PEP: 4 Title: Deprecation of Standard Modules Version: $Revision$
Last-Modified: $Date$ Author: Brett Cannon <brett@python.org>, Martin
von Löwis <martin@v.loewis.de> Status: Active Type: Process
Content-Type: text/x-rst Created: 01-Oct-2000 Post-History:

Introduction

When new modules were added to the standard Python library in the past,
it was not possible to foresee whether they would still be useful in the
future. Even though Python "Comes With Batteries Included", batteries
may discharge over time. Carrying old modules around is a burden on the
maintainer, especially when there is no interest in the module anymore.

At the same time, removing a module from the distribution is difficult,
as it is not known in general whether anybody is still using it. This
PEP defines a procedure for removing modules from the standard Python
library. Usage of a module may be 'deprecated', which means that it may
be removed from a future Python release.

Procedure for declaring a module deprecated

To remove a top-level module/package from the standard library, a PEP is
required. The deprecation process is outlined in PEP 387.

For removing a submodule of a package in the standard library, PEP 387
must be followed, but a PEP is not required.

Copyright

This document has been placed in the public domain.