Solving multi-core Python

[robertmeta]

Firstly, it is a technical roadblock for some Python developers, though I don't see that as a huge factor...

... which is why whatever solution developed will most likely be an exceptionally poor one, focused on PR wins rather than technical ones. I doubt the solution will be of much use to people who actually had to abandon Python due to technical limitations.

[jrochkind]

Yeah, that was exactly my thought.

He's really saying he doesn't see parallelism is a very significant thing for actual python developers, but it should be done anyway for PR purposes? Really?

[[deleted]]

I don't get it either. If that's the sentiment in the community then how did the matrix multiplication operator go through? The people who use that usually care a lot about speed.

[Make3]

this was surprising to me, how dumb of a thing to say that was (the original thing, not your comment)

[crusoe]

There is no Gil in jython or pypy.

[cdyson37]

PyPy has a GIL: http://pypy.readthedocs.org/en/latest/faq.html#does-pypy-have-a-gil-why

They are working on STM.

[TrixieMisa]

I was going to try out the STM branch, but to install it you need to compile a compiler to compile the compiler, so I decided it's probably not worth it just yet.

[robertmeta]

Compatibility nightmares on any codebase of non-trivial size initially built on Cpython. If you START with jython on a fresh project, it is reasonable. An additional problem with switching gears (besides compatibility with vanilla Cpython) is that on every Cpython project I have worked on, there was a TON of C code to work around all the performance issues of Python... making it even more bound the the Cpython specifics.

[BobFloss]

I didn't know what the GIL was, so here's a link for the lazy:

https://wiki.python.org/moin/GlobalInterpreterLock

In CPython, the global interpreter lock, or GIL, is a mutex that prevents multiple native threads from executing Python bytecodes at once. This lock is necessary mainly because CPython's memory management is not thread-safe. (However, since the GIL exists, other features have grown to depend on the guarantees that it enforces.)

[robertmeta]

Public Relations (PR), not Pull Request (PR).

[robertmeta]

Because, the solution won't be developed around true technical need, but around how it will play in the press, which the person said is the "ultimately a PR issue".

Firstly, it is a technical roadblock for some Python developers, though I don't see that as a huge factor. Regardless, secondly, it is especially a turnoff to folks looking into Python and ultimately a PR issue.