# Using Readline In Python REPL On Windows With PyReadline and PtPython

As an ex-sysadmin, I'm in love with the [Readline](<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Readline>). In Powershell, we have its variation [PSReadline](<https://github.com/lzybkr/PSReadLine>). In Python REPL on Windows OS, I'll show you the [PyReadline](<https://pythonhosted.org/pyreadline/>) and the [PtPython](<https://github.com/jonathanslenders/ptpython>).

## PyReadline

When you search on Internet, you will find many tutorials telling you to install a Python module called [readline](<https://pypi.org/project/readline/>), but unfortunately, it's not compatible on Windows OS :

```
> pip install readline

Collecting readline
  Using cached https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/f4/01/2cf081af8d880b44939a5f1b446551a7f8d59eae414277fd0c303757ff1b/readline-6.2.4.1.tar.gz
    Complete output from command python setup.py egg_info:
    error: this module is not meant to work on Windows
```

On Windows, the counterpart is PyReadline, install it by :

```
pip install pyreadline
```

Here are the features of PyReadline : - keyboard text selection and copy/paste - Shift-arrowkeys for text selection - Control-c can be used for copy activate with allow\_ctrl\_c(True) in config file - Double tapping ctrl-c will raise a KeyboardInterrupt, use ctrl\_c\_tap\_time\_interval(x) where x is your preferred tap time window, default - 0.3 s. - paste pastes first line of content on clipboard. - ipython\_paste, pastes tab-separated data as list of lists or numpy array if all data is numeric - paste\_mulitline\_code pastes multi line code, removing any empty lines.

> [!WARNING]
>
> PyReadline was used by IPython, but since it hasn't been maintained since 2015, IPython [removed it](<https://github.com/ipython/ipython/blob/60f802938467731f555f694514e6592288455a1c/docs/source/whatsnew/version5.rst#new-terminal-interface>), and replaced it by [prompt\_toolkit](<http://python-prompt-toolkit.readthedocs.io/en/stable/>).

As PyReadline must be used inside Python REPL, you need to type `import PyReadline` from the very beginning of the Python REPL. To be a lazy devops, just add the import into a file and let Python to source it before the first prompt is displayed by using [$env:PYTHONSTARTUP](<https://docs.python.org/3/using/cmdline.html#envvar-PYTHONSTARTUP>) :

```
# In powershell console
Add-Content $env:USERPROFILE/.pythonrc "`nimport PyReadline"
$env:PYTHONSTARTUP = "$env:USERPROFILE/.pythonrc"
```

## PtPython

Previous chapter mentioned that PyReadline is no more maintained, so here comes the [PtPython](<https://github.com/jonathanslenders/ptpython>).

PyPython is an interactive Python Shell, build on top of [prompt\_toolkit](<https://github.com/jonathanslenders/python-prompt-toolkit>) written by the same author [Jonathan Slenders](<https://github.com/jonathanslenders>).

Install PtPython by :

```
pip install ptpython
```

Start it by typing simply : `ptpython` from the terminal, it will start a Python REPL with prompt\_toolkit integrated, nothing to set on $env:USERPROFILE