Dear Jessica,

Unfortunately MGET is not compatible with Python 3.x at this time.

But you might have a bigger problem, or not have a problem at all, depending on exactly what the State is doing. The “Desktop” applications of ArcGIS 10.3 (i.e. ArcMap, ArcCatalog, etc.) probably require Python 2.7. They will probably not work with Python 3.x. If you were to uninstall the Python 2.7 that ArcGIS 10.3 installed for you (in C:\Python27\ArcGIS10.3) then it would likely break not just MGET but some of ArcGIS’s built in geoprocessing tools as well. So, because you use ArcGIS, I suggest under no circumstances should you uninstall the Python 2.7 that comes with ArcGIS. That would be the “bigger problem”.

On the other hand, Python support multiple versions being installed at the same time. If you install Python 3.5.2, it will almost definitely be installed to a different location leaving your Python 2.7 installation from Arc intact. The only reason to do this would be if you have some other Python-related stuff you needed to run on Python 3.x. If you simply have ArcGIS, and the State is insisting you upgrade your Python as a matter of principle (e.g. it is good to be on the latest version), then you should definitely not proceed with installing Python 3.x.

If the State is concerned about support and security, they should read up a bit more on Python. Python 2.7 is still fully supported by the Python team and continues to receive bug fixes. Therefore, if they are concerned that the Python that comes with ArcGIS 10.3 is out of date they could install a newer version of Python 2.7. But take note that ArcGIS does not really support doing this. It WILL work, but it has to be done in a specific way, otherwise it won’t work with ArcGIS anymore.

I would suggest you try to talk them out of the upgrade. If that is not possible then I can probably help you reconfigure your machine after the upgrade has happened to allow Arc 10.3 and MGET to continue to work, providing that they do not remove Python 2.7. If they do that, there will be nothing I can do.

Best,

Jason

Hello,

I am currently working toward using MGET in some analyses.  I have Arc 10.3 already installed but the State is requiring I use the newest version of Python instead of downloading one of the compatible versions as your website suggests (Python 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7).  My question is will MGET work with Python 3.5.2 and the pywin32 package extension?  Would I still need pywin32?

Thank you very much for your time!

-Jessica