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To: python-list@python.org
From: Mark Lawrence <breamoreboy@yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: Re: Need assistance
Date: Fri, 17 Jul 2015 20:00:43 +0100
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On 17/07/2015 17:40, Rob Gaddi wrote:
> On Thu, 16 Jul 2015 19:15:38 -0700, craig.sirna wrote:
>
>> I need help writing a homework program.
>>
>> I'll write it, but I can't figure out how to incorporate what I have
>> read in the book to work in code.
>>
>> The assignment wants us to take a users first, middle and last name in a
>> single input ( name=('enter your full name: )).
>>
>> Then we must display the full name rearranged in Last, First Middle
>> order.
>>
>> I tried to use the search function in Python to locate any spaces in the
>> input. It spot back the index 5 (I used Craig Daniel Sirna)
>>
>> That is correct for the first space, but I can't figure out how to get
>> it to continue to the next space.
>>
>> The indexing process is also a bit confusingto me.
>>
>> I get that I can use len(fullName) to set the length of the index, and
>> how the index is counted, but after that I'm lost.
>>
>> I have emailed my professor a few times, but haven't gotten a
>> response.(online course)
>>
>> Any help would be greatly appreciated.
>
> 1) Use the interactive console.  Set x = 'Craig Daniel Sirna' and play
> with indexing and slicing it until you really internalize what they
> mean.  x[3], x[-3], x[0:10], x[0:-1].  It's not actually relevant to the
> problem at hand, but right now is the time in your education to get
> indexing down cold; skimp on it now and you'll pay for it forever.
> Should take you about 5 minutes.

I'll throw in something to emphasize a major difference between indexing 
and slicing.

 >>> x = 'Craig Daniel Sirna'
 >>> x[100]
Traceback (most recent call last):
   File "<stdin>", line 1, in <module>
IndexError: string index out of range
 >>> x[100:]
''
 >>> x[:100]
'Craig Daniel Sirna'

>
> 2) https://docs.python.org/3/library/stdtypes.html#string-methods
> You can do what you're trying to do, but you're swinging a hammer with a
> powered nailgun at your feet.  Search is an inefficient way to try to
> split a string into parts based on a delimiter.
>

Inefficient I don't know about, and mostly don't care about either, but 
certainly not the cleanest way to code, at least IMHO.

-- 
My fellow Pythonistas, ask not what our language can do for you, ask
what you can do for our language.

Mark Lawrence