z3c.pt

5.1 verified Mon Apr 27 auth: no python

Fast Zope Page Templates (ZPT) engine implementing TAL/TALES/METAL specifications. Version 5.1 requires Python >=3.9. Releases are stable and infrequent, focusing on maintenance.

pip install z3c.pt

Common errors

error ImportError: cannot import name 'PageTemplate' from 'z3c.pt' ↓

cause Older version of z3c.pt (<5.0) might have different API, or package not installed correctly.

fix

Install latest version: pip install --upgrade z3c.pt. Ensure you are using Python >=3.9.

error RuntimeError: No engine configured ↓

cause Engine not created before compiling templates. The default engine must be obtained via getEngine().

fix

Call getEngine() at module level or before compiling templates: from z3c.pt import getEngine; engine = getEngine()

Warnings

breaking In version 5.0, the package was split from `z3c.pt` standalone; previously it was part of `z3c.template`. If upgrading from older versions (pre-5.0), imports and API changed. Ensure you are using `z3c.pt` directly. ↓

fix Update imports from e.g. `z3c.template` to `z3c.pt` and adjust API usage per current docs.

deprecated The `z3c.pt` package now requires Python 3.9+. Python 2.7 and 3.5-3.8 are no longer supported. ↓

fix Upgrade to Python 3.9 or later.

gotcha TAL expressions like `tal:content` expect Python expressions, not paths. A common mistake is using dotted paths like `tal:content="context/some"` which is Zope-specific. For standalone use, provide a dict with keys as variable names. ↓

fix Use simple Python expressions in TAL attributes, e.g., `tal:content="variable"`.

Imports

PageTemplate
wrong
```
from z3c.pt.page_template import PageTemplate
```
correct
```
from z3c.pt import PageTemplate
```
PageTemplate is a top-level API; importing from submodule is fragile and may break in future versions.
getEngine
wrong
```
from z3c.pt.engine import getEngine
```
correct
```
from z3c.pt import getEngine
```
getEngine is exposed at package level; internal module paths are not guaranteed.

Quickstart

Compiles a ZPT template string and renders it with a context dictionary.

from z3c.pt import PageTemplate, getEngine
engine = getEngine()
template = engine.compile('<html><body><p tal:content="message"></p></body></html>')
# For a simple render, use the template directly (requires context)
# engine = engine  # no context needed for compile, but rendering needs dict
result = template({'message': 'Hello, world!'})
print(result)