[wxWidgets.git] / wxPython / docs / wxPackage.html

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<title>The wxPython wx Package</title>
<meta name="author" content="Patrick K. O'Brien" />
<meta name="author" content="Robin Dunn" />
<meta name="organization" content="Orbtech" />
<meta name="date" content="2003-07-02" />
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<div class="document" id="the-wxpython-wx-package">
<h1 class="title">The wxPython wx Package</h1>
<h2 class="subtitle" id="or-how-to-survive-the-new-wx-namespace-changes">Or, how to survive the new wx namespace changes.</h2>
<table class="docinfo" frame="void" rules="none">
<col class="docinfo-name" />
<col class="docinfo-content" />
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Author:</th>
<td>Patrick K. O'Brien</td></tr>
<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Author:</th>
<td>Robin Dunn</td></tr>
<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Contact:</th>
<td><a class="first last reference" href="mailto:pobrien&#64;orbtech.com">pobrien&#64;orbtech.com</a></td></tr>
<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Organization:</th>
<td><a class="first last reference" href="http://www.orbtech.com/">Orbtech</a></td></tr>
<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Date:</th>
<td>2003-07-02</td></tr>
<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Revision:</th>
<td>1.2</td></tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div class="contents topic" id="contents">
<p class="topic-title"><a name="contents">Contents</a></p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><a class="reference" href="#introduction" id="id2" name="id2">Introduction</a></li>
<li><a class="reference" href="#why-change-anything" id="id3" name="id3">Why change anything?</a></li>
<li><a class="reference" href="#what-does-the-new-wx-package-do" id="id4" name="id4">What does the new wx package do?</a></li>
<li><a class="reference" href="#will-any-of-this-effect-my-existing-code" id="id5" name="id5">Will any of this effect my existing code?</a></li>
<li><a class="reference" href="#what-about-all-the-other-modules-like-grid-html-and-stc" id="id6" name="id6">What about all the other modules, like grid, html, and stc?</a></li>
<li><a class="reference" href="#how-do-i-use-this-new-wx-package" id="id7" name="id7">How do I use this new wx package?</a></li>
<li><a class="reference" href="#what-are-the-issues-with-converting-old-code-to-use-the-new-wx-package" id="id8" name="id8">What are the issues with converting old code to use the new wx package?</a></li>
<li><a class="reference" href="#where-can-i-find-example-programs-using-the-new-wx-syntax" id="id9" name="id9">Where can I find example programs using the new wx syntax?</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="section" id="introduction">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id2" name="introduction">Introduction</a></h1>
<p>In the begining there was Python, and Python had modules, and Python
was good.  But after a time Guido looked on Python and saw that Python
needed organizational assistance, and so Guido took code from Python's
side and created Packages and then Python was very good.  About this
time wxPython was reborn, and wxPython used Packages, but being young
and trying to use a new technology wxPython did not know how to use
Packages effectivly.  wxPython was good, but dreamed of being much
better...</p>
<p>Now many years later, after tons of code reorganization and build
hacking wxPython has reached that goal.  In version 2.4.1 a prototype
of this new structure was introduced that dynamically built at import
time a new toplevel package named simply &quot;wx&quot; that contained all the
items from wxPython.wx but with the names edited to remove the wx
prefix.  Now in 2.5 the final phase of that switcheroo has been
completed and the <em>real</em> classes, functions and constants are now
located in the wx package, leaving some compatibility modules in
wxPython.wx.  This document should answer all the questions you might
have concerning the new wx package.  Please also take a look at the
<a class="reference" href="MigrationGuide.html">2.5 Migration Guide</a> to see notes about other big differences in
this release.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="why-change-anything">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id3" name="why-change-anything">Why change anything?</a></h1>
<p>This change is being made for a couple of reasons.  The first reason
is to discourage the use of <tt class="literal"><span class="pre">import</span> <span class="pre">*</span></tt>, which is a dangerous
technique that can create name conflicts and bloated namespaces.</p>
<p>The second reason is to remove what some perceive to be a &quot;wart.&quot;  For
example, the following code is rather ugly in that the &quot;wx&quot; prefix on
the wxFrame class name is no longer useful when you're using the wx
module prefix:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
from wxPython import wx

class Frame(wx.wxFrame)
</pre>
<p>The new wx package allows you to write code like this, instead:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
import wx

class Frame(wx.Frame)
</pre>
<p>The third reason is that the wxWindows project has considered doing
the same thing (implement a new wx namespace and drop the &quot;wx&quot; prefix)
and we want wxPython to lead the way.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="what-does-the-new-wx-package-do">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id4" name="what-does-the-new-wx-package-do">What does the new wx package do?</a></h1>
<p>As mentioned in the Introduction, wxPython 2.4.1 introduced a way of
getting to this new syntax as quickly as possible.  It would import
the old names (like &quot;wxFrame&quot;) from the old package and then create new
names in the wx package  without the wx prefix, (like &quot;Frame&quot;.)
Starting with wxPython 2.5 the renaming is moved up to the wxPython
build step, so the real classes and etc. are actually named with the
new name (like &quot;Frame&quot;) and are located in the new wx package.</p>
<p>For compatibility the old wxPython package still exists, but now it is
populated with modules that simply import the new names and then
&quot;reverse-renames&quot; them to the old names.  It probably sounds a bit
complicated, but it is mostly automated and so it  doesn't cause
problems in most cases.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="will-any-of-this-effect-my-existing-code">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id5" name="will-any-of-this-effect-my-existing-code">Will any of this effect my existing code?</a></h1>
<p>No.  Your existing code will continue to work and be supported for
some time.  It will be up to you to decide when to switch to the new
syntax.  But all new documentation and code examples will use the new
syntax.  So don't wait too long.  You wouldn't want anyone calling you
old-fashioned, would you?</p>
<p>When you import from wxPython.wx and use a class with the old name,
such as wxButton, you are actually using the wx.Button class.  I
expect that the vast majority of the existing code should work fine
using this scheme.  The only things that may cause problems is if your
old code is depending on some of the implemtation details, or if you
are using other things that have changed in the API.  See the
<a class="reference" href="MigrationGuide.html">Migration Guide</a> for more details.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="what-about-all-the-other-modules-like-grid-html-and-stc">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id6" name="what-about-all-the-other-modules-like-grid-html-and-stc">What about all the other modules, like grid, html, and stc?</a></h1>
<p>There's more to the old wxPython than just the wxPython.wx module.
And we've got those extra modules covered as well.  Each of those
modules (as well as the lib subpackage) has been moved to the new wx
package and reverse-renamers have been placed in the wxPython package
as needed.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="how-do-i-use-this-new-wx-package">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id7" name="how-do-i-use-this-new-wx-package">How do I use this new wx package?</a></h1>
<p>The wx package is automatically created when you install wxPython
version 2.4.1 or higher.  So all you have to do is:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
import wx
</pre>
</div>
<div class="section" id="what-are-the-issues-with-converting-old-code-to-use-the-new-wx-package">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id8" name="what-are-the-issues-with-converting-old-code-to-use-the-new-wx-package">What are the issues with converting old code to use the new wx package?</a></h1>
<p>Obviously, you need to change your import statements from:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
from wxPython import wx
</pre>
<p>or:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
from wxPython.wx import *
</pre>
<p>to:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
import wx
</pre>
<p>Then you need to refer to wx attributes without a &quot;wx&quot; prefix, such
as:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
class MyFrame(wx.Frame):
</pre>
<p>In most cases, existing code can be modified with a simple search and
replace.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="where-can-i-find-example-programs-using-the-new-wx-syntax">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id9" name="where-can-i-find-example-programs-using-the-new-wx-syntax">Where can I find example programs using the new wx syntax?</a></h1>
<p>Example programs are included in the wxPython/samples/wx_examples
directory, and are documented in the <a class="reference" href="wxPythonExamples.html">wxPythonExamples</a> documentation
file.  Also, all the code in the py package uses the new wx syntax.
You can learn more about these in the <a class="reference" href="PyManual.html">PyManual</a>.</p>
</div>
</div>
<hr class="footer" />
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Generated on: 2004-02-04 23:31 UTC.
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Commit	Line	Data
8eda5e35 RD	1	<?xml version="1.0" encoding="iso-8859-1" ?>
	2	<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
	3	<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">
	4	<head>
	5	<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" />
	6	<meta name="generator" content="Docutils 0.3.1: http://docutils.sourceforge.net/" />
	7	<title>The wxPython wx Package</title>
	8	<meta name="author" content="Patrick K. O'Brien" />
	9	<meta name="author" content="Robin Dunn" />
	10	<meta name="organization" content="Orbtech" />
	11	<meta name="date" content="2003-07-02" />
	12	<link rel="stylesheet" href="default.css" type="text/css" />
	13	</head>
	14	<body>
	15	<div class="document" id="the-wxpython-wx-package">
	16	<h1 class="title">The wxPython wx Package</h1>
	17	<h2 class="subtitle" id="or-how-to-survive-the-new-wx-namespace-changes">Or, how to survive the new wx namespace changes.</h2>
	18	<table class="docinfo" frame="void" rules="none">
	19	<col class="docinfo-name" />
	20	<col class="docinfo-content" />
	21	<tbody valign="top">
	22	<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Author:</th>
	23	<td>Patrick K. O'Brien</td></tr>
	24	<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Author:</th>
	25	<td>Robin Dunn</td></tr>
	26	<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Contact:</th>
	27	<td><a class="first last reference" href="mailto:pobrien@orbtech.com">pobrien@orbtech.com</a></td></tr>
	28	<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Organization:</th>
	29	<td><a class="first last reference" href="http://www.orbtech.com/">Orbtech</a></td></tr>
	30	<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Date:</th>
	31	<td>2003-07-02</td></tr>
	32	<tr><th class="docinfo-name">Revision:</th>
	33	<td>1.2</td></tr>
	34	</tbody>
	35	</table>
	36	<div class="contents topic" id="contents">
	37	<p class="topic-title"><a name="contents">Contents</a></p>
	38	<ul class="simple">
	39	<li><a class="reference" href="#introduction" id="id2" name="id2">Introduction</a></li>
	40	<li><a class="reference" href="#why-change-anything" id="id3" name="id3">Why change anything?</a></li>
	41	<li><a class="reference" href="#what-does-the-new-wx-package-do" id="id4" name="id4">What does the new wx package do?</a></li>
	42	<li><a class="reference" href="#will-any-of-this-effect-my-existing-code" id="id5" name="id5">Will any of this effect my existing code?</a></li>
	43	<li><a class="reference" href="#what-about-all-the-other-modules-like-grid-html-and-stc" id="id6" name="id6">What about all the other modules, like grid, html, and stc?</a></li>
	44	<li><a class="reference" href="#how-do-i-use-this-new-wx-package" id="id7" name="id7">How do I use this new wx package?</a></li>
	45	<li><a class="reference" href="#what-are-the-issues-with-converting-old-code-to-use-the-new-wx-package" id="id8" name="id8">What are the issues with converting old code to use the new wx package?</a></li>
	46	<li><a class="reference" href="#where-can-i-find-example-programs-using-the-new-wx-syntax" id="id9" name="id9">Where can I find example programs using the new wx syntax?</a></li>
	47	</ul>
	48	</div>
	49	<div class="section" id="introduction">
	50	<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id2" name="introduction">Introduction</a></h1>
	51	<p>In the begining there was Python, and Python had modules, and Python
	52	was good. But after a time Guido looked on Python and saw that Python
	53	needed organizational assistance, and so Guido took code from Python's
	54	side and created Packages and then Python was very good. About this
	55	time wxPython was reborn, and wxPython used Packages, but being young
	56	and trying to use a new technology wxPython did not know how to use
	57	Packages effectivly. wxPython was good, but dreamed of being much
	58	better...</p>
	59	<p>Now many years later, after tons of code reorganization and build
	60	hacking wxPython has reached that goal. In version 2.4.1 a prototype
	61	of this new structure was introduced that dynamically built at import
	62	time a new toplevel package named simply "wx" that contained all the
	63	items from wxPython.wx but with the names edited to remove the wx
	64	prefix. Now in 2.5 the final phase of that switcheroo has been
65	completed and the <em>real</em> classes, functions and constants are now
66	located in the wx package, leaving some compatibility modules in
67	wxPython.wx. This document should answer all the questions you might
68	have concerning the new wx package. Please also take a look at the
69	<a class="reference" href="MigrationGuide.html">2.5 Migration Guide</a> to see notes about other big differences in
70	this release.</p>
71	</div>
72	<div class="section" id="why-change-anything">
73	<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id3" name="why-change-anything">Why change anything?</a></h1>
74	<p>This change is being made for a couple of reasons. The first reason
75	is to discourage the use of <tt class="literal"><span class="pre">import</span> <span class="pre">*</span></tt>, which is a dangerous
76	technique that can create name conflicts and bloated namespaces.</p>
77	<p>The second reason is to remove what some perceive to be a "wart." For
78	example, the following code is rather ugly in that the "wx" prefix on
79	the wxFrame class name is no longer useful when you're using the wx
80	module prefix:</p>
81	<pre class="literal-block">
82	from wxPython import wx
83
84	class Frame(wx.wxFrame)
85	</pre>
86	<p>The new wx package allows you to write code like this, instead:</p>
87	<pre class="literal-block">
88	import wx
89
90	class Frame(wx.Frame)
91	</pre>
92	<p>The third reason is that the wxWindows project has considered doing
93	the same thing (implement a new wx namespace and drop the "wx" prefix)
94	and we want wxPython to lead the way.</p>
95	</div>
96	<div class="section" id="what-does-the-new-wx-package-do">
97	<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id4" name="what-does-the-new-wx-package-do">What does the new wx package do?</a></h1>
98	<p>As mentioned in the Introduction, wxPython 2.4.1 introduced a way of
99	getting to this new syntax as quickly as possible. It would import
100	the old names (like "wxFrame") from the old package and then create new
101	names in the wx package without the wx prefix, (like "Frame".)
102	Starting with wxPython 2.5 the renaming is moved up to the wxPython
103	build step, so the real classes and etc. are actually named with the
104	new name (like "Frame") and are located in the new wx package.</p>
105	<p>For compatibility the old wxPython package still exists, but now it is
106	populated with modules that simply import the new names and then
107	"reverse-renames" them to the old names. It probably sounds a bit
108	complicated, but it is mostly automated and so it doesn't cause
109	problems in most cases.</p>
110	</div>
111	<div class="section" id="will-any-of-this-effect-my-existing-code">
112	<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id5" name="will-any-of-this-effect-my-existing-code">Will any of this effect my existing code?</a></h1>
113	<p>No. Your existing code will continue to work and be supported for
114	some time. It will be up to you to decide when to switch to the new
115	syntax. But all new documentation and code examples will use the new
116	syntax. So don't wait too long. You wouldn't want anyone calling you
117	old-fashioned, would you?</p>
118	<p>When you import from wxPython.wx and use a class with the old name,
119	such as wxButton, you are actually using the wx.Button class. I
120	expect that the vast majority of the existing code should work fine
121	using this scheme. The only things that may cause problems is if your
122	old code is depending on some of the implemtation details, or if you
123	are using other things that have changed in the API. See the
124	<a class="reference" href="MigrationGuide.html">Migration Guide</a> for more details.</p>
125	</div>
126	<div class="section" id="what-about-all-the-other-modules-like-grid-html-and-stc">
127	<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id6" name="what-about-all-the-other-modules-like-grid-html-and-stc">What about all the other modules, like grid, html, and stc?</a></h1>
128	<p>There's more to the old wxPython than just the wxPython.wx module.
129	And we've got those extra modules covered as well. Each of those
130	modules (as well as the lib subpackage) has been moved to the new wx
131	package and reverse-renamers have been placed in the wxPython package
132	as needed.</p>
133	</div>
134	<div class="section" id="how-do-i-use-this-new-wx-package">
135	<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id7" name="how-do-i-use-this-new-wx-package">How do I use this new wx package?</a></h1>
136	<p>The wx package is automatically created when you install wxPython
137	version 2.4.1 or higher. So all you have to do is:</p>
138	<pre class="literal-block">
139	import wx
140	</pre>
141	</div>
142	<div class="section" id="what-are-the-issues-with-converting-old-code-to-use-the-new-wx-package">
143	<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id8" name="what-are-the-issues-with-converting-old-code-to-use-the-new-wx-package">What are the issues with converting old code to use the new wx package?</a></h1>
144	<p>Obviously, you need to change your import statements from:</p>
145	<pre class="literal-block">
146	from wxPython import wx
147	</pre>
148	<p>or:</p>
149	<pre class="literal-block">
150	from wxPython.wx import *
151	</pre>
152	<p>to:</p>
153	<pre class="literal-block">
154	import wx
155	</pre>
156	<p>Then you need to refer to wx attributes without a "wx" prefix, such
157	as:</p>
158	<pre class="literal-block">
159	class MyFrame(wx.Frame):
160	</pre>
161	<p>In most cases, existing code can be modified with a simple search and
162	replace.</p>
163	</div>
164	<div class="section" id="where-can-i-find-example-programs-using-the-new-wx-syntax">
165	<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id9" name="where-can-i-find-example-programs-using-the-new-wx-syntax">Where can I find example programs using the new wx syntax?</a></h1>
166	<p>Example programs are included in the wxPython/samples/wx_examples
167	directory, and are documented in the <a class="reference" href="wxPythonExamples.html">wxPythonExamples</a> documentation
168	file. Also, all the code in the py package uses the new wx syntax.
169	You can learn more about these in the <a class="reference" href="PyManual.html">PyManual</a>.</p>
170	</div>
171	</div>
172	<hr class="footer" />
173	<div class="footer">
174	Generated on: 2004-02-04 23:31 UTC.
175	</div>
176	</body>
177	</html>