making python3.6.4 default python3
 

I recently installed Python 3.6.4 and when I open the terminal and run I still get python 3.5.2 but if I run I get python 3.6.4. I want to know how to make 3.6.4 my default python3. Here are the locations of the three versions:
Do I need to remove python3.6 and install it so that somehow it has the path
instead of being in
or can I simply move it there, or is all of that unnecessary and I can just set the default in some text file in /etc or something? here is the code I ran to install python 3.6.4:
Oh right, you may want to know that I am running KDE Neon. On my laptop I run Arch and python 3.6.4 is already the default on that system and it has the path I guess it was put there by default when I installed the base system since I did not explicitly install it.

What does the following command show?

Where does Python 3.6.4 live?

On my system (Fedora, so /bin is a link to /usr/bin) /usr/bin/python3 is a link to /usr/bin/python3.6. Perhaps it's as simple as changing the python3 link to point to the installed python3.6.4

Here is the ouptput:
I have been looking at the "export" man pages a bit. Out of curiosity, what is the difference in and? They seem to provide the same information, save the "not valid identifier" warning with "export" and the part at the beginning; "bash: export:". Can you enlighten me a bit as to what export is. As is often the case, the man pages are somewhat vague for beginners like me. I am working through a series of online Linux courses with Jason Cannon through Udemy, however I still have trouble interpreting some of the man pages at this point.

The interesting thing to me is that in my PATH comes beforeSo why is the command not executed there first as it should be the first place the command is found when I type "python3"? Perhaps a link like you said RockDoctor, I need to see how to veiw all the links and learn how to create one where I want it then. I am guessing that would be in the "ln" man pages?

export PATH, there is no $
This is the main difference.
see man bash and look for export command, this is a built-in.

You just change the python3 link to point to the version you wish. But that might break more than a few things on the system. But, you can try it.

So basically, just type in when I wish to use python 3.6.4, which is always. I guess the safest and best solution would be to create an alias for python3 as python3.6?

Creating an alias does not solve the issue and avoiding the typing of two extra characters is not the goal nor worth creating an alias for so I've scrapped that idea. Is there no way to simply upgrade the default python3 version to the latest stable release? It seems that there should be, and that it should be relatively straight forward. I created a virtual KDE Neon and explicitly installed Python 3.6.5 to and still the command starts Python 3.5.2, not that I thought it wouldn't just thought I'd try it.

Does anyone know if there is a way to simply upgrade the default Python3 to the latest stable version?

You would do it likw this

Is that a different process than you meant when you wrote:? I created a virtual KDE Neon in my KDE Neon with Virtual-Box so that I can try things out that I am a bit nervous about to see if it works or if it breaks anything, I will have to try that there. I have already installed Python 3.6 in the virtual Neon in: So I will try this method there.

On a side note there is an interesting anomaly in the virtual Neon. In my other virtual machines (Centos, Debian) it is necessary to click in the machine to capture the mouse and keyboard and then press right cntrl to return mouse and keyboard to the system, but in the Neon virtual machine the mouse is always available to both the virtual machine and the system. It is hard to tell whether the keyboard is the same as it is available to the currently active window under normal operation. I think that is weird and thought I would share it .......any thoughts?

I think that should be:
ln -s python3.6.4 python3

This is straight from the ln man pages:
I am still not experienced with the ln command, but I think if no options are supplied and there are 2 arguments(python3.6.4[target], python3[link name]) then 1st form would be applied. In which case, I think it would be correct that the command should beIf I understand correctly the "-T" option is applied when no options are supplied and using the command:would be the 4th form, in which case the "-t" option and the full path to python3 would both need to be supplied, making the command:if I understand correctly. Which is a big if since I still have much trouble interpreting man pages at this time. It seems, if I understand correctly(once again), that it would be safer to be more explicit and use either that(4th form command above) or use the 3rd form:In any case you are, I believe, both saying to do:correct?

if you wish to play/learn ln, just create a new dir (as regular user) and try any combinations - on simple, short text files. That will not harm your system and you will understand the meaning of those options...
Post #11 should work only if you are already in /usr/bin, otherwise it will not make what you need.
The 4th form is not really applicable in your case I think.

https://www.cyberciti.biz/faq/creati...symbolic-link/
https://unix.stackexchange.com/quest...he-usage-of-ln

Ok, so some of my last post on this thread was forgetting that the suggested commands were being run from within the directory i.e.:
being the first command to run, so forget all that. So, In my virtual Neon I ran this command(which I believe is in either the 3rd or 1st form):
from my home directory after removing the was current python3 link from within the /usr/bin directory. This worked, now when I type python3 from the home directory, python3.6.5 is opened for use. I do not know if it broke anything else yet, as AwesomeMachine suggested it might. I will play around with it for a while and then let you know. Do either of you have any suggestions on what to check, what things might this have broken?

in general there are a lot of things running with python (=python2) and python3. The installed python codes/scripts assume an installed and compatible python executable. Replacing this may cause incompatibilities. You need to know what are the differences between 3.5.2 and 3.6.4 and which code will depend on those changes. Most probably none, but maybe there is something....