Python Driver 2.6.0 with Cassandra 2.2 Features

DataStax Python Driver 2.6.0 for Apache Cassandra has been released with support for new features in Cassandra 2.2, native protocol v4, and general improvements. The release includes a change to the default load balancing policy, which is now token- and data-center-aware. Additionally, the driver now supports downgrading protocol versions when connecting to older versions of Cassandra. Other enhancements include a new Cluster configuration parameter connect_timeout, deprecation of Cluster.refresh_schema and Cluster.submit_schema_refresh in favor of dedicated calls for each schema entity, support for distinguishing between null and unset parameters in native protocol v4, client warnings to surface warnings to clients, core support for new integer types smallint and tinyint, and support for new simple date and time types.