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From: Ben Finney <ben+python@benfinney.id.au>
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Subject: Re: def __init__(self):
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 2016 17:34:39 +1000
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Xref: csiph.com comp.lang.python:107644

Gary Herron <gherron@digipen.edu> writes:

>    The __init__ method is the constructor for instances of a class.  It
>    is not required, but the situations in which a constructor is not
>    needed are few and unusual.

That's needlessly confusing: ‘__init__’ is not a constructor because it
does not construct the instance. The ‘__new__’ method is the constructor
for a class (and returns the new instance).

The ‘__init__’ method requests the already-constructed instance to
initialise itself (and returns None).

-- 
 \         “I still have my Christmas Tree. I looked at it today. Sure |
  `\               enough, I couldn't see any forests.” —Steven Wright |
_o__)                                                                  |
Ben Finney