Cython VS Pyjion

The approach that I favour is to use Cython. The nice thing with this approach is that your code is still written as (almost) Python, but so long as you define all required types correctly it will automatically create the C extension for you. Early versions of Cython required using Cython specific typing (Python didn't have type hints when Cython was created), but it can now use Python's type hints.

and again, everything that was released after using an older version of cython.

Just for reference,

* Nuitka[0] "is a Python compiler written in Python. It's fully compatible with Python 2.6, 2.7, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8, 3.9, 3.10, and 3.11."

* Pypy[1] "is a replacement for CPython" with builtin optimizations such as on the fly JIT compiles.

* Cython[2] "is an optimising static compiler for both the Python programming language and the extended Cython programming language... makes writing C extensions for Python as easy as Python itself."

* Numba[3] "is an open source JIT compiler that translates a subset of Python and NumPy code into fast machine code."

* Pyston[4] "is a performance-optimizing JIT for Python, and is drop-in compatible with ... CPython 3.8.12"

[0] https://github.com/Nuitka/Nuitka

[1] https://www.pypy.org/

[2] https://cython.org/

[3] https://numba.pydata.org/

[4] https://github.com/pyston/pyston

Profile and optimize the hotspots with cython (or whatever the cool kids are using these days... It's been a while.)

JIT essentially means generating machine code for the language on the fly, either during loading of the interpreter (method JIT), or by profiling and optimizing hotspots (tracing JIT). The language itself can be statically or dynamically typed. You could also compile a dynamic language ahead of time, for example, cython.

Cython - - embed demo

It exists, was created by microsoft employees, and is referenced in the article: https://www.trypyjion.com/

I've actually come across and started using Pyjion recently (https://github.com/tonybaloney/pyjion); how does Pypy compare, both in terms of performance and purpose? There seems to be a lot of overlap...

Python is capable of doing things at runtime that are really hard to statically compile around, such as monkeypatching methods onto existing objects. You can compile it, but it's complicated. One strategy is to use a JIT that can observe application state at runtime and then invalidate code as it becomes obsoleted by changes, but it's complicated. See pyjion for an example.

When I say "Python" I am referring to the standard CPython interpreter which most people use. But there is also PyPy, which includes a Just In Time compile that compiles selected code into machine language on the fly, as needed. pyjion is another JIT compiler that generates machine language on the fly, and you can install it with pip. Or you could work for Facebook and use Cinder. Cython, Nuitka and Pyston are other alternatives.

and if you need more speed you can try https://www.pypy.org/ or https://github.com/tonybaloney/Pyjion or https://www.pyston.org/

Finally, there is also Pyjion which based on its website is “A drop-in JIT Compiler for Python 3.10” (https://www.trypyjion.com/). We will be covering it on a separate writeup. See you next time ;-).

Though some exciting stuff happening over the next few years, Python is getting faster, has been for awhile, and stuff like Pyjion https://www.trypyjion.com/, a drop in C# powered JIT compiler is starting to approach usable. Rust and Python seem to be best buds right now, so more extension libraries in rust, a newer more approachable language than say C/C++ but with a similar speed. Sign me up!

Pyjion Easy to use, small compiler. Increase performance of our 🐌 CPython.