With importlib.find_loader() now implemented, imp.find_module() (and its companion, imp.load_module()) can go away and stop inflicting their bad API upon the world.

The trick, though, is fixing code that uses the API. That means pkgutil, multiprocessing.forking, modulefinder, and idlelib.EditorWindow all need to be patched to stop using imp.find_module()/load_module().

http://hg.python.org/lookup/59870239813c documents imp.find_module/load_module as deprecated w/o actually raising the deprecation. The code works fine, but the API is just crap. So in the name of ease of transition (and my own personal sanity), I didn't go full-blown deprecation. The remaining code that uses imp.find_module() in the stdlib uses the API's unique properties (e.g. executing under a different name in multiprocessing) or directly exposes the API (e.g. pkgutil and modulefinder). As for idle, I don't run the tool so I don't feel like editing the code and getting it wrong.

BTW, I'm leaving this issue open in case someone wants to take a stab and removing the uses of imp.find_module()/load_module() from the stdlb.

Assuming issue #17314 gets fixed, that leaves the following uses of imp.find_module():

Lib/idlelib/EditorWindow.py
39:    """Version of imp.find_module() that handles hierarchical module names"""
45:        (file, filename, descr) = imp.find_module(tgt, path)

Lib/modulefinder.py
482:        return imp.find_module(name, path)

Lib/pkgutil.py
229:            file, filename, etc = imp.find_module(subname, path)

Lib/test/test_imp.py
59:            with imp.find_module('module_' + mod, self.test_path)[0] as fd:
64:            imp.find_module('badsyntax_pep3120', path)
68:            fp, filename, info  = imp.find_module('module_' + mod,
77:        fp, filename, info = imp.find_module("tokenize")
91:            file, filename, info = imp.find_module(temp_mod_name)
147:            file, filename, info = imp.find_module(temp_mod_name)
187:                          imp.find_module, "badsyntax_pep3120", [path])
201:            x = imp.find_module("os")
213:        x = imp.find_module(example)
223:        fileobj, pathname, description = imp.find_module(m)

Lib/test/test_import.py
128:                imp.find_module, TESTFN, ["."])

Lib/test/test_importhooks.py
118:            file, filename, stuff = imp.find_module(subname, path)

The remaining uses of imp.load_module() after issue #17314 (which will probably all disappear as uses of imp.find_module() is removed):

Lib/idlelib/EditorWindow.py
48:        module = imp.load_module(tgt, file, filename, descr)

Lib/pkgutil.py
291:            mod = imp.load_module(fullname, self.file, self.filename, self.etc)

Lib/pydoc.py
47:#   - imp.load_module() cannot be prevented from clobbering existing
277:            module = imp.load_module(name, file, path, (ext, 'r', kind))

Lib/test/test_imp.py
155:                mod = imp.load_module(temp_mod_name, file, filename, info)
203:            new_os = imp.load_module("os", *x)
217:        mod = imp.load_module(example, *x)

Lib/test/test_importhooks.py
132:        mod = imp.load_module(fullname, self.file, self.filename, self.stuff)