Pip 26.2: –only-deps solves 16 years of app deployment hacks
Summary
The article discusses Pip 26.2's new --only-deps flag, which lets you install a project's dependencies without installing the project itself. It covers historical challenges with Python dependency management, the role of pyproject.toml and PEPs (517 and 735), and how a community-driven change (and the uv tool) could streamline deployment workflows for application-style Python projects.