Path: csiph.com!usenet.pasdenom.info!aioe.org!news.stack.nl!newsfeed.xs4all.nl!newsfeed6.news.xs4all.nl!xs4all!post.news.xs4all.nl!not-for-mail Return-Path: X-Original-To: python-list@python.org Delivered-To: python-list@mail.python.org X-Spam-Status: OK 0.000 X-Spam-Evidence: '*H*': 1.00; '*S*': 0.00; 'else:': 0.03; 'argument': 0.04; '"""': 0.05; 'lines,': 0.05; 'caller': 0.07; 'filename': 0.07; 'function,': 0.07; 'subject:file': 0.07; 'received:80.91': 0.09; 'received:80.91.229': 0.09; 'received:gmane.org': 0.09; 'received:list': 0.09; 'terry': 0.09; 'def': 0.10; 'passing': 0.15; '"""check': 0.16; 'basestring):': 0.16; 'received:80.91.229.3': 0.16; 'received:plane.gmane.org': 0.16; 'reedy': 0.16; 'subject:object': 0.16; 'wrote:': 0.17; 'jan': 0.18; 'example': 0.23; 'statement': 0.23; 'pass': 0.25; 'header :In-Reply-To:1': 0.25; 'header:User-Agent:1': 0.26; 'am,': 0.27; 'header:X-Complaints-To:1': 0.28; 'function': 0.30; 'file': 0.32; 'to:addr:python-list': 0.33; 'operations': 0.33; 'text': 0.34; 'false': 0.35; 'path': 0.35; 'subject:?': 0.35; 'something': 0.35; 'there': 0.35; 'received:org': 0.36; 'but': 0.36; 'be.': 0.36; 'should': 0.36; 'quite': 0.37; 'subject:: ': 0.38; 'object': 0.38; 'sure': 0.38; 'to:addr:python.org': 0.39; 'header:Received:5': 0.40; 'your': 0.60; 'close': 0.63; 'more': 0.63; 'within': 0.64; 'below:': 0.71; 'andrea': 0.84; 'received:fios.verizon.net': 0.84 X-Injected-Via-Gmane: http://gmane.org/ To: python-list@python.org From: Terry Reedy Subject: Re: accepting file path or file object? Date: Mon, 05 Nov 2012 13:30:17 -0500 References: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Gmane-NNTP-Posting-Host: pool-173-75-251-66.phlapa.fios.verizon.net User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.1; WOW64; rv:15.0) Gecko/20120824 Thunderbird/15.0 In-Reply-To: X-BeenThere: python-list@python.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.15 Precedence: list List-Id: General discussion list for the Python programming language List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Newsgroups: comp.lang.python Message-ID: Lines: 32 NNTP-Posting-Host: 2001:888:2000:d::a6 X-Trace: 1352140233 news.xs4all.nl 6965 [2001:888:2000:d::a6]:33155 X-Complaints-To: abuse@xs4all.nl Xref: csiph.com comp.lang.python:32778 On 11/5/2012 5:54 AM, andrea crotti wrote: > Quite often I find convenient to get a filename or a file object as > argument of a function, and do something as below: > > def grep_file(regexp, filepath_obj): > """Check if the given text is found in any of the file lines, take > a path to a file or an opened file object > """ > if isinstance(filepath_obj, basestring): > fobj = open(filepath_obj) > else: > fobj = filepath_obj > > for line in fobj: > if re.search(regexp, line): > return True > > return False > > > This makes it also more convenient to unit-test, since I can just pass > a StringIO. But then there are other problems, for example if I pass > a file object [it] is the caller that has to make sure to close the file > handle.. Which is as it should be. The caller should (normally) call your function within a with statement or might want to do other operations on the file before or after passing it to your grep_file. -- Terry Jan Reedy