I think from my experience with RedHat, the important thing is NOT to overwrite the python152 install. If you follow the python2.1 install instructions, do your make, and then make ALTINSTALL it does not replace

the

symlink and so typing python starts python152, so all the scripts under RedHat still work :-) See the bottom of the install text in the doc directory.

what i did:- -get the src rpm from python.org -rpm -Uvh python*rpm -cd /usr/src/redhat/SPEC/ -rpm -ba --rmsource python* -go to /usr/src/redhat/RPMS/i386 -install all the python binaries available there -the default will install python as python2, not overwriting python. i guess, one need to move /usr/bin/python, and sym link the python2.1 to python -to overwrite python1.5, edit python.spec in SPEC. check the comments there.. i've done this , and encountered no problems ..yet (rh 7-1 tho) hth