Python Release Cycles, ASGI, and Django 3.0 Updates

Python Release Management and Cadence

The Shift to Annual Releases

There is an active discussion regarding PEP 602, which proposes moving Python from an 18-month release cycle to an annual release cadence.

• The proposal aims to deliver smaller, more frequent updates.
• It introduces a 17-month development cycle featuring a 5-month unversioned overlap between versions.
• Potential benefits include better alignment with annual conferences like PyCon and more predictable calendar versioning (e.g., Python 3.20 released in October 2020).

Advancements in Asynchronous Python

Embracing ASGI

As WSGI struggles to keep pace with asynchronous requirements, the community is shifting toward ASGI (Asynchronous Server Gateway Interface) for high-concurrency applications.

• ASGI allows servers to handle network and database wait times efficiently.
• Key projects mentioned include Starlette, FastAPI, and UVicorn.
• An Awesome ASGI list has been created to track the growing ecosystem of asynchronous tools and frameworks.

Django 3.0 and Async Support

Significant news includes the roadmap for Django 3.0, which introduces native ASGI support.

"Django 3.0 begins our journey to making Django a fully async capable, to making it fully async capable by providing support for running it as an ASGI app."

• Developers will be able to utilize async def and asynchronous libraries within Django views.
• The release will drop support for Python 3.5, requiring Python 3.6 or newer.

Science and Development Community

Jupyter and Pangeo Funding

The National Science Foundation has awarded a $2 million grant under the EarthCube program to advance Jupyter and Pangeo infrastructure. This funding specifically boosts open-source tools for earth science, climate data research, and collaborative scientific publishing.

The 1x Engineer

In a playful critique of "10x engineer" culture, the hosts discuss the concept of the 1x engineer. This idealized developer profile focuses on:

• Writing readable code.
• Asking for help and admitting ignorance.
• Maintaining a healthy work-life balance and continuous learning.

Final Reminders

Sunsetting Python 2

Official documentation confirms that January 1st, 2020, is the final deadline for the sunsetting of Python 2. The hosts encourage all developers to migrate to Python 3 to avoid security gaps and maintain compatibility with modern libraries.