developerWorks: SimPy Simplifies Complex Models

“I learned of the SimPy package when I was contacted by one of
its creators, Klaus Müller. Dr. Müller had read the
Charming Python installments that presented techniques for using
Python 2.2+ generators to implement semi-coroutines and
‘weightless’ threads. In particular–and much to my
gratification–he found that these techniques were useful for
implementing Simula-67 style simulations in Python.

“It turned out that Tony Vignaux and Chang Chui had previously
created another Python library that was conceptually closer to
Simscript, and that used standard threading rather than my
semi-coroutine technique. Working together, the group determined
that the generator-based style was much more efficient and recently
launched a GPL’d project on SourceForge, called SimPy, currently at
beta status. Professor Vignaux hopes to use the unified SimPy
package in his future university teaching at the University of
Victoria at Wellington; I believe the library is also quite
applicable to a variety of applied problems…”

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