pdm-backend should not normalize names in project metadata

[warsaw]

In the long thread on discuss.python.org several problems related to normalization of package names have been identified. Specifically, pdm-backend's behavior of normalizing the package name in the project metadata causes PyPI to incorrectly display the package's intentional name and pip install instructions.

Context is contained in the thread linked above.

FWIW, I actually don't care about the file names - normalize away! I just want the metadata project name to match what I put in pyproject.toml!

[frostming]

It is the behavior of pyproject-metadata, can you report the issue there?

[warsaw]

Code link: https://github.com/FFY00/python-pyproject-metadata/blob/604d3889880043831299c1a8fffaaa5d67e2ff8c/pyproject_metadata/__init__.py#L198

Maybe just removing line 198 does the trick?

[warsaw]

Thank you! I've confirmed this fixes the problem in the metadata. Unfortunately, the project name is still getting normalized on PyPI, so I will follow up over there.

[warsaw]

This is not solved: pypi/warehouse#13992 (comment)

But I think this is a bug in pdm front-end, not pdm-backend. @frostming what do you think? Should I report it over there?

[frostming]

But twine is doing the same: https://github.com/pypa/twine/blob/0bb428c410b8df64c04dc881ac1db37d932f3066/twine/package.py#L146

Maybe only flit doesn't normalize it?

[frostming]

Okay, hatch doesn't normalize either, I will change it in PDM.

[warsaw]

I think both twine and flit do the right thing. I had a long discussion with @dstufft about this, and he gave me a little bit of Python code to test what those tools do when uploading to PyPI). Here's what I've seen:

PDM:

FieldStorage('name', None, 'flufl-enum')
127.0.0.1 - - [26/Jun/2023 13:51:49] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 0
FieldStorage('name', None, 'flufl-enum')
127.0.0.1 - - [26/Jun/2023 13:51:49] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 0

flit:

FieldStorage('name', None, 'flufl.enum')
127.0.0.1 - - [26/Jun/2023 13:55:12] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 0
FieldStorage('name', None, 'flufl.enum')
127.0.0.1 - - [26/Jun/2023 13:55:21] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 0

twine:

FieldStorage('name', None, 'flufl.enum')
127.0.0.1 - - [26/Jun/2023 13:58:34] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 0
FieldStorage('name', None, 'flufl.enum')
127.0.0.1 - - [26/Jun/2023 13:58:34] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 0

So you can see that only PDM is sending flufl-enum while both twine and flit send flufl.enum. @dstufft told me that this is the only information PyPI uses to set the visible name and pip install instructions on a package's home page. Although in the future it might read the package's metadata for this, currently the upload name is what's used.

You can see the effects of this very clearly at: https://pypi.org/project/flufl-enum/

(I'm not sure if the canonical URL is also taken from that, but I care a little less about that because https://pypi.org/project/flufl.enum/ does redirect.)

[warsaw]

Okay, hatch doesn't normalize either, I will change it in PDM.

Thanks! Is there an issue over in PDM I can follow?

[frostming]

Thanks! Is there an issue over in PDM I can follow?

pdm-project/pdm#2057

[warsaw]

Thank you!