Am 30.09.2020 um 17:55 schrieb Dennis Lee Bieber: > On Tue, 29 Sep 2020 22:31:18 +0000 (UTC), Ron Villarreal via Python-list > <python-list@python.org> declaimed the following: > >> Tried to open Python 3.8. I have Windows 10. Icon won’t open. > > What "Icon"? > > Python is a language interpreter/compiler -- it runs from a command > prompt/shell. Clicking on a Python SCRIPT might open a shell, which will > almost immediately close when the script finishes executing (files with a > .pyw extension are supposed to create their own GUI using one of a couple > of libraries, and don't open a shell).
I'm just a lurker, hobby programmer and Linux geek, so take my words with some caution. We are seeing these troubles from newcomers on Windows all of the time -- and that for years. Isn't it time to ask if the way Python installs itself on Windows-Systems is appropriate? I have only limited knowledge about current Windows systems. But it seems to me that newcomers download some setup exe/msi and then search the menu to run what ever is found (python.exe or even the setup-program.) That's Ok, if you understand what an interpreter/compiler for the command-line is. But programming beginners usually don't know that (especially not if there are Windows users). There has been a lot of effort to make this group inclusive and newcomer-friendly. But it seems to me that this is not the case for the software itself. Given that Python ships with a rudimentary IDE (IDLE), should that one be promoted more intensively? Shouldn't IDLE be named something like "Python Editor" (or Python IDE/App) in the menu, so beginners can more easily find it? Further it might be a good idea to make this "Repair/Modify/Remove"-Dialog more explicit by clearly saying "Python is already installed. If you want to use it, do ...". -- https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
