Make a Python app package/install for Mac

Question

I have developed an application for a friend. Aplication is not that complex, involves only two .py files, main.py and main_web.py, main being the application code, and _web being the web interface for it. As the web was done later, it's kept in this format, I know it can be done with one app but not to complicate it too much, I kept it that way. Two two communicate with some files, and web part uses Flask so there's "templates" directory too.

Now, I want to make a package or somehow make this easier for distribution, on a OSX system. I see that there is a nice py2app thingy, but I am running Windows and I can't really use it since it won't work on Win. I also don't know will py2app make problems since some configs are in text files in the directory, and they change during the runtime.

So, I am wondering, is there any other way to make a package of this, some sort of setup like program, or maybe some script or something? Some simple "way" of doing this would be to just copy the files in the directory in the "Documents", and add some shortcuts to the desktop to run those two apps, and that would be it, no need for anything else. DMG would be fine, but not mandatory.

Answer 1

I believe what you are looking for is to add: #!/usr/bin/python to the first line of your code will allow your friend to just double click on the file and it should open. Just as a warning osx does not tell us what version and as such what version of python and what standard libraries are going to be present.

Also, just make sure that if they have played around with their settings to much and they double click on python it does not work they will have to choose to open the file in "terminal.app" in the Utilities Applications folder (/Applications/Utilities/terminal.app)

The other idea is borrow a mac and compile it with the py2app program that you already mentioned. Otherwise there is no generic binary file that you will be able to compile in windows and have run on mac.