom (talk) 03:38, 14 February 2013 (UTC)
 * This is likely impossible since (1) so many things have changed (think of all the modules that had to decide whether their str inputs were really bytes or str) and (2) things are still changing, so that past incompatibilities are being resolved (e.g., '%'-style formatting of bytes in 3.5, released years after your question) and - occasionally - past compatibilities broken (e.g., randomizing hashes in 3.3, released just months prior to your question). There are many references available online, but I don't think any are complete lists.  Here, however, are a few:
 * http://python-future.org/quickstart.html
 * http://python-future.org/compatible_idioms.html
 * https://docs.python.org/3/howto/pyporting.html
 * http://python3porting.com/problems.html
 * Calbaer (talk) 18:56, 15 March 2017 (UTC)

External links modified [ADDED BY (NOW INACTIVE) WIKI BOT][FUTURE GUIDANCE APPENDED]
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Python 1.2, 1.3, 1.4
The release notes don't cite a date. Instead, release dates for these derived from the timestamp of the most recent file in the source code distribution, assuming Pacific time.

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Not enough depth
I am missing information about the actual (most important) changes for the different versions, e.g. 3.0 through 3.8. It is largely just a list of version number and dates.

For instance, Ubuntu versions has information about the most important changes for each version.

--Mortense (talk) 20:40, 23 April 2020 (UTC)

Continuing this discussion: (1) Do release notes have a place on the Wikipedia page or is it more appropriate to just link to their locations? (2) Do we want to link to the release notes locations? WikiMathematician (talk) 20:55, 6 November 2021 (UTC)


 * I think release notes can be linked in a table.
 * I've been thinking about updating the article to list major changes for every 3.x version, like the aforementioned Ubuntu version history page. I'd be happy to work with other users in gathering and summarizing info. Wqwt (talk) 17:38, 7 May 2022 (UTC)

Growth of “Support” bar graph
What are the future plans for the “Support” bar graph? Specifically, is it supposed to grow indefinitely? As of Python 3.13, it will span 40 years of time with many more versions listed as EOL than as currently supported or future releases. The information is still preserved in the table above, and the graph is titled “Support” (versus “Non-support”); so, for “viewability”, my proposal would be to determine a fixed window of time around the current year to reflect in the bar graph. Given the categories and colorizations available with the Version template and the Python release schedule, my suggestion would be 13-15 years: 7-8 years into the future and 6-7 years into the past (depending on the month selected), e.g. the current range would be something like 2015-01 to 2029-01. WikiMathematician (talk) 19:50, 6 November 2021 (UTC)

I’ve taken a screen capture and uploading a preview of what this could look like at https://share.icloud.com/photos/0tDG3f363SZ3rfmm3xWK2ZMUg WikiMathematician (talk) 20:02, 6 November 2021 (UTC)

Alternatively, we could preserve the graphical display of all the information if we split the graph into two with titles reflecting their date ranges, e.g. “Support Before 2015-01”. Thoughts? --WikiMathematician (talk) 21:01, 6 November 2021 (UTC)

I found the support graph is difficult to read. The information around the more current Python releases is not visible at the same time as the timeline. As a minimum, I suggest reversing the order of the bars so the more current items are next to the axis. I'd also support the above suggestions of a fixed window of time. Any one support a reversal of the order of the graph items? hrf (talk) 23:42, 17 February 2022 (UTC)


 * A lot of vertical space can be saved just by making the bars much thinner and reducing vertical padding. Wqwt (talk) 17:45, 7 May 2022 (UTC)

Technology
History of python 102.220.42.173 (talk) 14:30, 12 March 2022 (UTC)

Strange sentence at end of Early History section?
At the end of the section “Early history”, it says “It was launched at 2015“. Is this an error? Looks like an incomplete sentence, and not sure what it means. 2A04:CEC0:F044:5402:CCBB:C2AA:27F7:3B42 (talk) 20:15, 19 May 2023 (UTC)


 * Fixed. WikiMathematician (talk) 16:28, 20 May 2023 (UTC)

Changing table key
As per the Status of Python versions page, the official designations possible for each Python version are "Feature", "Prerelease", "Bugfix", "Security", and "End-of-Life". This article uses "Older version", "Older version still maintained", "Latest version", "Latest preview version", and "Future". This creates the problem shown here, where the version tables shows 3.12 to be the latest version, while the bar graph shows both 3.11 and 3.12 are bugfix versions. As such, I suggest that we either change the table and keys to conform to the official version status designations, or we give the bar graph a separate key. Sink Cat (talk) 01:10, 11 October 2023 (UTC)

Under-documented changes to Python 3.x
In stark contrast to the Python 2 section of this page, the Python 3 section fails to adequately enumerate changes made to each minor release. I propose a more comprehensive enumeration of features, deprecations, and removals to each minor Python 3 version. Sink Cat (talk) 20:20, 13 March 2024 (UTC)


 * @Sink Cat This has been proposed before in this talk page, but no one has yet to actually do it. Wqwt (talk) 12:32, 21 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Yeah, I'm going to see if I can overhaul this article using the Java release article as an example. I appreciate the push! I'll see what I can do. @Wqwt Sink Cat (talk) 01:41, 22 May 2024 (UTC)
 * I can help out too, as I use python at work and it'd be good to keep track of what comes in each version.
 * I'd definitely start with the release highlights What’s New in Python — Python 3.12.3 documentation Wqwt (talk) 02:39, 22 May 2024 (UTC)