[Numpy-discussion] Numpy/Cython Google Summer of Code project idea

[Konrad Hinsen]

On 07.03.2008, at 09:59, Fernando Perez wrote:

> I doubt it's much better, and that's part of the point of the project:
> to identify the problems and fix them once and for all.  Getting
> anything fixed in pyrex was hard due to a very opaque development
> process, but Cython is part of the Sage umbrella and thus enjoys a
> very open and active development community.  Furthermore, they are
> explicitly interested in improving the Cython numpy support, and are
> willing to help along if this project goes forward.

This is very good news in my opinion. Pyrex and Cython are already  
very useful tools for scientific computing. They lower the barrier to  
writing extension modules significantly (compared to writing directly  
in C), and they permit a continuous transition from a working Python  
prototype to an efficient extension module. I have been writing all  
my recent extension modules using Pyrex, and I definitely won't go  
back to C. If Cython gets explicit array support, it would become an  
even more useful tool for the NumPy community.

Konrad.