Making Python script accessible system wide

Question

Can someone tell me how to make my script callable in any directory?

My script simply returns the number of files in a directory. I would like it to work in any directory by invoking it, instead of first being copied there and then typing python myscript.py

I am using Mac OS X, but is there a common way to get it installed on Windows and Linux?

Answer 1

If your script starts with a suitable shebang line, such as:

#!/usr/bin/env python

And your script has the executable bit set (for Linux, OS X, and other Unix-like systems):

chmod +x myscript.py

And the path to your script is in your PATH environment variable:

export PATH=${PATH}:`pwd` # on Unix-like systems

SET PATH=%PATH%;\path\to # on Windows

Then you can call myscript.py from wherever you are.