Release: | 3.0 |
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Date: | February 14, 2009 |
WhileThe Python Language Reference describes the exact syntax andsemantics of the Python language, this library reference manualdescribes the standard library that is distributed with Python. It alsodescribes some of the optional components that are commonly includedin Python distributions.
Python’s standard library is very extensive, offering a wide range offacilities as indicated by the long table of contents listed below. Thelibrary contains built-in modules (written in C) that provide access tosystem functionality such as file I/O that would otherwise beinaccessible to Python programmers, as well as modules written in Pythonthat provide standardized solutions for many problems that occur ineveryday programming. Some of these modules are explicitly designed toencourage and enhance the portability of Python programs by abstractingaway platform-specifics into platform-neutral APIs.
The Python installers for the Windows platform usually includesthe entire standard library and often also include many additionalcomponents. For Unix-like operating systems Python is normally providedas a collection of packages, so it may be necessary to use the packagingtools provided with the operating system to obtain some or all of theoptional components.
In addition to the standard library, there is a growing collection ofseveral thousand components (from individual programs and modules topackages and entire application development frameworks), available fromthePython Package Index.
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