.. _extending-index:

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  Extending and Embedding the Python Interpreter

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:Release: |version|

:Date: |today|

This document describes how to write modules in C or C++ to extend the Python

interpreter with new modules.  Those modules can define new functions but also

new object types and their methods.  The document also describes how to embed

the Python interpreter in another application, for use as an extension language.

Finally, it shows how to compile and link extension modules so that they can be

loaded dynamically (at run time) into the interpreter, if the underlying

operating system supports this feature.

This document assumes basic knowledge about Python.  For an informal

introduction to the language, see :ref:`tutorial-index`.  :ref:`reference-index`

gives a more formal definition of the language.  :ref:`library-index` documents

the existing object types, functions and modules (both built-in and written in

Python) that give the language its wide application range.

For a detailed description of the whole Python/C API, see the separate

:ref:`c-api-index`.

.. toctree::

   :maxdepth: 2

   extending.rst

   newtypes.rst

   building.rst

   windows.rst

   embedding.rst