Installation: cannot use Spyder or others programs using pythonw.exe

[GoogleCodeExporter]

If relevant, please answer to the following questions:
1. What version of Python(x,y) have you installed?
2.6.5.3

2. Which components have you installed (Python(x,y) installer: component
page):
    a. Have you selected the "Recommended" component selection?
Yes
    b. Have you selected the "Full" component selection?
Tried twice - once with, and once without

c. Have you selected manually plugins in the component list? What
plugins?
All and none

3. Have you selected the option "Customize installation directories"?
b. No

4. If the answer to 3. is yes, what installation directories have you
chosen?
5. Where did you install Python(x,y) itself?
a. default path

6. Have you installed Python(x,y):
    a. For "Current user only"
    b. For "All users"
Both

7. What is your operating system?
b. Windows Vista

8. When you installed Python(x,y), were you logged in as :
b. an administrator of the machine

9. If you are using Windows Vista, have you installed Python(x,y):
a. simply by double-clicking on the installer

10. Regarding installed softwares on your machine, how did you clean your
machine before installing Python(x,y) (multiple answers are possible):
a. you didn't do anything, you installed Python(x,y) directly on your
machine without precaution
b. you uninstalled any previous Python distribution (including the
official .msi)

Both

What steps will reproduce the problem?
1. Download Python(x,y)
2. Install Python(x,y)
3. Attempt to run any choice of "Spyder" from the Start -> Programs -> 
Python(x,y) selections.  Also, can attempt to run Python(x,y) - that fails, too.

What is the expected output? What do you see instead?
What looks like a box like one sees when running 'cmd' from Start, which 
appears for about 1 second, then disappears.  Using Process Explorer, I see 
that pythonw.exe is executed, then terminates within 1 second.

Please provide any additional information below.
I'm not sure what pythonw.exe should do.  When I attempt to run it from the 
command line, nothing happens, not even errors - a new command prompt appears, 
as if I had just pressed return.

Original issue reported on code.google.com by daw...@gmail.com on 13 Sep 2010 at 1:50

[GoogleCodeExporter]

The Python(x,y) icon fails, as well.  I'm not sure what else requires 
pythonw.exe, but this seems to be the primary culprit.

Original comment by daw...@gmail.com on 13 Sep 2010 at 4:00

[GoogleCodeExporter]

Okay, I've resolved it for my case.  Changing the order of things in my path 
seems to be the trick.  I moved all of the Python directories from the end to 
the beginning.  I suspect that pythonw called something else, but who knows.

Original comment by daw...@gmail.com on 13 Sep 2010 at 4:14

[GoogleCodeExporter]

I can't seem to flag this issue as "resolved" or "fixed", but I consider it to 
be so.

Original comment by daw...@gmail.com on 13 Sep 2010 at 4:15

[GoogleCodeExporter]

If reorganizing your PATH solved your problem, maybe you did not install 
properly a previous Python installation *or* if you have installed MATLAB, 
there may be sometimes a conflict related to Qt4 DLLs: MATLAB uses Qt too and 
the corresponding binaries have no reason to be compatible with PyQt4 binaries.

Original comment by pierre.raybaut on 13 Sep 2010 at 7:56

• Changed state: Done