[Python-Dev] conditional expressions? (original) (raw)

Guido van Rossum guido@python.org
Mon, 15 Oct 2001 16:14:48 -0400

[Paul]

I know there's been a long time request for this feature, supposedly from people coming to Python from C,

or any other language -- it's in Java, Perl, C++, Icon, Haskell, Lisp... People have been arguing for years how to do this.

but what's the real reason for adding it now, without even a PEP ? Does it really add enough to the language to justify the bloat ?

We'll see about the PEP (I think it's a good idea to motivate the change).

The language bloat is very small IMO -- much less than augmented assignment or list comprehensions, actually, and the benefits are quite substantial, when used judiciously. Like augmented assignment, the conditional expression matches how I think about certain situations; it's nice to finally be able to write them down right. It's especially useful in function arguments, in string formatting operations, or in lambdas (if you like lambdas :-).

--Guido van Rossum (home page: http://www.python.org/~guido/)