29.8 Tools for Python Developers

Given the large number of Python developers and the large number of Python programs that need editing and debugging, there is a wide variety of editing and development tools available for Python programmers. They range from customization files for free general-purpose editors like Emacs and Vim to specialized integrated development environments. They can be free, such as Idle (which comes with Python) and Pythonwin (part of win32all and ActivePython), or commercial products like Archaeopteryx's Wing IDE and ActiveState's Komodo and Visual Python .NET. Be sure to research what's available at the time you need it, as this is an area where new tools and new revisions of existing tools show up fairly often.