Untested first stab at moving to Python 2.4.2.

inst/WinBuilders/mk/python.mk

-# The Python and pywin32 versions.  For Python, both the source tarball
-# and the Windows installer must be in tmp/.  For pywin32 (previously known
-# as win32all), the Windows installer must be in tmp/.  Nothing beyond those
-# is required to build Python, and you don't even need a compiler.
-PYVERSION_MAJOR=2
-PYVERSION_MINOR=4
-PYVERSION_PATCH=2
-PYVERSION=$(PYVERSION_MAJOR).$(PYVERSION_MINOR).$(PYVERSION_PATCH)
-W32ALLVERSION=205
-
-# CAUTION:  Extracting files from Wise installers doesn't really do what
-# you expect.  While a Wise installer is a zip file, the zip file
-# structure is flat (Wise reconstructs the intended directory structure
-# from metadata stored in proprietary FILEnnnn.DAT files also in the
-# zip file).  Consequently, the package structure of Python packages is
-# lost, and if there's more than one file with the same name, you only
-# get "the last one" to be extracted (all files are extracted to the
-# same directory).
+# The Python and pywin32 versions.
 #
-# For Python, this doesn't matter, because we're only sucking out the
-# precompiled .pyd and .exe files from the Python installer -- there
-# are no name clashes in that set, and it's a pretty safe bet there never
-# will be (else Python wouldn't be able to decide which to use!).  We
-# use the Python source tarball to get all the non-executable parts we
-# need.
+# For Python, the source tarball must be in tmp/.  You must also install the
+# appropriate Python on Windows, and set WIN_PYINSTALLEDDIR here to its root
+# directory.  A copy of the main Python DLL must also be in the root (you
+# may need to copy it from your Windows system directory).  Earlier versions
+# of this extracted .dll, .exe, and .pyd files from Python's Wise installer,
+# but Python 2.4 uses an .msi installer, and there doesn't appear to be a
+# way to _just_ extract files from one of those.
 #
-# pywin32 doesn't have this problem as it now uses
-# a standard distutils 'bdist_wininst' installation .exe. These executables are
-# valid .zip files with a "PLATLIB" directory being the complete directory
-# structure as installed into "site-packages". These recent pywin32 builds have
-# no dependencies on registry settings etc so will work directly as copied out of
-# the .exe. The only concerns are the pywintypes/pythoncom dlls, which is
-# handled by the Inno installer
-
-PYDIRNAME=Python-$(PYVERSION)
-# Standard bdist_wininst name - eg: pywin32-203.win32-py2.3[.exe]
-W32ALLDIRNAME=pywin32-$(W32ALLVERSION).win32-py$(PYVERSION_MAJOR).$(PYVERSION_MINOR)
-W32EXCLUDE=*.chm
+# For pywin32 (previously known as win32all), the Windows installer must be
+# in tmp/.
+#
+# Nothing beyond those is required to build Python, and you don't even need
+# a compiler.
+PYVERSION_MAJOR := 2
+PYVERSION_MINOR := 4
+PYVERSION_PATCH := 2
+W32ALLVERSION := 205
+
+PYVERSION := $(PYVERSION_MAJOR).$(PYVERSION_MINOR).$(PYVERSION_PATCH)
+
+PYMAJORMINOR := python$(PYVERSION_MAJOR)$(PYVERSION_MINOR)
+
+# This is the default directory into which a Python installs.
+WIN_PYINSTALLEDDIR := \$(PYMAJORMINOR)
+
+# pywin32 now uses a standard distutils 'bdist_wininst' installation .exe.
+# These executables are valid .zip files with a "PLATLIB" directory being
+# the complete directory structure as installed into "site-packages".  These
+# recent pywin32 builds have no dependencies on registry settings etc so
+# will work directly as copied out of the .exe.  The only concerns are the
+# pywintypes/pythoncom dlls, which are handled by the Inno installer.
+
+PYDIRNAME := Python-$(PYVERSION)
+# Standard bdist_wininst name - eg: pywin32-203.win32-py2.3
+W32ALLDIRNAME := pywin32-$(W32ALLVERSION).win32-py$(PYVERSION_MAJOR).$(PYVERSION_MINOR)
+W32EXCLUDE := *.chm
 
 # The Python tarball is extracted to PYSRCDIR.
-# The contents of the Python installer get extracted to PYEXTRACTDIR.
-# The    "      "  "  win32all   "      "     "       " W32EXTRACTDIR.
-PYSRCDIR=$(BASE_DIR)/src/$(PYDIRNAME)
-PYEXTRACTDIR=$(BASE_DIR)/src/$(PYDIRNAME)-extract
-W32EXTRACTDIR=$(BASE_DIR)/src/$(W32ALLDIRNAME)
+# pywin32 is extracted to W32EXTRACTDIR.
+PYSRCDIR := $(BASE_DIR)/src/$(PYDIRNAME)
+W32EXTRACTDIR := $(BASE_DIR)/src/$(W32ALLDIRNAME)
 
-WIN_PYSRCDIR=$(shell cygpath -w $(PYSRCDIR))
-WIN_PYEXTRACTDIR=$(shell cygpath -w $(PYEXTRACTDIR))
-WIN_W32EXTRACTDIR=$(shell cygpath -w $(W32EXTRACTDIR))
+WIN_PYSRCDIR := $(shell cygpath -w $(PYSRCDIR))
+WIN_W32EXTRACTDIR := $(shell cygpath -w $(W32EXTRACTDIR))
 
-PYTHON_REQUIRED_FILES=tmp/$(W32ALLDIRNAME).exe \
-                      tmp/$(PYDIRNAME).tgz \
-                      tmp/$(PYDIRNAME).exe
+PYTHON_REQUIRED_FILES := tmp/$(W32ALLDIRNAME).exe \
+			 tmp/$(PYDIRNAME).tgz
 
 # Arbitrary files from each of the installers and tarballs, to use as
 # targets to force them to get unpacked.
-ARB_PYSRCDIR=$(PYSRCDIR)/PCbuild/pcbuild.dsw
-ARB_PYEXTRACTDIR=$(PYEXTRACTDIR)/zlib.pyd
-ARB_W32EXTRACTDIR=$(W32EXTRACTDIR)/PLATLIB
+ARB_PYSRCDIR := $(PYSRCDIR)/PCbuild/pcbuild.dsw
+ARB_W32EXTRACTDIR := $(W32EXTRACTDIR)/PLATLIB
 
 # Building Python just consists of extracting files.
-build_python: $(ARB_PYSRCDIR) $(ARB_PYEXTRACTDIR) $(ARB_W32EXTRACTDIR)
+build_python: $(ARB_PYSRCDIR) $(ARB_W32EXTRACTDIR)
 
 # Installing Python consists of copying oodles of files into
 # $(BUILD_DIR).
@@ -67,7 +62,6 @@ install_python: $(BUILD_DIR)/bin/python.exe
 
 clean_python:
 	$(RMRF) $(PYSRCDIR)
-	$(RMRF) $(PYEXTRACTDIR)
 
 clean_libs:
 	$(RMRF) $(W32EXTRACTDIR)
@@ -77,11 +71,6 @@ $(ARB_PYSRCDIR): tmp/$(PYDIRNAME).tgz
 	$(CD) "$(SRC_DIR)" && $(TAR) xvzf ../tmp/$(PYDIRNAME).tgz
 	$(TOUCH) "$(ARB_PYSRCDIR)"
 
-$(ARB_PYEXTRACTDIR): tmp/$(PYDIRNAME).exe
-	$(MKDIR) "$(PYEXTRACTDIR)"
-	"tmp/$(PYDIRNAME).exe" /S /X "$(WIN_PYEXTRACTDIR)"
-	$(TOUCH) "$(ARB_PYEXTRACTDIR)"
-
 # unzip warns about .exe not being exactly a .zip, then succeeds in
 # extracting the files, then returns with exit != 0 - ignore exit code
 $(ARB_W32EXTRACTDIR): tmp/$(W32ALLDIRNAME).exe
@@ -96,9 +85,8 @@ $(BUILD_DIR)/bin/python.exe:
 	$(CP) "$(MAKEFILEDIR)/doc/ZC_PY_DIST_README.txt" "$(BUILD_DIR)/doc"
 	$(CP) "$(PYSRCDIR)/LICENSE" "$(BUILD_DIR)/doc/PYTHON_LICENSE.txt"
 	unix2dos "$(BUILD_DIR)/doc/PYTHON_LICENSE.txt"
-
-	$(MKDIR) "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin/DLLs"
-	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYEXTRACTDIR)\*.pyd" "$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin\DLLs"
+	$(CP) "$(SRC_DIR)/$(W32ALLDIRNAME)/PLATLIB/pythonwin/License.txt" \
+	      "$(BUILD_DIR)/doc/PYWIN32_LICENSE.txt"
 
 	$(MKDIR) "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin/Lib"
 	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYSRCDIR)\Lib\*.py" "$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin\Lib"
@@ -115,13 +103,18 @@ $(BUILD_DIR)/bin/python.exe:
 	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYSRCDIR)\Include\*.h" "$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin\Include"
 	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYSRCDIR)\PC\*.h" "$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin\Include"
 
+	$(MKDIR) "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin"
 	$(MKDIR) "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin/libs"
-	$(CP) "$(PYEXTRACTDIR)/python23.lib" "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin/libs"
+	$(MKDIR) "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin/DLLs"
+	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYINSTALLEDDIR)\python.exe" "$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin"
+	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYINSTALLEDDIR)\pythonw.exe" "$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin"
+	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYINSTALLEDDIR)\w9xpopen.exe" "$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin"
+	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYINSTALLEDDIR)\$(PYMAJORMINOR).dll" \
+						"$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin"
+	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_MAKEFILEDIR)\bin\msvcr71.dll" "$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin"
+	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYINSTALLEDDIR)\libs\$(PYMAJORMINOR).lib" \
+						"$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin\libs"
+	$(XCOPY) "$(WIN_PYINSTALLEDDIR)\DLLs\*.pyd" \
+						"$(WIN_BUILD_DIR)\bin\DLLs"
 
-	$(MKDIR) "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin"
-	$(CP) "$(PYEXTRACTDIR)/pythonw.exe" "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin"
-	$(CP) "$(PYEXTRACTDIR)/w9xpopen.exe" "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin"
-	$(CP) "$(PYEXTRACTDIR)/python23.dll" "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin"
-	$(CP) "$(PYEXTRACTDIR)/python.exe" "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin"
 	$(TOUCH) "$(BUILD_DIR)/bin/python.exe"
-