this post was submitted on 11 Jan 2025
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Python

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Why would you want a venv "inside" a venv? What would that mean?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Well, if you want to have Pip-installed tools available generally (e.g. until distros started screwing it up, pip was the best way to install CMake), the suggestion was to have a venv for the user that would be activated in your .bashrc or whatever.

I think that would work, but then what happens if you want to use a project-level venv, which is really what they're designed for? If you create and activate a venv when you already have one activated does it all work sensibly? My guess would be that it doesn't.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 days ago

Oh! Hmm. That's a good question and I really don't know. So in other words (this is just how I'm organizing the thoughts in my own head, probably includes some misunderstandings so feel free to correct any you notice) - your "system Python" is really an activated venv specified in your user config in some way, and the question is what happens when you deliberately try to then activate a distinct project venv, which Python executable and collection of installed libraries is invoked when doing stuff with it active?

On the one hand I've never considered that and it's probably a mistake to make too many assumptions about how Python (and its instrumentation, pip etc. included) are interacting with the OS. Because I know fuck all about that, when I really think about it lol. On the other hand, one of the things I find pleasant about Python is that usually much more informed and thoughtful people than myself have chosen among several ways of dealing with whatever situation I'm thinking about, and have decided on a sensible default. But yep, idk. I originally just thought you misunderstood the idea of a venv lol, to my happy surprise, nope!