Komodo Hacks: Improving Python Help in Windows

This last hack for the week beefs up the context-sensitive help for Python in Komodo. By default, the Shift-F1 help in Komodo does a Google site search on docs.python.org for the current word under the cursor. I prefer instead to use the HTMLHelp manual that comes with my standard Python installation since it's often much faster and efficient than a web search.

You can download my Python Help macro here. It brings up your local Python reference with an HTMLHelp API call, with the current word under the cursor placed in the Index tab. Simple but effective.

Notes:

• This Help macro remaps the F1 key to bring up the Python manual instead of bringing up Komodo's internal help, since I use language help much more than IDE help. You can always change this in the macro Properties if you're used to Shift-F1 instead.
• You should also check the macro code to make sure that the local of my Python installation (c:\python24) matches yours, or you'll need to change it.
  

I've got more ideas percolating but they'll have to wait until another week! Hope these hacks make your work with Komodo and Python more enjoyable.

Komodo Hacks: Find References

UPDATE: Trent Mick posted a simpler method for getting the BRM package into Komodo. I've modified my original procedure below to include his suggestion.

Komodo is my favorite Python IDE. Since ActiveState has recently released their new Komodo 4.0, I've decided to publish a full week of Komodo Toolbox commands and macros that should prove useful for Python developers. (Note that I'm primarily a Windows user, but most of these commands/macros will be able to be used on other platforms as well with little or no modification.)

I'm starting off the hacks with a "Find References" macro that compliments the new "Go To Definition" feature in the latest Komodo. The idea is to be able to highlight a variable or method in your Python code and then double-click Find References in the toolbox to see all uses of that variable/method throughout your code.

I use the Bicycle Repair Man (BRM) refactoring tool, written by Phil Dawes, to implement this macro. That means the first order of business is to install BRM into Komodo's Python directory so that the module can be called from within a macro.

How to install Bicycle Repair Man into Komodo:

1. Download the BRM nightly build. I used the bicyclerepair-nightly.tar.gz.tmp file dated October 9, 2006. Rename this file to bicyclerepair-nightly.tar. (I know it looks like a gzipped file, but trust me, it's really a TAR file.)
   
2. Extract the build into a convenient directory. WinZip is one of the easiest Windows tools to do this. On a Unix platform, you can use tar xvf bicyclerepair-nightly.tar
3. Put a "bike.pth" text file in [komodo-install-dir]/lib/mozilla/python. This file should contain the path to the bicyclerepair source directory. For example, if you had extracted the bicyclerepair folder to the root of your C: drive, your "bike.pth" would contain the single line "c:\bicyclerepair". (Again, I'm sure the Unix users can figure out how this would look on their system.)
   
4. Re-start Komodo for it to pick up on the new .pth file.
   

Now you're ready to load the Find References macro into your Komodo IDE or Komodo Edit 4.0. Use the Import Package option under the Toolbox menu to load the findreferences.kpz file into Komodo.

The usage is pretty simple: highlight a variable or method in your code and then double-click the Find References entry in the Toolbox. The macro will scan your code for a second or two (or longer depending on the length of your code and the number of imports) and then output the results in the Command Output tab. You can then double-click on any line in the output to jump to the corresponding location in the code.

A few items of note:

• Find References may not work like you expect in certain cases; for example, when finding references for a class instance variable like 'self.foo', just highlight 'foo' - don't include the 'self.' prefix.
  
• Due to a limitation of Komodo's Python macros, Find References has to use a 'helper' Run Command to populate the Command Output tab. I placed this Run Command inside a separate 'Helper Commands' folder to keep it out of the way; make sure you don't change it or delete it by mistake.
  

Thanks to Shane Caraveo, Trent Mick, and Jeff Griffiths of ActiveState for helping me out with these hacks. Stay tuned for more Komodo posts through the rest of the week!