Uninstalled IPython on Ubuntu but can still be used

Question

I tried to install rpy2 earlier today, to use IPython Notebooks in conjunction with R. I'm using Ubuntu 12.04. However, I had issues with using the magics extension, so went off down a rathole to resolve...

I've tried to uninstall IPython via the command

sudo apt-get remove --auto-remove ipython

... which seemed to work correctly, and from looking in /usr/lib/python2.7/dist-packages, I manually can't see an IPython directory. I double checked the uninstallation method worked:

me@my_laptop:/usr/lib/python2.7/dist-packages$ sudo apt-get remove -auto-remove ipython
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Package ipython is not installed, so not removed
0 to upgrade, 0 to newly install, 0 to remove and 0 not to upgrade.

However, I can go into a terminal and type ipython I get the following -- note that I can import the package as well:

me@my_laptop:/usr/lib/python2.7/dist-packages$ pwd
/usr/lib/python2.7/dist-packages
me@my_laptop:/usr/lib/python2.7/dist-packages$ ipython
Python 2.7.3 (default, Dec 18 2014, 19:10:20) 
Type "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.

IPython 3.0.0-b1 -- An enhanced Interactive Python.
?         -> Introduction and overview of IPython's features.
%quickref -> Quick reference.
help      -> Python's own help system.
object?   -> Details about 'object', use 'object??' for extra details.

In [1]: import IPython

In [2]: IPython
Out[2]: <module 'IPython' from '/usr/local/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/IPython/__init__.pyc'>

NB I tried to use the comment by kermit666 in, butthis did not seem to help: Broken IPython notebook install Ubuntu 13.10 how to force reinstall

Does Python cache its packages somehow, like in a database, that I need to update somehow? I don't understand how it is loading something that in theory has been deleted?

Solution

really works use "sudo pip uninstall ipython"

Comments

[Maximillian Laumeister]

Thanks for posting an answer to this question! This answer is very short though and doesn't provide much context. Please explain some of the reasoning behind it, and it will become much more useful for the asker and future readers. Thanks!

[Wodin]

Note: You do not need the -r and you most likely do not need the -f. Using rm -rf when rm will do is a bad habit :) I have seen it get people into trouble when they accidentally had a space in rm -rf /var/mail/ username which deleted the mailboxes of several users instead of just the intended one.