Python script in /usr/local/bin won't run

[Elding Nyr]

Hi folks!

I am running Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid.

I recently wrote a script (hello.py) in Python and placed it in /usr/local/bin. The first line of the program is

#!/usr/bin/python

and I double-checked that it is marked as executable. Furthermore, I double checked that the newline character after the first line of the program was "\n" rather than "\r\n". If I use the commands "./hello.py" or "python hello.py" while in the /usr/local/bin directory, the script successfully executes, but if I move to an arbitrary directory and try either of these commands, I get "Command not found" and "No such file or directory" respectively.

Running "ls -l" in /usr/local/bin returns the following results:
-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 40 2010-07-06 15:00 hello.py

I have also double-checked that /usr/local/bin is listed when I run the command "echo $PATH".

Any ideas on why this isn't working? Need any further information to help with diagnosis? Thanks!

[potat]

When you are in an arbitrary directory, you can just type "hello.py" (rather than "./hello.py" and it should work. It should even tab-complete for you.

[WorMzy]

If it's not exectuing, then perhaps /usr/local/bin isn't in your PATH variable. Post the output of 'echo $PATH' here.

EDIT: Clearly I didn't read your original post very well.

[DaithiF]

Hi, and just to explain further:

./hello.py

means execute hello.py in the current directory.

python hello.py

means run python, and have it execute hello.py in the current directory

hello.py

means search PATH and execute the first occurrence it finds of hello.py in one of the PATH directories.

[whiskeylover]

The "." in "./hello.py" is for current directory. Hence it doesn't work outside /usr/local/bin.

[Elding Nyr]

Thanks so much ladies and gents! That clears it up perfectly. In retrospect, a rather stupid mistake...