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authorGeorg Brandl <georg@python.org>2009-07-29 16:57:05 +0000
committerGeorg Brandl <georg@python.org>2009-07-29 16:57:05 +0000
commit07e20f8729114cb4c36a7592a0047e2b471404b9 (patch)
tree4bf1c3d1499a380afc1a4284bc4f037821126806 /Doc/tutorial
parent019e8dd7fcfca6de1e6050e83c2dd7c6de2c6524 (diff)
downloadcpython-git-07e20f8729114cb4c36a7592a0047e2b471404b9.tar.gz
Add a link to readline, and mention IPython and bpython.
Diffstat (limited to 'Doc/tutorial')
-rw-r--r--Doc/tutorial/interactive.rst18
1 files changed, 14 insertions, 4 deletions
diff --git a/Doc/tutorial/interactive.rst b/Doc/tutorial/interactive.rst
index 6a439bde12..ca0cfafb12 100644
--- a/Doc/tutorial/interactive.rst
+++ b/Doc/tutorial/interactive.rst
@@ -6,8 +6,8 @@ Interactive Input Editing and History Substitution
Some versions of the Python interpreter support editing of the current input
line and history substitution, similar to facilities found in the Korn shell and
-the GNU Bash shell. This is implemented using the *GNU Readline* library, which
-supports Emacs-style and vi-style editing. This library has its own
+the GNU Bash shell. This is implemented using the `GNU Readline`_ library,
+which supports Emacs-style and vi-style editing. This library has its own
documentation which I won't duplicate here; however, the basics are easily
explained. The interactive editing and history described here are optionally
available in the Unix and Cygwin versions of the interpreter.
@@ -148,8 +148,8 @@ interpreter. ::
.. _tut-commentary:
-Commentary
-==========
+Alternatives to the Interactive Interpreter
+===========================================
This facility is an enormous step forward compared to earlier versions of the
interpreter; however, some wishes are left: It would be nice if the proper
@@ -158,6 +158,12 @@ token is required next). The completion mechanism might use the interpreter's
symbol table. A command to check (or even suggest) matching parentheses,
quotes, etc., would also be useful.
+One alternative enhanced interactive interpreter that has been around for quite
+some time is `IPython`_, which features tab completion, object exploration and
+advanced history management. It can also be thoroughly customized and embedded
+into other applications. Another similar enhanced interactive environment is
+`bpython`_.
+
.. rubric:: Footnotes
@@ -165,3 +171,7 @@ quotes, etc., would also be useful.
:envvar:`PYTHONSTARTUP` environment variable when you start an interactive
interpreter.
+
+.. _GNU Readline: http://tiswww.case.edu/php/chet/readline/rltop.html
+.. _IPython: http://ipython.scipy.org/
+.. _bpython: http://www.bpython-interpreter.org/