Discussion:
Mac vs. Linux for Python Development
twiz
2014-02-23 08:43:14 UTC
Permalink
Hello,

I'm sure this is a common question but I can't seem to find a previous thread that addresses it. If one one exists, please point me to it.

I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on Ubuntu but will soon be transitioning to full-time python development. I have the option of using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to hear any thoughts on the pros and cons of each. Specifically, how's the support for numpy and scipy? How are the IDEs?

Since I generally like working with a Mac, I'd like to hear if there are any significant downsides to python dev on OsX.

Thanks
Chris Angelico
2014-02-23 08:58:27 UTC
Permalink
Post by twiz
I'm sure this is a common question but I can't seem to find a previous thread that addresses it. If one one exists, please point me to it.
I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on Ubuntu but will soon be transitioning to full-time python development. I have the option of using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to hear any thoughts on the pros and cons of each. Specifically, how's the support for numpy and scipy? How are the IDEs?
Since I generally like working with a Mac, I'd like to hear if there are any significant downsides to python dev on OsX.
There have been some issues with running Python on OSX, so you'd want
to make sure you're running the very latest; for instance, 3.3.4 fixed
some issues with 10.9 Mavericks. Generally, I'd say you'll do
reasonably well on either platform, as long as you're happy with the
editor and related tools; but personally, I love my Linux for
development. I use Debian (Ubuntu is closely related to Debian), with
Xfce, SciTE, and roughly ten thousand terminal windows - that's my
"IDE". SciTE is available for a Mac, and there are plenty of other
excellent text editors as well, so you shouldn't have any trouble on
that score.

Your text editor is probably more important to your productivity than
your OS is. Whether you're on Windows, Mac OS, or Linux, or something
more obscure like OS/2, you can run your scripts just fine (OS/2 isn't
an officially supported Python platform, but I have a third-party
build that works fine for me); the important part is getting code from
your brain through your fingers into the computer, and a good editor
can help hugely with that. You'll hear advocates for vi/vim, emacs,
and myriad others, but ultimately, just grab one that looks good and
get to know it :)

Personally, I'd recommend going Linux, for the openness; among other
benefits, it's generally easier to build C stuff from source on Linux
than on pretty much any other platform. But you should be able to use
your preferred Mac just fine, and learning something new is a cost
that's hard to justify.

Just do be sure (and yes, I'm reiterating this) that you're on the
very latest Python you can get. At the moment, that's 3.3.4, but soon
there'll be a 3.4 release.

ChrisA
Andriy Kornatskyy
2014-02-23 09:51:44 UTC
Permalink
I used to do core python development using debian linux (gnome). All way long work just fine. However recently I have had a chance to try MacOS X 10.8 and later 10.9. I used macports.org to setup everything I found ?missing?.

Vim works fine regardless the platform? quite happy.

Thanks.

Andriy Kornatskyy
Post by twiz
Hello,
I'm sure this is a common question but I can't seem to find a previous thread that addresses it. If one one exists, please point me to it.
I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on Ubuntu but will soon be transitioning to full-time python development. I have the option of using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to hear any thoughts on the pros and cons of each. Specifically, how's the support for numpy and scipy? How are the IDEs?
Since I generally like working with a Mac, I'd like to hear if there are any significant downsides to python dev on OsX.
Thanks
--
https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
twiz
2014-02-23 10:17:03 UTC
Permalink
Hi Chris, thanks for the reply.

Yes, I agree. The main consideration is always the development experience. However, I do know that python has had some problems with other OSs (notoriously windows) and I want to avoid unnecessary compatibility issues.

Can you elaborate on some of the problems running python on OSX (or point me to a relavant link)?

Thanks

Tommer
Chris Angelico
2014-02-23 10:24:11 UTC
Permalink
Post by twiz
Can you elaborate on some of the problems running python on OSX (or point me to a relavant link)?
You could poke around on the archives of this list and python-dev, but
the best link I have handy is this, which has only a brief note:

http://www.python.org/download/releases/3.3.4/

ChrisA
Ned Deily
2014-02-23 11:49:22 UTC
Permalink
In article
<CAPTjJmpHGkJ=N+wwWkpaTmbihbN38yWm+_6J7zf5+UvA_DXJ4A at mail.gmail.com>,
Post by Chris Angelico
Post by twiz
Can you elaborate on some of the problems running python on OSX (or point
me to a relavant link)?
You could poke around on the archives of this list and python-dev, but
http://www.python.org/download/releases/3.3.4/
The primary issue for 10.9 was an incompatible change in the system
libedit's readline compatibility API which could cause Pythons built on
earlier versions of OS X to crash on 10.9 when used interactively.
Fixed in the current 2.7.6 and 3.3.4 and 3.4.0rc python.org installers.
Also, if you are going to use IDLE or Tkinter with a python.org Python,
make sure you have the latest ActiveTcl 8.5.15.0 (actually .1)
installed, if possible.

http://www.python.org/download/mac/tcltk/
--
Ned Deily,
nad at acm.org
Günther Dietrich
2014-02-23 11:34:26 UTC
Permalink
Post by twiz
I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on Ubuntu but will
soon be transitioning to full-time python development. I have the option of
using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to hear any thoughts on the
pros and cons of each.
I've been working with Windows, Unix/Linux (X) and Max OS since 1989. In
my experience the GUI of Mac OS is the most user friendly of the the
three.
Post by twiz
Specifically, how's the support for numpy and scipy?
How are the IDEs?
Since I generally like working with a Mac, I'd like to hear if there are any
significant downsides to python dev on OsX.
Eclipse and the PyDev and MercurialEclipse plug-ins are available for
Windows, Linux and Mac OS.
So, if I had the choice, I would go with the Mac.



Best regards,

G?nther
Dave Cook
2014-02-24 03:37:00 UTC
Permalink
Post by twiz
I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on
Ubuntu but will soon be transitioning to full-time python development.
I have the option of using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to
hear any thoughts on the pros and cons of each. Specifically, how's
the support for numpy and scipy?
I had problems trying to build my own scipy stack on Maverick, but
installing Anaconda's Python distribution solved that.

Overall, Python works very well on OS X, but feels better integrated
to me under Linux.

I'll note that Macs are very popular among the members of pythonsd. I
think this is particularly true of the Django developers.

Dave Cook
William Ray Wing
2014-02-24 15:33:35 UTC
Permalink
Post by twiz
Hello,
I'm sure this is a common question but I can't seem to find a previous thread that addresses it. If one one exists, please point me to it.
I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on Ubuntu but will soon be transitioning to full-time python development. I have the option of using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to hear any thoughts on the pros and cons of each. Specifically, how's the support for numpy and scipy? How are the IDEs?
Since I generally like working with a Mac, I'd like to hear if there are any significant downsides to python dev on OsX.
Thanks
--
https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
In addition to the other excellent answers you've received, I'd point you to

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/81584/what-ide-to-use-for-python

where there is a fairly extensive comparison chart of IDEs, features, and supported OSes.

And, by the way, I'm a very happy camper using BBEdit and WingIDE (the name collision is purely coincidental).

Thanks,
Bill
Michael Torrie
2014-02-24 17:34:37 UTC
Permalink
Post by twiz
I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on Ubuntu
but will soon be transitioning to full-time python development. I
have the option of using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to
hear any thoughts on the pros and cons of each. Specifically, how's
the support for numpy and scipy? How are the IDEs?
I know a lot of Mac developers that love the Sublime text editor. And
if you combine it with https://github.com/lunixbochs/actualvim, it's
even better.

Personally OS X's focus policy drives me absolutely bonkers as a
developer. And I can't function without alt-middle clicking to size
windows and alt-click to move windows.
Post by twiz
Since I generally like working with a Mac, I'd like to hear if there
are any significant downsides to python dev on OsX.
You can always run a virtual machine on OS X and have the best of both
worlds.
Michael Torrie
2014-02-24 17:42:53 UTC
Permalink
Post by Michael Torrie
I know a lot of Mac developers that love the Sublime text editor. And
if you combine it with https://github.com/lunixbochs/actualvim, it's
even better.
Sublime is actually on all platforms, and lots of people like it.

http://www.sublimetext.com/

Personally I just use vim on any platform.
Jean-Michel Pichavant
2014-02-24 18:25:19 UTC
Permalink
----- Original Message -----
Post by twiz
Hello,
I'm sure this is a common question but I can't seem to find a
previous thread that addresses it. If one one exists, please point
me to it.
I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on Ubuntu
but will soon be transitioning to full-time python development. I
have the option of using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to
hear any thoughts on the pros and cons of each. Specifically, how's
the support for numpy and scipy? How are the IDEs?
Since I generally like working with a Mac, I'd like to hear if there
are any significant downsides to python dev on OsX.
Thanks
I'd rather go for linux, I have the feeling that the dev community is larger, though I have no numbers to provide, so I may be wrong. One would successfully argue that most python dev are cross-platform anyway.

IDEs in Linux are great, and you'll get the best of them for free. However vim / emacs are available for free on OsX as well...

If you go for Linux, know that ubuntu would not be the first choice, ubuntu prefers user experience over stability. Debian for instance is a distribution largely used in the industry.

JM


-- IMPORTANT NOTICE:

The contents of this email and any attachments are confidential and may also be privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender immediately and do not disclose the contents to any other person, use it for any purpose, or store or copy the information in any medium. Thank you.
Chris Angelico
2014-02-24 18:37:24 UTC
Permalink
On Tue, Feb 25, 2014 at 5:25 AM, Jean-Michel Pichavant
Post by Jean-Michel Pichavant
If you go for Linux, know that ubuntu would not be the first choice, ubuntu prefers user experience over stability. Debian for instance is a distribution largely used in the industry.
What you'll generally find, actually, is that there's very little
effective difference between one distro and another - there's a lot of
usability difference between, say, Xfce and GNOME3 and Mate and Unity
and so on, but you can get each of those on any Linux that supports
them (personally, I like Xfce, which I use with Debian; you can get
Xubuntu which comes with it). There's also a huge difference between
Python 2.4 and Python 2.7, but beyond the fact that Red Hat 5 happens
to ship with 2.4 and Debian Wheezy happens to ship with 2.7, there's
no connection between that and your distro. Especially among the
families of related distros (Debian and Red Hat being the patriarchs
of huge family trees, and Ubuntu being head of a major sub-tree under
Debian), you'll usually find there's not a huge amount of fundamental
difference.

So pick any distro that strikes your fancy! Try it out! If it doesn't
work out, pick a different one. Start with one that your friends use
(if you have any), that way you can get immediate help.

ChrisA
Grant Edwards
2014-02-24 19:35:53 UTC
Permalink
Post by Chris Angelico
So pick any distro that strikes your fancy! Try it out! If it doesn't
work out, pick a different one. Start with one that your friends use
(if you have any), that way you can get immediate help.
That last bit of advice shouldn't be overlooked. If you're new to
Linux, just about any mainstream distro for which you can easily get
help is going to be a go smoother than one for which you're left with
nothing but Google and web-based forums full of incoherent advice and
wrong answers.

Personally, I prefer Gentoo, but it's probably a bit too
nuts-and-bolts for many people.
--
Grant Edwards grant.b.edwards Yow! I'm ZIPPY the PINHEAD
at and I'm totally committed
gmail.com to the festive mode.
Roy Smith
2014-02-23 14:20:37 UTC
Permalink
In article <2465a8c7-ce0e-4606-ad3b-9135c96e3e4c at googlegroups.com>,
Post by twiz
Hello,
I'm sure this is a common question but I can't seem to find a previous thread
that addresses it. If one one exists, please point me to it.
I've been developing with python recreationally for a while on Ubuntu but
will soon be transitioning to full-time python development. I have the
option of using a Mac or Ubuntu environment and I'd like to hear any thoughts
on the pros and cons of each. Specifically, how's the support for numpy and
scipy? How are the IDEs?
Which is a better food: asparagus or cauliflower?

I run Python (including scipy, numpy, iPython, matplotlib, statsmodels,
scikit-learn, pandas, etc) on both OSX and Ubuntu. For server and
back-end work, I find linux a better platform, partly because there
tends to be a larger selection of pre-built packages available
(although, I'm not even sure I can defend that statement).

On the other hand, I despise every linux desktop I've ever worked with.
I've settled into a mode of OSX on my desktops (I have a 8 GB MacBook
Pro at home, and a Mini on my desk in the office), and Ubuntu for all my
"real work".

I'm not a huge fan of IDEs, so I can't give you much advice there. I
pretty much live in emacs and terminal windows. I do find the
integration of iPython and matplotlib to be compelling, so that's my
current environment of choice for anything involving graphics. A common
scenario for me is running the iPython kernel on some Ubuntu box in AWS,
and a browser on my OSX desktop, with an ssh port tunnel nailed up to
let them talk to each other.

The bottom line is, if you've got it narrowed down to Ununtu or OSX, you
can't go wrong with either choice. Use whichever you're more
comfortable using.
Mark H. Harris
2014-03-01 22:32:43 UTC
Permalink
Post by twiz
I'm sure this is a common question but I can't seem to find a previous thread that addresses it. If one one exists, please point me to it.
My personal preference for writing and testing python code is Gnu/Linux as a platform (free libre open easier to build from C sources etc). As an editor, VI of course. Although, I can honestly say I've been using the latest GNU Emacs lately. It has a very nice python mode. I also use TextWrangler from time to time (can be extended with scripts and it has the same 'feel' as the IDLE editor (kind-of).

The main problem you will see with OSX (if you're not careful) is that IDLE will be unstable. To be fair about it, its not IDLE's problem, per se. Its about tcl/tk tkinter. DO NOT use the built-in tcl that comes from Apple, nor the one that comes through the Apple store! Actually go to the Active TCL site and download the version related to your system (yes there is a different one depending on 10.5 10.6 etc).

Py3.3.4 and the latest Active TCL are stable on OSX 10.6 or higher. I have been very pleased with IDLE on both Gnu/Linux and OSX ( I refuse to use Windows ever again, ever) and my latest experience has been fabulous, really. My hat is off to the folks that have made IDLE the simple stable and powerful IDE that it is. I am being genuine about this.

Another reason for using Gnu/Linux (and/or OSX) is that generally they are faster. Faster loading, and faster running. Serious. I have been hearing of (4) second import times for decimal, for instance. Its almost instantaneous on Gnu/Linux, or OSX. Also, run times are considerably faster. That has less to do with the Windows version of python, and more to do with the Windows version. YMMV

If you want to extend your python code with C (as many of us do) well OSX and/or Gnu/Linux are your best bets there too, and frankly Gnu/Linux is the better of the two (from personal experience). OSX 10.6 uses the GNU gcc compiler by default, but the Apple idiosyncratic approach to builds can be annoying. Although, its minimal really (hardly worth mentioning). If you want to build python from sources (as many of us do) my personal opinion is also that Gnu/Linux is the way to go there too.

I agree with most of the rest of the posts here that personal preference is at play primarily. Your editor run environment is going to be more important to you than your platform. There is one main difference to that, and it has to do with what you're used to. In IDLE on Gnu/Linux the menu options are on the top of the IDE. In OSX they are on the OSX tool bar at top left (where they are for every other OSX app). OSX guys don't mind this, but Gnu/Linux guys hate it (sometimes). Also, the menu items on Gnu/Linux can be 'torn' off (its a tcl/tk tkinter thing) and on OSX that does not work. Also the 'Options' menu item on OSX has nothing in it. The Options menu is in Preferences in the IDLE drop down on the OSX tool bar. Other than those things, I have spent many cheerful hours in the OSX IDLE editor and have been happy as a clam. Same goes for the Gnu/Linux IDLE editor.

If you want to use terminals on OSX you'll want to install Quartz and run the terminal on the emulated X environment. It works better for python IMHO. The built-in terminal for OSX need serious configuring (which is possible) because its color is bad, and its tiny by default, with a crummy font. All of that can be changed, but it just works better to use XQuartz.

Enjoy

Cheers
Chris Angelico
2014-03-01 22:57:30 UTC
Permalink
Post by Mark H. Harris
Py3.3.4 and the latest Active TCL are stable on OSX 10.6 or higher. I have been very pleased with IDLE on both Gnu/Linux and OSX ( I refuse to use Windows ever again, ever) and my latest experience has been fabulous, really. My hat is off to the folks that have made IDLE the simple stable and powerful IDE that it is. I am being genuine about this.
Another reason for using Gnu/Linux (and/or OSX) is that generally they are faster. Faster loading, and faster running. Serious. I have been hearing of (4) second import times for decimal, for instance. Its almost instantaneous on Gnu/Linux, or OSX. Also, run times are considerably faster. That has less to do with the Windows version of python, and more to do with the Windows version. YMMV
The point of this thread isn't really about Windows, so I'll try to
keep it brief, but there are a couple of things I should clarify. The
first one is about the 4+ second import time for decimal. I cited
that, recently, and comparing that with "almost instantaneous" on
Debian (which is what I experience) isn't entirely fair, because it's
more about cold cache versus warm cache. (When I shut down IDLE and
fire it up again, I get sub-second import time. Not as fast as the "so
quick as to be immeasurable" that my Debian box gave, but still
quicker than the 4ish second cold cache.)

Actually, I do find that my Linux boxes manage their disk caches far
better than my Windows boxes do. Not sure if that's Linux versus
Windows, or the ext3/4 versus NTFS file system drivers, or something
else, but a warm cache on any of my Linux boxes gives a *huge*
advantage, and my Windows boxes still show it a bit slower.

ChrisA
Frank Millman
2014-03-02 05:51:11 UTC
Permalink
"Chris Angelico" <rosuav at gmail.com> wrote in message
Post by Chris Angelico
The point of this thread isn't really about Windows, so I'll try to
keep it brief, but there are a couple of things I should clarify. The
first one is about the 4+ second import time for decimal. I cited
that, recently, and comparing that with "almost instantaneous" on
Debian (which is what I experience) isn't entirely fair, because it's
more about cold cache versus warm cache. (When I shut down IDLE and
fire it up again, I get sub-second import time. Not as fast as the "so
quick as to be immeasurable" that my Debian box gave, but still
quicker than the 4ish second cold cache.)
Which version are you talking about?

I have an old, slow box running Windows Server 2003 and python 3.3.2.

I have just booted it up now, called up a command prompt, typed 'python' to
start the interpreter, and typed 'import decimal'. The interpreter prompt
re-appeared in the blink of an eye.

Are you talking about something else?

Frank Millman
Chris Angelico
2014-03-02 06:57:04 UTC
Permalink
Post by Frank Millman
Which version are you talking about?
I have an old, slow box running Windows Server 2003 and python 3.3.2.
I have just booted it up now, called up a command prompt, typed 'python' to
start the interpreter, and typed 'import decimal'. The interpreter prompt
re-appeared in the blink of an eye.
Are you talking about something else?
I did it in IDLE, which might have added a bit, but not hugely. It was
3.4.0, so the module in both cases is the C-accelerated version. My
suspicion is that you've used the decimal module already on that
system, so you had a warm cache. When I repeat the exercise, I get
sub-second load times (usually of the order of 100-200ms); the
difference between that and your "blink of an eye" would be to do with
exactness of measurement, CPU/HDD performance, etc, etc, etc.

ChrisA
Frank Millman
2014-03-02 07:35:29 UTC
Permalink
"Chris Angelico" <rosuav at gmail.com> wrote in message
Post by Chris Angelico
Post by Frank Millman
Which version are you talking about?
I have an old, slow box running Windows Server 2003 and python 3.3.2.
I have just booted it up now, called up a command prompt, typed 'python' to
start the interpreter, and typed 'import decimal'. The interpreter prompt
re-appeared in the blink of an eye.
Are you talking about something else?
I did it in IDLE, which might have added a bit, but not hugely. It was
3.4.0, so the module in both cases is the C-accelerated version. My
suspicion is that you've used the decimal module already on that
system, so you had a warm cache. When I repeat the exercise, I get
sub-second load times (usually of the order of 100-200ms); the
difference between that and your "blink of an eye" would be to do with
exactness of measurement, CPU/HDD performance, etc, etc, etc.
I assume by 'warm cache' you mean that I had used the decimal module before
and not switched the machine off before trying the above exercise.

In my case, the machine was switched off before I started. I switched it on
and executed the above steps.

To be slightly more precise, instead of 'the blink of an eye', I estimate it
was between 250-500 ms. If I close the interpreter and start it up again, it
takes maybe 100-200ms.

Just to be sure, I switched the machine off and on again, and repeated the
exercise. Starting the interpreter for the first time takes 1.5 - 2 seconds.
Importing decimal for the first time takes less than 500ms.

Frank
Chris Angelico
2014-03-02 09:58:52 UTC
Permalink
Post by Frank Millman
I assume by 'warm cache' you mean that I had used the decimal module before
and not switched the machine off before trying the above exercise.
In my case, the machine was switched off before I started. I switched it on
and executed the above steps.
That would be about it, yeah. So that would be a cold cache test.
Post by Frank Millman
To be slightly more precise, instead of 'the blink of an eye', I estimate it
was between 250-500 ms. If I close the interpreter and start it up again, it
takes maybe 100-200ms.
Alright, so now we're talking about some other factors on my system
that slow down the cold cache load dramatically. That I can completely
understand; when I originally posted it, I was fully aware that the
exact figures wouldn't be duplicable. 500ms is a major delay to
startup; but what's really significant is the 100-200ms warm cache,
because that one is what's going to be repeated. (Imagine a web server
that periodically restarts its subprocesses - say, every N requests.
Adding 200ms to startup time effectively adds 200/N ms to every
request.)

An awesome disk cache can improve that immensely, though. My Debian
box, warm cache, takes 0.0 seconds to import decimal. But it's a
faster computer overall, so even cold cache it only takes a hundred ms
or so.
Post by Frank Millman
Just to be sure, I switched the machine off and on again, and repeated the
exercise. Starting the interpreter for the first time takes 1.5 - 2 seconds.
Importing decimal for the first time takes less than 500ms.
I'm beginning to get a suspicion here that the Windows XP disk cache
actually might have a "most pessimal" state, where it's full of other
stuff. Worse than a cold cache in performance, a cache warmed by
something else. But in any case, the exact figures for cold cache are
almost immaterial compared to a noticeable warm-cache delay - if
there's enough work to be done just loading the .pyc from the disk
cache that it takes visible time, then it would be a problem to force
that to be loaded on every interpreter startup. Which was kinda the
point of my original testing - I wanted to know how much of a penalty
there'd be to moving decimal to built-in.

ChrisA

Ned Deily
2014-03-01 23:07:29 UTC
Permalink
In article <4e741358-ce12-40ac-97b8-3bbbf2d6ddca at googlegroups.com>,
Post by Mark H. Harris
[...]
The main problem you will see with OSX (if you're not careful) is that IDLE
will be unstable. To be fair about it, its not IDLE's problem, per se. Its
about tcl/tk tkinter. DO NOT use the built-in tcl that comes from Apple, nor
the one that comes through the Apple store! Actually go to the Active TCL
site and download the version related to your system (yes there is a
different one depending on 10.5 10.6 etc).
The gory details are here:
http://www.python.org/download/mac/tcltk/

TL;DR You'll need to install newer versions of Python (like those
download from python.org) that link with third-party builds of Tcl/Tk
rather than use the Pythons and Tcl/Tk that Apple ships with OS X 10.6+.
Post by Mark H. Harris
[...]
If you want to use terminals on OSX you'll want to install Quartz and run
the terminal on the emulated X environment. It works better for python IMHO.
The built-in terminal for OSX need serious configuring (which is possible)
because its color is bad, and its tiny by default, with a crummy font. All of
that can be changed, but it just works better to use XQuartz.
That certainly is a matter of preference. There are plenty of drawbacks
to using X11-based apps on OS X. I wouldn't advise new users to OS X to
go that route unless they were really set on using X11 entirely and, in
that case, why use OS X at all? If you don't like Apple's built-in
Terminal.app, another option is to use iTerm 2, an open source native
alternative that has many more features.

http://www.iterm2.com/

It's also available through MacPorts.
--
Ned Deily,
nad at acm.org
Cameron Simpson
2014-03-02 00:55:51 UTC
Permalink
Post by Ned Deily
In article <4e741358-ce12-40ac-97b8-3bbbf2d6ddca at googlegroups.com>,
Post by Mark H. Harris
[...]
If you want to use terminals on OSX you'll want to install Quartz and run
the terminal on the emulated X environment. It works better for python IMHO.
The built-in terminal for OSX need serious configuring (which is possible)
because its color is bad, and its tiny by default, with a crummy font. All of
that can be changed, but it just works better to use XQuartz.
That certainly is a matter of preference. There are plenty of drawbacks
to using X11-based apps on OS X. I wouldn't advise new users to OS X to
go that route unless they were really set on using X11 entirely and, in
that case, why use OS X at all? If you don't like Apple's built-in
Terminal.app, another option is to use iTerm 2, an open source native
alternative that has many more features.
http://www.iterm2.com/
It's also available through MacPorts.
I also recommend iTerm2. It is really good, far better than OSX's
Terminal app.

I run it full screen and split it into panes, typically 3 or 4
vertical and then as many horizontal as required (ssh to multiple
hosts); I edit in a full height pane usually.

To reiterate from a post to mutt-users:

I like iTerm2 for the following reasons:

- focus follows mouse

- selecting text can be set to set the cut buffer immediately, no %C
needed. Like X11.

- horizontal and vertical pane tiling
I've bound shift-%V to open a new vertical pane (splits the current
pane vertically) and shift-%T to open a new horizontal pane (splits
the current pane horizontally).
This is outstandingly useful for working in multiple shells.
I do a lot of remote admin and opening shells on a bunch of machines
nicely arranged for coordinated work is very pleasing.

And of course I've spent some time tuning fonts and colours, and made
things slightly transparent with a slight brightening for the currently
focussed pane. iTerm2 has lots of features, but the ones above are the
real winners for me.

Here's a screenshot of this message:

Loading Image...

Cheers,
--
Cameron Simpson <cs at zip.com.au>

TeX: When you pronounce it correctly to your computer, the terminal may
become slightly moist. - D. E. Knuth.
Loading...