I've got a fairly simple function to put together for my father - I want to give him a simple online form enabling him to maintain his gig list. The host supports CGI only, so obviously I'm going to use Python.

Equally obviously, I'm going to want a template engine. The problem here that there are just so many of the bloody things!

I had a quick look at YAPTU, but I just didn't like it - you shouldn't need all this re compiling business.

Cheetah looks nice, though - rather Velocity-like. This paper (found via ZOpen-X) introduces Cheetah. If you've not come across Velocity - have a look at Start up the Velocity Template Engine.

Interesting new Guide to Python introspection by Patrick K. O'Brien over at developerWorks.

Also worth a look if you are new to Python - The Power Of Introspection, chapter two of Dive Into Python, Mark Pilgrim's excellent Python tutorial.

I've heard a lot about Maven, but I've never worked out what it actually does. It seems that Charles Miller is in the same boat.

James Strachan explains why he uses Maven, and what it does for him. Problem is, this sounds like what Ant does, and I know Ant isn't the same thing as Maven, so I'm still in the dark...

Update: James explains further. Maven doesn't do anything which Ant can't do - it saves you from a lot of the work. That's got to be a good thing.

Piracy is Progressive Taxation, and Other Thoughts on the Evolution of Online Distribution, by Tim O'Reilly.

Via Aaron.

A little toy that I put together for myself - a Python script to pick and apply a random screensaver on a Windows box. Do with it what you will. Get it here - RandomizeScreenSaver.zip.

I could turn this into an exe, if there was any interest.