tweak setup.py to fall back to importing setup from setuptools if distutils is not available

[bartoldeman]

Use logging and setuptools instead.

[bartoldeman]

This is very minimal, but it does allow python setup.py xxx for Python 3.12 (tried sdist and install) with setuptools installed.

Using pyproject.toml and PEP517 would take it a few steps further.
See #3963

[bartoldeman]

Note: this change isn't needed for pip install easybuild-framework since that'll use distutils from an internal temporary installation of setuptools, the direct setuptools dependency only seems to come in when you run python setup.py directly, and in that case installing setuptools makes setup.py work without this change...

[boegel]

@bartoldeman Any reason this is still a draft PR?

[bartoldeman]

I don't think we need it:
a) we don't need it for pip, since pip installs setuptools and hence import distutils works inside pip
b) we don't need it for setup.py directly, since if you install setuptools anyway you can just import distutils

[boegel]

#4484 confirms we don't need these changes, so closing...

[haampie]

I don't think we need it: a) we don't need it for pip, since pip installs setuptools and hence import distutils works inside pip b) we don't need it for setup.py directly, since if you install setuptools anyway you can just import distutils

This is a popular false belief :)

cython/cython#5754 (comment)

can you reopen @boegel?

[boegel]

@bartoldeman Can you look into this again?