PEP 751: one last time
The latest/last major draft of PEP 751 can be found at PEP 751 – A file format to record Python dependencies for installation reproducibility | peps.python.org. This version is starting out as a standard to replace/supplant using requirements.txt for a lock file (e.g., what pip-tools creates).
I say “starting out” as there are some open issues to go through which could make this work as a lock file replacement for e.g., pdm.lock. But I also want to make sure things will work for people in general and not a single tool.
I also don’t want this conversation dragging on forever, and so I plan to have this PEP done and submitted for pronouncement before April. That does mean the discussion needs to be done well before then to update my PoC, give people to think about it, etc. So that means I will call “time” on this discussion at some point if it drags on. Also, in the name of time, if I feel like you didn’t read the PEP and it contains an answer I will probably flat-out tell you to read the PEP w/o answering your question.
So here is how this is going to work. For open issues which don’t massively affect how installation works, people in general can convince me to go one way or another (I’ll share where I’m leaning in each point). For things that are big shifts it will take at least two tools to say, “if you add this we can rely on this format” to make the change. For instance, if PDM and Poetry say, “add this and we can drop our custom lock file format” then that should be enough to get it into the PEP (no pressure, @frostming , @radoering , and @charliermarsh ).
