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Groups > comp.lang.python > #92795

Re: Documenting a function signature (was: Set a flag on the function or a global?)

References (1 earlier) <mailman.530.1434500492.13271.python-list@python.org> <55818b3c$0$1665$c3e8da3$5496439d@news.astraweb.com> <mailman.556.1434553624.13271.python-list@python.org> <55819878$0$1658$c3e8da3$5496439d@news.astraweb.com> <85egl9ubj5.fsf_-_@benfinney.id.au>
From Ian Kelly <ian.g.kelly@gmail.com>
Date 2015-06-17 18:10 -0600
Subject Re: Documenting a function signature (was: Set a flag on the function or a global?)
Newsgroups comp.lang.python
Message-ID <mailman.573.1434586294.13271.python-list@python.org> (permalink)

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On Wed, Jun 17, 2015 at 6:04 PM, Ben Finney <ben+python@benfinney.id.au> wrote:
> Steven D'Aprano <steve@pearwood.info> writes:
>
>> The full signature is:
>>
>> edir([object [, glob=''] [, dunders=True] [, meta=False]])
>>
>> All four arguments are optional, and dunders and meta are
>> keyword-only.
>
> The official documentation seems to prefer this style::
>
>     edit(object, glob='', *, dunders=True, meta=False)
>
> (I think that's the style, anyway.)
>
> I like that it gets rid of square brackets; with the notation showing a
> default value, that already communicates that a parameter is optional.
>
> Since the introduction of keyword-only arguments in Python functions,
> the question arises of how to communicate this in documentation.
>
> The lone asterisk showing the separation of keyword-only arguments from
> the rest is confusing to me. Not least because it is (if I understand
> correctly) invalid syntax to actually have that in Python code.

No, this is valid syntax in Python 3. It means the same thing to the
compiler -- the remaining arguments are keyword-only -- that it means
in the documentation.

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Thread

Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-15 23:57 +0000
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2015-06-16 10:07 +1000
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Ethan Furman <ethan@stoneleaf.us> - 2015-06-15 17:19 -0700
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Ben Finney <ben+python@benfinney.id.au> - 2015-06-16 10:20 +1000
    Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-16 19:07 +1000
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Ethan Furman <ethan@stoneleaf.us> - 2015-06-15 17:21 -0700
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? sohcahtoa82@gmail.com - 2015-06-15 17:24 -0700
    Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? MRAB <python@mrabarnett.plus.com> - 2015-06-16 01:35 +0100
      Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-16 18:18 +1000
        Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Oscar Benjamin <oscar.j.benjamin@gmail.com> - 2015-06-16 13:45 +0100
          Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-16 22:46 +0000
        Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Cameron Simpson <cs@zip.com.au> - 2015-06-17 09:51 +1000
          Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-18 00:59 +1000
            Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Laura Creighton <lac@openend.se> - 2015-06-17 17:06 +0200
              Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-18 01:55 +1000
                Documenting a function signature (was: Set a flag on the function or a global?) Ben Finney <ben+python@benfinney.id.au> - 2015-06-18 10:04 +1000
                Re: Documenting a function signature (was: Set a flag on the function or a global?) Ian Kelly <ian.g.kelly@gmail.com> - 2015-06-17 18:10 -0600
                Re: Documenting a function signature (was: Set a flag on the function or a global?) Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2015-06-18 10:14 +1000
                Re: Documenting a function signature (was: Set a flag on the function or a global?) random832@fastmail.us - 2015-06-18 08:37 -0400
                Re: Documenting a function signature (was: Set a flag on the function or a global?) Laura Creighton <lac@openend.se> - 2015-06-18 23:38 +0200
                Re: Documenting a function signature Ben Finney <ben+python@benfinney.id.au> - 2015-06-19 10:41 +1000
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Ron Adam <ron3200@gmail.com> - 2015-06-15 20:24 -0400
    Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-16 19:15 +1000
      Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Ron Adam <ron3200@gmail.com> - 2015-06-16 07:02 -0400
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2015-06-16 10:32 +1000
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2015-06-15 17:37 -0700
    Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Ethan Furman <ethan@stoneleaf.us> - 2015-06-15 17:53 -0700
      Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2015-06-15 19:04 -0700
    Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? MRAB <python@mrabarnett.plus.com> - 2015-06-16 02:15 +0100
    Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-16 18:30 +1000
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Mark Lawrence <breamoreboy@yahoo.co.uk> - 2015-06-16 07:06 +0100
    Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Steven D'Aprano <steve+comp.lang.python@pearwood.info> - 2015-06-16 19:28 +1000
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Jonas Wielicki <jonas@wielicki.name> - 2015-06-16 12:00 +0200
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Michael Torrie <torriem@gmail.com> - 2015-06-16 07:44 -0600
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Michael Torrie <torriem@gmail.com> - 2015-06-16 07:56 -0600
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Peter Otten <__peter__@web.de> - 2015-06-16 15:59 +0200
  Re: Set a flag on the function or a global? Ethan Furman <ethan@stoneleaf.us> - 2015-06-16 07:57 -0700

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