This is pretty big - I'm a bit sorry that in the end PyQt drew the short straw, but there you have it - LGPL Python Qt bindings kickstarted by Nokia.

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The PySide team is pleased to announce the first public release of
PySide: Python for Qt!

PySide, its documentation, and developer resources are available at the
project website, http://www.pyside.org .

What is it?
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PySide is a project providing an LGPL'd set of Python bindings for the
Qt framework.

PySide already provides a full set of Qt bindings as well as automated
binding generation tools. Since the whole toolset has been made
available, the team expects PySide to be valuable not only to Qt
software developers, but to people willing to create Python bindings to
any Qt-based library, or to any C++ library in general. Although based
on a different technical approach, PySide will initially be
API-compatible with existing Python bindings for Qt.

PySide is still a work in progress, and some work is still required to
stabilize the codebase. This being said, the team believes it is already
in a usable state, especially if an occasional rough edge and unpainted
surface can be tolerated. Due to practical reasons, the initial
development efforts have been focused on Linux, but the team hopes
people to join in porting the code to other platforms and to further
develop the bindings and tools.

Regards,
PySide team

FANTASTIC!!!

If you want to develop for Maemo or for Linux/windows/Mac in general have a look at Python and Qt.
It probably is the easiest, most powerful way to develop currently available.

Pyside has a more permissive license than PyQT, but it should have API compatibility (for the initial release anyway).
Mark Summerfield wrote a VERY nice book about PyQT development.
http://www.qtrac.eu/pyqtbook.html

So if need some help getting started, you could consider buying the book, it explains a lot of basic, and a lot of more advanced stuff.

I think this is a very big deal. using pyqt you can make your own webbrowser very easily using webkit.
a few links as examples:
pyqt and webkit
create a pyqt web browser in 2 minutes
fastpatx

But Qt also has great OpenGL support:wolfenqt

A lot of powerful and easy to use possibilities!

To me the greatest thing about this is the goal on the Roadmap for becoming a more Pythonic API. I have to say that was probably my biggest sadness about the announcement of the move to QT is PyGTK feels native in python while when I've looked at tutorials for PyQT it feels bolted. I now feel a lot more comfortable with the idea of developing with Python and QT.

Also I liked the memory consumption goal.

Are memory use and APIs the main reasons why they created a new project ? Why not evolve PyQt instead ?...

From the FAQ:

I would say the license it's the most important part. PySide is LGPL (you can write open software or closed), while PyQt is GPL or you have to pay to Riverbank if you want write a closed-source application.
http://www.riverbankcomputing.co.uk/...e/pyqt/license

In PySide FAQ:
Edit: VDVsx was faster ;-)

A sad story, really. Riverbank (effectively Phil Tompson), the copyright holder of PyQt could not reach an agreement with Nokia (previously Qt) so Nokia made it's own bindings. The stumbling point was probably the LGPL license, as Riverbank mainly lives from PyQt commercial licenses (like Qt did when they were solo). It's not really a surprise, after the Nokia buyout and Qt LGPL license a change was only a question of time. I believed they can make a deal (like buying out Riverbank or supplanting the lost income) and make PyQt an official binding, but in the end they went another way and we got PySide. The Python Qt bindings are dead. Long live the Python Qt bindings !

I would have been very excited to see PyQT being supported. Too bad.
Riverbank in fact supported PyQT well and also supported the Zaurus built for PyQT. I would have thought they would have readily agreed to Nokia's platform.

Anyway I am still very much enthused by this PySide development.
Itching more and more to get on board with Python and QT development.

Thanks and kudos to all who are working on this...

In those days, Qt was GPL + commercial, just like PyQt. It's the Qt transition to LGPL that PyQt didn't (couldn't ?) follow.

Thanks all for the explanations, now I understand. Silly me, here I was thinking maybe there was a technical motive...

Pity for PyQt and Riverbank though, they did the Python community a great service during all that time...