Python Standards & References

This page provides links to important Python standards, PEPs (Python Enhancement Proposals), and official documentation that guide the design and configuration of this cookiecutter template.

📋 Official Documentation

Python Packaging Authority

• Python Packaging Guide: https://packaging.python.org/en/latest/
• Official Python packaging documentation
• Best practices for package distribution
• Modern packaging workflows
• Tool recommendations and tutorials

🔧 Configuration Standards

Python Enhancement Proposals (PEPs)

PEP 621 - Project Metadata in pyproject.toml

• Link: https://peps.python.org/pep-0621/
• Purpose: Standardizes how to specify project metadata in pyproject.toml
• Impact: This template uses PEP 621 for all package metadata configuration
• Benefits:
• Single source of truth for project information
• Better tool interoperability
• Simplified configuration management

PEP 518 - Build System Requirements

• Link: https://peps.python.org/pep-0518/
• Purpose: Specifies how to declare build system requirements
• Impact: Enables modern build tools and dependency management
• Benefits:
• Reproducible builds
• Better dependency isolation
• Support for modern build backends

PEP 484 - Type Hints

• Link: https://peps.python.org/pep-0484/
• Purpose: Introduces syntax for type hints in Python
• Impact: Foundation for static type checking with MyPy
• Benefits:
• Early bug detection
• Better IDE support
• Improved code documentation

Related PEPs

PEP 517 - Build System Interface

• Link: https://peps.python.org/pep-0517/
• Purpose: Standard interface between build frontends and backends
• Impact: Enables modern packaging tools like uv and pip

PEP 440 - Version Identification

• Link: https://peps.python.org/pep-0440/
• Purpose: Standardizes version numbering for Python packages
• Impact: Ensures consistent versioning across the ecosystem

PEP 508 - Dependency Specification

• Link: https://peps.python.org/pep-0508/
• Purpose: Standard format for dependency specifications
• Impact: Used in pyproject.toml for declaring dependencies

🏗️ Project Structure Standards

Build Backends

• setuptools: https://setuptools.pypa.io/ - Traditional, mature Python build system
• hatchling: https://hatch.pypa.io/ - Modern, fast build backend
• flit: https://flit.pypa.io/ - Simple build backend for pure Python packages
• pdm: https://pdm-project.org/ - Modern dependency management and build backend

src Layout

• Reference: Python Packaging Guide - src layout
• Why adopted:
• Better import testing
• Cleaner package structure
• Prevents accidental imports during development

Modern Configuration Files

pyproject.toml

• Standard: PEP 518, PEP 621
• Purpose: Central configuration file for Python projects
• Contains:
• Project metadata (PEP 621)
• Build system requirements (PEP 518)
• Tool configurations (Ruff, MyPy, pytest, etc.)

🔒 Security Standards

Supply Chain Security

• SLSA Framework: https://slsa.dev/
• OpenSSF Best Practices: https://bestpractices.coreinfrastructure.org/
• Python Security Guidelines: https://python.org/dev/security/

🧪 Testing Standards

pytest

• Documentation: https://docs.pytest.org/
• Why chosen: Industry standard for Python testing
• Features: Fixtures, parametrization, plugins

Coverage

• Documentation: https://coverage.readthedocs.io/
• Standard: Measure and report test coverage
• Integration: Works seamlessly with pytest

📚 Code Quality Standards

Style Guides

• PEP 8: https://peps.python.org/pep-0008/ - Style Guide for Python Code
• Black Code Style: https://black.readthedocs.io/en/stable/the_black_code_style/
• Google Python Style Guide: https://google.github.io/styleguide/pyguide.html

Linting Standards

• Ruff Rules: https://docs.astral.sh/ruff/rules/
• flake8 Error Codes: https://flake8.pycqa.org/en/latest/user/error-codes.html

🚀 CI/CD Standards

GitHub Actions

• Documentation: https://docs.github.com/en/actions
• Python specific: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/automating-builds-and-tests/building-and-testing-python

Dependabot

• Documentation: https://docs.github.com/en/code-security/dependabot
• Purpose: Automated dependency updates and security alerts

🌟 Why These Standards Matter

For Individual Developers

• Consistency: Standard practices across projects
• Quality: Proven best practices reduce bugs
• Learning: Following standards improves skills
• Tooling: Better IDE and tool support

For Teams

• Onboarding: New team members know what to expect
• Collaboration: Shared understanding of project structure
• Maintenance: Easier to maintain and update projects
• Reviews: Consistent standards improve code review process

For the Ecosystem

• Interoperability: Tools work better together
• Innovation: Standards enable new tool development
• Adoption: Easier to adopt new technologies
• Community: Shared practices strengthen the Python community

🔄 Staying Current

How to Keep Updated

1. Follow PEP updates: https://peps.python.org/
2. Python Packaging Guide: Regularly updated with best practices
3. Tool documentation: Follow changelog and release notes
4. Community discussions: Python forums, Reddit, Discord
5. Conferences: PyCon talks often cover new standards

Template Updates

This cookiecutter template is regularly updated to reflect: - New Python standards and PEPs - Updated tool recommendations - Security best practices - Community feedback and contributions

By following these standards, projects generated from this template are: - ✅ Future-proof: Based on official Python standards - ✅ Tool-compatible: Works with the entire Python ecosystem - ✅ Maintainable: Easy to understand and update - ✅ Professional: Follows industry best practices