ArcGIS Python Addins - Am I doing this right?

Question

Hey all,

I have been developing a few python addins and I'm just wondering what is the best way to update the addin anytime I edit the script.

Currently, if I make an edit to the script, it seems like I have to* Close ArcMap
* Go to My addin folder and double click the 'makeaddin' python file
* Double click the 'Python Addin File
* Restart ArcMap for the changes to come into effect
*

If I don't do these steps, then the edits aren't recognized. This gets pretty annoying and time consuming when I want to place maybe a simple print line somewhere or I do a small edit.

Is there a better way of doing this?

Thanks,
Mike

RichardLaw2 · Answer

This should help: http://gis.stackexchange.com/a/67668/25417

ChrisFox3 · Answer

I understand, unfortunately it is not likely to change. Although it seems like you are making simple changes, this is a different level of customization you are making when you are building UI elements and application extensions. It just requires a restart of the application to take affect. This is essentially the same workflow you need to follow when building and testing .net add-ins as well.

MikeMacRae · Answer

Thanks for responding Chris. I sincerely hope this is changed for the future. Building, testing and compiling python addin scripts this way is very, very time consuming....