[paavoova]

You can do this with plain zip files as Python can unpack and execute in-memory. But you have to extract non-Python code such as C libraries at runtime somewhere so the OS can link them. I would be interested to know how the packagers you mentioned get around this, or if they too use temporary files and unpack.

[dead_mall]

This is exactly how I package my python scripts. The answer to your question: Memfd https://magisterquis.github.io/2018/03/31/in-memory-only-elf...

And zipimport pip package

[malkia]

Right, there are OS-specific approaches on all systems, but if you are able to compile Python itself along all open source C/C++ libs that your .py-thon file might use, you end up with exactly one executable (you can possibly even go further packaging the .py files in some compressed (bytecode compiled) inside the same binary) - e.g. all you need is there, and the approach would fare better across more systems (e.g. does not rely on advanced techniques, no need to unpack the .DLL in temp folder, etc.). Also better for post-mortem debugging - your .PDB, and your .DWP (or whatever symbol files) are.. well just one single file, rather than several.

Same thing for java, dart, etc. This makes it much easier to deploy, use, download, as it's basically "zero"-config install, no need for scripts to tweak your PATH, etc.

(but it has limitations clearly, if you use proprietary code, or you can't compile given open source library bundled with you - e.g. LGPL code, that you have to dynamically link, then again if you are project is open source this is no longer that much of a limit (but would not know that for sure))