Command Line Client for Google Reader in IronPython

Dare Obasanjo has created an IronPython command line client for google reader. This is a first step in integrating RSS Bandit with google reader:

• Command Line Client for Google Reader in IronPython
  

Minor Mentions

A few recent blog entries featuring or mentioning IronPython:

• CALEBLOG: Garbage Collecting 2007 - a blogger includes being surprisingly interested by IronPython and the DLR in his mental garbage collecting of 2007.
• Python.NET - Alcides Fonseca is a fan of both .NET and Python. He likes IronPython, but prefers Python.NET.
• Playing with the DLR - Rainer experiments with the DLR. He shows code for executing IronPython, IronRuby and Managed JScript scripts by embedding the DLR (from IronPython 2) in C#.
• Mood News - Now IronPython Powered - Davy Mitchell's 'Mood News' is now powered by IronPython

Oh, and there are some more IronPython Cookbook updates:

• Launching the Browser - launching the system default browser with a specific url (includes cross platform notes)
• Access Unmanaged Code with Dynamic P/Invoke - an example of using the FePy implementation of ctypes for IronPython
• Parsing RSS - IronPython code for parsing RSS feeds
  

Using the Wiimote from IronPython

Another one in Japanese I'm afraid, but again the code is clear. This blog entry shows how to use WiimoteLib, a Managed Library for Nintendo's Wiimote, from IronPython:

• Using the Wiimote from IronPython
  

WMI with IronPython

Another example of WMI with IronPython (this one querying the BIOS):

• ARTYPROG: wmi - IronPython

There are now four examples of WMI usage on the IronPython Cookbook WMI Page.

Put a Python in Your Game

A Christmas eve post on putting a Python console into XNA games:

• Learning XNA: Put a Python in Your Game

UPDATE: link updated to new location - now with video and source code available!

IronPython Studio, Resolver, Python Papers & IronPython Talks

Recently most of my blog entries have been on IronPython or Resolver (my apologies). It has been an important few weeks for Resolver, with our beta now out and the announcement that Resolver will be free for personal/Open Source use:

• Resolver One Beta Now Live! - and available for free download
• Resolver Sponsoring PyCon - gold sponsors no less, and a good chance I will be able to attend!
• Resolver Hacks Update - articles and examples (IronPython code) of using Resolver
• PyCon 2008: IronPython and Resolver Talks! - it will be a good PyCon for IronPython
• IronPython in Action: New Chapters and WPF - new IronPython in Action chapters available and WPF from IronPython
• ACCU 2008 Conference: Dynamic Languages on .NET - I'll be doing a talk on IronPython at the UK ACCU conference in April 2008
• Big Resolver News: New Beta, Release Date and Resolver Free for Personal Use
• Resolver, IronPython and the Python Papers and the One Minute Screencast - A new Resolver screencast and interviews with me and Giles Thomas (our dear leader at Resolver) in the Python Papers
• IronPython Studio: Problems, Victory and Compiled Binaries - Using the WPF and Winforms designers in IronPython Studio to produce compiled executables (plus a couple of minor problems along the way)
  

IronPython Cookbook Updates

There have been some great new additions to the IronPython Cookbook in recent weeks:

• Creating XML Trees - Using XML to LINQ features, that are new to .NET 3.5, with IronPython
• File as TextReader - a wrapper class, so that you can use Python files where .NET expects a StreamReader object
• Extremely Late Binding - Late bound COM with IronPython
• MonthCalendar Control and datetime - Using the Windows Forms MonthCalendar control with Python datetime
• Listing Time Zones - Listing time zones known to the system
• Using Spreadsheet Functions with Excel 2007 - more COM
• Listing all Exceptions in the System
  

Plus the IronPython 2.0A7 files have been added to the Downloads page.

IronPython on Mac OSX and Mono

You may struggle to read this unless you're Japanese, but the code and screenshots speak for themselves:

• IronPython on Mac OSX and Mono
  

IronScheme, Dynamic Languages and Comparisons

Three links in one post!

• IronLisp becomes IronScheme

The announcement is on the xacc.ide blog.

• Comparing IronPython and CPython

R Tyler Ballance runs Pybench for CPython and IronPython (on Mono). This was discussed back in April, which included a useful comparison of .NET and Mono performance.

• Big in 2008: Dynamic Languages Atop High Level Languages

A look forward to the future of dynamic languages in 2008, including the trend of implementing dynamic languages on top of high level languages.

IronPython 2.0 Alpha 7 Released

IronPython 2.0 Alpha 7 (source and binary) is now available:

• IronPython Project Homepage
• Release Notes and Download
  

Major points of interest with this release:

• IronPython 2 should now be PEP 342 compliant (yield should now be fully compatible with Python 2.5)
• This is the last release to be built and fully tested with Visual Studio 2005

Around twenty bugs (mainly minor) have also been closed with this release.

Return vs. Finally - C# and IronPython

Mike Stall has an interesting new blog entry on the difference between C# and Python regarding returns in finally blocks:

• Return vs Finally

Did you know that returns in finally blocks swallow exceptions in Python? (I didn't):

>>> def f():
... try:
... raise Exception('ouch')
... finally:
... return 3
...
>>> f()
3
>>>

IronPython and Jython Hello Windows

Kam-Hung Soh, a blogger from Australia (which should please my colleague Christian), has written a blog entry showing simple 'Hello Windows' scripts in both Jython and IronPython:

• IronPython and Jython Hello Windows

He notes "Both implementations allow setX functions in object constructor's argument list", which is unsurprising as both implementations are the creation of Jim Hugunin.

Natural Sort in IronPython vs. C# 2.0

Continuing the 'natural sort' meme floating around the blogosphere at the moment, Dare Obasanjo compares natural sort code in IronPython and C# 2.0:

• Natural Sort in IronPython vs. C# 2.0

Unsurprisingly, IronPython is slightly more concise...

IronPython Studio Now Available

IronPython Studio is a free full IDE (Integrated Development Environment) for the Python programming language. It is based on the existing IronPython example that is included in the VS SDK.

• IronPython Studio
  

IronPython Studio is based on the Visual Studio 2008 Shell runtime (royalty free) and can be installed without requiring any version of Visual Studio. It is hosted on codeplex.

Installer, source and screencast are available from the download page. The sources require Visual Studio 2008 (Team Edition apparently) and the SDK.

NOTE: Some users (myself included) had trouble getting this working. The magic steps are:

1. Download and install the Visual Studio X redistributable from: Visual Studio Extensibility
2. After you run the Install for the MS VS 2008 Shell Isolated Mode Redistributable, you must then go to the folder ("C:\VS 2008 Shell Redist\Isolated Mode") and click on: "vsshellisolated_enu.exe" to actually install the redistributable runtime.
   
3. Install IronPython Studio

Thanks to Tom Clark for the instructions.

IronPython Present & Future: PyCon 2007 Podcast

The audio recordings for PyCon 2007 are finally making their way out. Jim Hugunin's talk is now available:

• IronPython Present & Future PyCon 2007 Audio Recording

IronPython is an implementation of the Python language targeting the Common Language Runtime. IronPython has excellent performance, seamless integration with the .NET platform and very high compatibility with the standard Python implementation. The first public talk on IronPython was at PyCon 2004, three years ago. Since then, IronPython has progressed from a rough prototype to a 1.0 release with a vibrant user community. This talk will present the current state and future directions of this Python implementation.

Resolver One Beta Released

After two years of work, Resolver One - the IronPython programmable spreadsheet, has reached public beta. You can download it now and have a play:

• Resolver One Public Beta Now Live
  

Resolver is a "rapid application development tool with a familiar interface", and should be useful to power users of spreadsheets and anyone who crunches numbers with Python. The Resolver Hacks website with articles and examples is in the process of being updated to use the new API that this beta introduces.

Today three of us from Resolver were interviewed by Robert Scoble today. He is on his way to Le Web conference in Paris, so I don't know when the actual video will appear - but I'll be sure to let you know.

Microsoft Volta: IronPython to Javascript Compiler

Microsoft Live Labs have announced a new project - the Volta Recompiler:

• Volta on Live Labs

As far as I can tell, this allows you to compile IronPython (and other .NET languages) to Javascript:

Microsoft Live Labs Volta helps developers who build distributed applications on the .NET platform, using the Microsoft development stack (programming languages, libraries, and Visual Studio). This version of Volta supports applications that run on the Microsoft CLR, a JavaScript-enabled browser, or a combination of the two.

...

In essence Volta is a recompiler. Volta works on MSIL rather than on a textual source language. Volta rewrites MSIL into any number of target languages, including, today JavaScript and MSIL itself.

...

In summary, Volta confers flexibility in the architecture dimension through:

• Language-independence. Write Volta code in any language that compiles into MSIL. For example, C#, VB, IronPython, etc.

Mono, Boo, Python, Gnome & IronPython

Miguel de Icaza has a blog entry responding to an article on 'Mono Usage in the Enterprise':

• Mono Usage in the Enterprise

It has some interesting comments on the role of Python in the Gnome project and IronPython and Boo on Mono:

Python is indeed making great strides as a desktop development platform and am not sure that we are in the business of competing with it. If people like writing Python code, they should just keep writing python code.

Myself, I like the IronPython variation of Python more. IronPython just happens to be JITed Python and in most tests it is faster than CPython. For the past year or so, we have also been in love with Boo, another .NET language. Boo has support for strong typing, so for certain scenarios you will get even better performing code (basically, when you can determine the type of a variable ahead of time, instead of having the variable be entierly late bound).

Mono and Windows Forms on OS X

Through Mono IronPython can be used to create cross platform applications, but the story for desktop applications on platforms like OS X has never been particularly compelling.

Miguel de Icaza outlines the future for Mono on OS X (one of the outcomes of the Mono summit), including easy access to the MonoDevelop IDE and screenshots of a winforms application on OS X using the native drivers!

• Mono on OS X and Win32
  

IronPython Bug that Cost me a Can of Coke

Kamil Dworakowski (a Resolver developer) explains an obscure bug with comparing lists in IronPython 1, and how it cost him a can of coke:

• IronPython Bug that Cost me a Can of Coke

The bug relates to IComparable and value types in the underlying framework and how IronPython implements equality in an attempt to remain faithful to Python.