6/21/96
 
This directory contains Python1.3 executables with the Tkinter and Dbm
extensions built-in.  The executables were contributed by members of
the Python net community.  On the platforms represented here, you'll
be able to run GUI and database programs "out of the box," without
having to rebuild Python to enable the extensions used in the book.
 
Most of these are compressed tar files, named something like file.tar.gz:
 
- do   "gzip -d <file.gz>"   to decompress,
- then "tar -xvf <file.tar>" to untar their contents.
 
For each platform, an associated README file documents platform-specific
configuration details. For all platforms, you may also need to install the
Python and Tck/Tk source library directories on your machine, and set your
Python/Tcl/Tk environment variables.  Source libraries usually go in:
 
    /usr/local/lib/{tcl,tk}*/*
    /usr/local/lib/python/*
 
If they're not already present, you can install them by unpacking the
Python and Tcl/Tk source distributions, and running the "make" program
with the "install" or library targets (see the distribution READMEs).
 
The environment variables are documented in chapter 3 of the book; you
may need to set PYTHONPATH, TCL_LIBRARY, and TK_LIBRARY to the source
library directories.  Also, be sure to check the platform-specific README
files, to see if variable and library details differ on your machine;
for instance, some may assume dynamic loading of X libraries, etc.
 
One note: the NT version uses the newer Tcl7.5/Tk4.1.  Since the book
uses Tk4.0, you might have a few surprises when running the examples
(hopefully, not very many :-).  Also note that the Macintosh binaries
elsewhere on the CD include Tcl/Tk support (even though there's no
special mac build here).
 
Finally, if your platform isn't listed in this directory, or you have
trouble getting the executable to work, you can also build Python on
your machine with the Tkinter and Dbm extensions. You'll need a C
compiler; source code for both extensions is shipped on the CD, and
the build procedure is covered in chapter 3.
 
I'd like to thank everyone who contributed binaries for this book;
(I owe you guys some beer :-).  Hope you find them useful.
 
Cheers,
Mark Lutz