安装python环境（Windows 10）

Question

Some years ago I installed Python 2 from the installers in their homepage. Later I needed to use Python 3 and it was a problem. (Later I uninstalled and installed anaconda)

On that time I tried Anaconda on my Mac, and with it I have python 3 installed by default. When I need to use python 2 I create a virtual environment and set it to python 2. It works well but seems a little complicated.

1) Is anaconda copying all necessary files on each virtual environment? If that is the case, it seems it would need a lot of space, no?

Now I've gotten a brand new windows 10 machine for development. No python at all.

I would want to create a clean and simple environment where I can work with both versions of python. Should I stick to anaconda? Or is there a better way? What is the official stance of the python software foundation?

Answer 1

If you go vanilla Python installation, it'll require you to install both from the official site.

Then, there's the Pyenv project which manages python versions / virtualenvs, but I think that's only Linux and Mac

If you'd like Data Science & Big Data tools, you'd want the full blown Anaconda, which takes up a reasonable amount of space, and it's unlikely you'll use everything it provides.

Anaconda developers probably realized that, and so they maintain Miniconda on the side and is just bare Python (one version, as per the installer), plus the conda utility.

And with conda , you can manage additional environments