Path: csiph.com!fu-berlin.de!uni-berlin.de!not-for-mail From: Ben Finney Newsgroups: comp.lang.python Subject: Re: Need help understanding list structure Date: Tue, 03 May 2016 09:43:48 +1000 Lines: 29 Message-ID: References: <5727CB31.5060309@lucidity.plus.com> <85mvo8gh57.fsf@benfinney.id.au> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Trace: news.uni-berlin.de oq283w0DjiG6MYfMyeFS2gTl+uUUKBZi6tROiityza0A== Cancel-Lock: sha1:5Ltpdjas1O/zzB7IH6Au1zpaEq4= Return-Path: X-Original-To: python-list@python.org Delivered-To: python-list@mail.python.org X-Spam-Status: OK 0.016 X-Spam-Evidence: '*H*': 0.97; '*S*': 0.00; 'subject:help': 0.07; 'pointers': 0.09; 'received:80.91': 0.09; 'received:80.91.229': 0.09; 'received:gmane.org': 0.09; 'received:list': 0.09; 'python': 0.10; 'language,': 0.11; 'container,': 0.16; 'maintainable': 0.16; 'pointers.': 0.16; 'received:80.91.229.3': 0.16; 'received:io': 0.16; 'received:plane.gmane.org': 0.16; 'received:psf.io': 0.16; 'slow,': 0.16; 'assuming': 0.22; 'expense': 0.22; 'parsing': 0.22; 'code.': 0.23; 'header:User-Agent:1': 0.26; "doesn't": 0.26; 'subject:list': 0.26; 'header:X-Complaints-To:1': 0.26; 'question': 0.27; '(such': 0.27; 'correct': 0.28; 'container': 0.29; 'subject:skip:u 10': 0.29; 'objects': 0.29; 'code': 0.30; 'etc.)': 0.32; 'instead,': 0.33; 'file': 0.34; 'text': 0.35; 'returning': 0.35; 'too': 0.36; 'should': 0.36; 'instead': 0.36; 'there': 0.36; 'to:addr:python-list': 0.36; 'subject:: ': 0.37; 'being': 0.37; 'received:org': 0.37; 'johnson': 0.37; 'mean': 0.38; 'to:addr:python.org': 0.40; 'skip:u 10': 0.61; 'subject:Need': 0.61; 'email addr:gmail.com': 0.62; 'skip:\xe2 10': 0.70; '8bit%:43': 0.72; 'discover': 0.73; 'directly.': 0.76; '_o__)': 0.84; 'quicker': 0.84; 'received:125': 0.84; 'television.': 0.84; 'television': 0.91 X-Injected-Via-Gmane: http://gmane.org/ X-Gmane-NNTP-Posting-Host: jigong.madmonks.org X-Public-Key-ID: 0xAC128405 X-Public-Key-Fingerprint: 517C F14B B2F3 98B0 CB35 4855 B8B2 4C06 AC12 8405 X-Public-Key-URL: http://www.benfinney.id.au/contact/bfinney-pubkey.asc X-Post-From: Ben Finney User-Agent: Gnus/5.13 (Gnus v5.13) Emacs/24.4 (gnu/linux) X-BeenThere: python-list@python.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.22 Precedence: list List-Id: General discussion list for the Python programming language List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-Mailman-Original-Message-ID: <85mvo8gh57.fsf@benfinney.id.au> X-Mailman-Original-References: <5727CB31.5060309@lucidity.plus.com> Xref: csiph.com comp.lang.python:108036 moa47401@gmail.com writes: > Am I correct in assuming that parsing a large text file would be > quicker returning pointers instead of strings? What do you mean by “return a pointer”? Python doesn't have pointers. In the Python language, a container type (such as ‘set’, ‘list’, ‘dict’, etc.) contains the objects directly. There are no “pointers” there; by accessing the items of a container, you access the items directly. What do you mean by “would be quicker”? I am concerned you are seeking speed of the program at the expense of understandability and clarity of the code. Instead, you should be writing clear, maintainable code. *Only if* the clear, maintainable code you write then actually ends up being too slow, should you then worry about what parts are quick or slow by *measuring* the specific parts of code to discover what is actually occupying the time. -- \ “All television is educational television. The question is: | `\ what is it teaching?” —Nicholas Johnson | _o__) | Ben Finney