Issue
I'm using Linux Mint Debian Edition (eq. Debian Testing). There is no python2.6-dev package, which I'd need to install pycrypto for Python 2.6 (since it has a compilation step).
Is there any way to get this package or an equivalent on my system? I already have installed Python 2.6 in my system and I can use it without a hitch.
(The python2.7-dev package is there just fine. But I'm glued to 2.6, so it doesn't suit my needs.)
Solution
No. Debian testing doesn't have python2.6 (and forcing the install can break your installation, since several (in the order of thousands) packages depends of a specific version of python). It was dropped. If you want you can use stable instead (if Mint has a stable equivalent) otherwise you are stuck with python2.7.
You can try installing Python on a separated path (using the --prefix) from sources, or using pythonbrew, but replacing your system Python with another version is a big no-no.
If you already have python 2.6 installed, you can carefully install the packages from stable. Make double sure that the operation doesn't break something along the way.
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Answered By - Braiam Answer Checked By - Gilberto Lyons (WPSolving Admin)