Detecting Python modules and packages

In the previous recipe, we showed how to detect the Python interpreter and how to compile a simple C program, embedding the Python interpreter. Both are fundamental tasks to get you off the ground when combining Python and a compiled language. Often, your code will depend on specific Python modules, be they Python tools, compiled programs embedding Python, or libraries extending it. For example, NumPy has become very popular in the scientific community for problems involving matrix algebra. In projects that depend on Python modules or packages, it is important to make sure that the dependency on these Python modules is satisfied. This recipe will show how to probe the user's environment to find specific Python modules and packages.