Import Python modules from a zipfile

A good first step to replicating Java's JAR files. File: test_mod.py

class Test:
  def __init__(self):
    print 'hi'

Now zip it:

zip test_mod.zip test_mod.py

Now fire up Python (at least 2.3), add the zipfile to your sys.path, and import the module.

$ python2.3
Python 2.3 (#1, Sep 13 2003, 00:49:11) 
[GCC 3.3 20030304 (Apple Computer, Inc. build 1495)] on darwin
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> import sys
>>> sys.path.insert(0, '/Users/stevej/test_mod.zip')
>>> import test_mod
>>> test_mod.__file__
'/Users/stevej/test_mod.zip/test_mod.py'
>>> test_mod.Test()
hi

Not at easy as it could be but it's a solid first step. The ability to address arbitrary content in a zipfile (i.e. not just Python modules) would be a solid second step.