Python interface refactoring

[rosscastle]

Master issue for refactoring Isca's Python interface

Modern Python libraries and conventions

• [ ] Support only Python 3.6+
• [ ] Use pathlib for all path-like objects
• [ ] Use subprocess or shutil instead of sh
• [ ] Apply black formatting
• [x] Move setup options to setup.cfg
• [ ] Use f-strings
• [ ] Fix docstrings

Tests

• [ ] Add tests for the python API

Package clean-up

• [x] Store templates and auxiliary data files in aux/
• [ ] Check what scripts are obsolete and remove them
• [ ] Move executable scripts to a separate folder
• [ ] Merge various utility functions into specific submodules
• [x] Create separate submodules for exceptions, paths, decorators
• [ ] Clean up alert/email scripts
• [ ] Move Makefile templates into a more appropriate location
• [ ] Move the package source code to the root
• [ ] Change GFDL_* env variables to ISCA_*

Docs

• [ ] Link to sphinx config

[dennissergeev]

why was this closed @rosscastle ?

[rosscastle]

Sorry Denis, it was an accident. I was closing the docs issues as we're done with that now and we were trying to tidy up the issues and PRs but I shouldn't have closed this one as it is more general.