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# 27/08/2019: Python 2 will never die
When developing KISS I wanted to ship Python 3 and try to avoid the
dependence on Python 2. This ended up becoming an impossibility due to
two offending packages, Firefox and NodeJS (*a build dependency of the
former*).
We are nearing the day that Python 2 reaches EOL (*end of life*) and as
is usually the case with deadlines, it has been left to the last minute.
Python 2's end has been known as far back as 2010 (*possibly sooner*)
and yet I foresee it being used well past 2020. \[0\]
**Firefox**
Firefox's build process depends on both Python 2 and Python 3. Mozilla
is currently in the process of converting their Python code to support
**both** 2 and 3.
This effort only recently started and there is a long road ahead to
completion.
> In mozilla-central there are over **3500 Python files** (excluding
> third party files), comprising roughly **230k lines of code**.
> Additionally there are **462 repositories** labelled with Python in
> the Mozilla org on Github \[\...\] \[1\]
Will Mozilla finish before the deadline? It doesn't look that way.
> Do we need to be 100% migrated by Python 2's EOL? Technically, no.
> \[\...\] \[1\]
**NodeJS**
Node is in a similar position to Mozilla, work is being done but to say
it is nearing completion is an overstatement. NodeJS is closer to being
Python 3 compatible than Firefox but I myself doubt that we will see a
release with support by 2020.
**The Future**
It is looking more and more like we will be using Python 2 for a while
longer. Despite the decade or near decade long time for transition these
projects have left the transition till beyond the EOL date.
Since the EOL announcement till today how much Python 2 code has been
added to these two projects? A transition even 5 years ago would've
been beneficial!
So it looks like KISS will keep Python 2 in the official repositories
past 2019 and into 2020.
**Sources:**
- \[0\] https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-dev/2010-May/099971.html
- \[1\] https://ahal.ca/blog/2019/python-3-at-mozilla/
### Legal stuff
The registered trademark Linux® is used pursuant to a sublicense from
the Linux Foundation, the exclusive licensee of Linus Torvalds, owner of
the mark on a worldwide basis.
© [Dylan Araps](https://github.com/dylanaraps) 2019-2020
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