using pexpect to control python

[Maurice LING]

I know this might sounds wierd but I'm wondering if I can use pexpect or
os.popen3 function to invoke and control python interpreter to make it
act like a python interpreter in python?

maurice

 

[Adrian Casey]

I know this might sounds wierd but I'm wondering if I can use pexpect or
os.popen3 function to invoke and control python interpreter to make it
act like a python interpreter in python?

maurice

Yes, should be possible. I have used tcl expect to call other expect
scripts successfully in the past. You can use pexpect to control any
command-line tool.

What are you trying to achieve?

 

[Cameron Laird]

Yes, should be possible. I have used tcl expect to call other expect
scripts successfully in the past. You can use pexpect to control any
command-line tool.

What are you trying to achieve?

That last is *always* an apt question.

Don Libes invented Expect. Expect is a wonderful, wonderful thing;
at the same time, its purpose is to mollify "programs with crappy
interfaces" (his words), so it's dispensable and inherently sub-op-
timal, in a sense I think we can make precise. The point here is
that, whenever you're considering controlling a Python-based appli-
cation PP with Expect (or pexpect or ...), you should first invest
at least ten seconds analyzing whether you're better off re-doing
PP's interface.

 

[Maurice LING]

I suppose I'm actually still toying with the possibilities of what
pexpect can do with python and the question comes up.

Another thing which I'm thinking previously is how can I embed a python
interpreter (not compiler) that does line by line interpretation and
execution, in a python program? I realized that python's language
services has a compile package that can be invoked to compile python
source into python bytecodes but that's provided that the codes are in a
file. Perhaps what I'm interested may be how to embed and use the
interactive mode of python interpreter in a python program?

Thanks
Maurice