Re: [DirectPython] A huge problem with DirectPython

[Heikki S. <ho...@gm...>]

 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: dir...@li... 
> [mailto:dir...@li...] 
> On Behalf Of Alain Pointdexter
> Sent: 26. marraskuuta 2007 16:46
> To: dir...@li...
> Subject: [DirectPython] A huge problem with DirectPython
> 
> Hello,
> 
> I am new to DirectPython but i have a huge problem that 
> actually prevents me from using it at all.
> The problem is: installing DirectPython requires 
> administrator rights on my machine, which i don't have (this 
> is a machine at work).
> I believe this is a showstopper for most people who would 
> like to use DirectPython professionally.
> Is there any change to see a DirectPython installer that 
> would install for the current user as a fallback.
> 
> Best regards
> 
> Alain
> 

Hi,

As David noted, it is possible to just copy certain files to a place where
they are found by Python and Windows DLL loader. Administrative privileges
are needed because certain D3DX dll's are installed into the system32
folder. However, this step can be ignored if the dll's are already installed
(by another application or from an installer provided by Microsoft).

I will list here what it needed.

Absolute minimum requirements (for DirectPython 0.9):
-Direct3D 9.0c installed. No way to ignore this. 
-D3DX dll (see d3dc._d3dx9dll, currently "d3dx9_30.dll"). This is in
system32, but you can also put it in the same directory with d3d.pyd
-d3d.pyd (the main DirectPython runtime .dll)

So, you actually only need to distribute two files. However, the D3DX .dll
should not usually be distributed like that (use the installer in
directpy\redist - all those files in there really install only one .dll),
but you can if you have no choice. You can also try to get your system
administrator to run the setup, as it is signed and approved by Microsoft. 

The easiest way to make a custom "installer" is probably just to create a
.zip file which contains the tree structure and required files (you can drop
samples or anything else you don't need). Then unzip it into the
PythonXX/Lib/site-packages/directpy-folder (or any other folder, just make
sure that is it in sys.path). The real .exe installer does nothing very
important, so you can safely ignore it.

In short, put "d3dx9_30.dll" and "d3d.pyd" into a directory which is in
sys.path. Then try to run a Python script:

"import d3d"

It should work. Then just add what you need (like d3dc.py, d3dx.py etc.). 

I can (and probably will) change the installer to work with normal users,
but the D3DX issue will still remain. But at least it allows people to solve
it in a way which suits them best.

--
Heikki Salo