Installation

ginext is split into a core package plus optional namespace packages. The core package gives you the binding runtime, and packages such as ginext-gio or ginext-gtk add the higher-level namespace overlays and typed surfaces for those libraries.

Choose a starting package set

For a minimal install:

pip install ginext

For Gio support:

pip install ginext ginext-gio

For GTK applications:

pip install ginext ginext-gio ginext-gtk

If you are working from this repository, the optional dependency groups are also exposed as extras in the project metadata:

pip install "ginext[gio]"
pip install "ginext[gio,gtk]"

Python version

This project currently targets Python >=3.14, so the first installation check is making sure you are using a supported interpreter.

Verify the environment

After installation, verify that imports work:

python -c "from ginext import GLib; print(GLib)"
python -c "from ginext import Gio; print(Gio.File)"
python -c "from ginext import Gtk; print(Gtk.Button)"

Use the last two only if you installed the corresponding namespace packages.

When compatibility packages matter

If you need the older gi.repository compatibility layer rather than the native ginext API, install the compat package separately instead of assuming the core package provides it by default.

That path belongs in migration scenarios, not as the default recommendation for new code.

Working from this checkout

In this repository, the normal development flow uses uv and the workspace packages:

uv sync
uv run python -c "from ginext import Gio, Gtk; print(Gio.File, Gtk.Button)"

That is the quickest way to get a local docs or examples workflow running from source.