Re: Python dictionaries are awesome

Path	csiph.com!usenet.pasdenom.info!news.albasani.net!newsfeed.freenet.ag!news2.euro.net!newsgate.cistron.nl!newsgate.news.xs4all.nl!post.news.xs4all.nl!not-for-mail
Return-Path	<rosuav@gmail.com>
X-Original-To	python-list@python.org
Delivered-To	python-list@mail.python.org
X-Spam-Status	OK 0.002
X-Spam-Evidence	'H': 1.00; 'S': 0.00; 'subject:Python': 0.05; '(except': 0.05; 'bug.': 0.07; 'problem?': 0.07; 'url:blog': 0.09; 'python': 0.09; 'if,': 0.09; 'keyed': 0.09; 'received:mail- vb0-f46.google.com': 0.09; "wouldn't": 0.11; 'dictionary.': 0.16; 'from:addr:rosuav': 0.16; 'from:name:chris angelico': 0.16; 'hypothetical': 0.16; 'key?': 0.16; 'luck,': 0.16; 'misfeature': 0.16; 'sheer': 0.16; 'subject:dictionaries': 0.16; 'wrote:': 0.17; 'received:209.85.212.46': 0.18; 'sort': 0.21; 'header:In-Reply- To:1': 0.25; 'possibly': 0.27; 'wonder': 0.27; 'designer': 0.27; 'message-id:@mail.gmail.com': 0.27; 'received:209.85.212': 0.28; "d'aprano": 0.29; 'dictionary': 0.29; 'steven': 0.29; 'unlikely': 0.29; 'you\x92re': 0.29; 'that.': 0.30; 'implement': 0.32; 'could': 0.32; 'crazy': 0.33; 'to:addr:python-list': 0.33; 'languages': 0.33; "can't": 0.34; 'received:google.com': 0.34; 'nov': 0.35; 'especially': 0.35; 'pm,': 0.35; 'received:209.85': 0.35; 'really': 0.36; 'but': 0.36; 'problems': 0.36; 'received:209': 0.37; 'subject:: ': 0.38; 'store': 0.38; 'some': 0.38; 'instead': 0.39; 'to:addr:python.org': 0.39; 'skip:" 10': 0.40; 'header:Received:5': 0.40; 'course.': 0.62; 'url:p': 0.63; 'making': 0.64; 'charset:windows-1252': 0.65; 'adobe': 0.65; 'flash': 0.72; 'hey,': 0.72; 'much,': 0.84; 'profiles,': 0.84
DKIM-Signature	v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=gmail.com; s=20120113; h=mime-version:in-reply-to:references:date:message-id:subject:from:to :content-type:content-transfer-encoding; bh=m8jCE3pUbcyXsest74xUfCFC+9KbGL4hfiwPE0eieY4=; b=E+EXcWPDv2nPbPzSvzPdCvN83rxAF602AT9Zn62aBt0tB1Jdk+5uJ4najQX9f8E35w 65i6z7QXUEXjLMnFJ3LpJXqWLOgRUI6co78nhzA5s/sOeOfQe41k6FXiCGFfs/4et7M2 Urugm+K9jzz/wYt0DWzEKs1+b1qGVmR2DaYhASqv7ttz1w/nZJ0yEq+9Csb0koEOVQAL 7chk/bMxEeWftmWz2O22K06Qc+9M/A3IreBMYZWyytwEuE822NkWFlQlNVsNvvkWuYU1 eO5G+Ow3XfWEpsKIzeN6u2PnkDKQ6rtIrV8KTCqdYnBQnSE13W6ZtElG716m3W47I0fe NxiA==
MIME-Version	1.0
In-Reply-To	<50b4262a$0$21875$c3e8da3$76491128@news.astraweb.com>
References	<50b4262a$0$21875$c3e8da3$76491128@news.astraweb.com>
Date	Tue, 27 Nov 2012 17:16:32 +1100
Subject	Re: Python dictionaries are awesome
From	Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com>
To	python-list@python.org
Content-Type	text/plain; charset=windows-1252
Content-Transfer-Encoding	quoted-printable
X-BeenThere	python-list@python.org
X-Mailman-Version	2.1.15
Precedence	list
List-Id	General discussion list for the Python programming language <python-list.python.org>
List-Unsubscribe	<http://mail.python.org/mailman/options/python-list>, <mailto:python-list-request@python.org?subject=unsubscribe>
List-Archive	<http://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-list/>
List-Post	<mailto:python-list@python.org>
List-Help	<mailto:python-list-request@python.org?subject=help>
List-Subscribe	<http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list>, <mailto:python-list-request@python.org?subject=subscribe>
Newsgroups	comp.lang.python
Message-ID	<mailman.311.1353996997.29569.python-list@python.org> (permalink)
Lines	27
NNTP-Posting-Host	2001:888:2000:d::a6
X-Trace	1353996997 news.xs4all.nl 6936 [2001:888:2000:d::a6]:48511
X-Complaints-To	abuse@xs4all.nl
Xref	csiph.com comp.lang.python:33967

Show key headers only | View raw

On Tue, Nov 27, 2012 at 1:32 PM, Steven D'Aprano
<steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> wrote:
> ... especially when you consider how some other languages implement them.
>
>
> http://twistedoakgames.com/blog/?p=925
>
> [quote]
> Here’s the hypothetical situation: you’re making a flash game. In that
> game users can create named profiles. You store the profiles, keyed by
> their name, so that you ca- OOPS, you just introduced a bug. What’s the
> problem? The dictionary.
> [end quote]

Here's a crazy possibility. What if, instead of just the name, you use
"dictkey_"+name as the key? That's unlikely to conflict with anything.
Hey, I wonder if Adobe might even have been able to do that under the
covers! That would have been really easy, wouldn't have cost much, and
would have given full functionality! (Except that you now can't have a
property named "dictkey_foo", but that could be considered a
misfeature - you can use a dictionary as a sort of jump table.)

Python just happened to get it right by sheer luck, of course. No
designer could possibly foresee problems like that.

ChrisA

Back to comp.lang.python | Previous | Next — Previous in thread | Find similar | Unroll thread

Thread

Python dictionaries are awesome Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2012-11-27 02:32 +0000
  Re: Python dictionaries are awesome Dave Angel <d@davea.name> - 2012-11-27 00:27 -0500
  Re: Python dictionaries are awesome Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2012-11-27 17:16 +1100

csiph-web