[Python-Dev] PEP 215 redux: toward a simplified consensus? (original) (raw)

Paul Prescod paul@prescod.net
Mon, 25 Feb 2002 16:39:21 -0800

[meant to send this before]

Guido van Rossum wrote:

... All right, but there also needs to be a way to invoke interpolation explicitly -- just like eval(). This has applicability e.g. in i18n.

Agree 100%. The last time we discussed this I proposed there should be a function to do this. But the naive integrated syntax could be compile time.

My complaints with the current interpolation are:

  1. they require too many magical incantations to invoke (especially % vars())
  2. they require too much thinking about types and conversions in the syntax
  3. special behaviour with dictionaries and tuples and singleton tuples etc.
  4. operator abuse

I would only be in favour of a replacement if for simple cases it cleared up all of these issues so that it is roughly as easy as in Perl/Ruby/sh/tcl:

a = "Mynameis"My name is "Mynameisname"

If there is any more syntax than that then personally I think that the cost/benefit ratio falls down. So I don't see this as a big win:

a = "My name is $name" \ locals()

It solves two of my four problems.

Maybe other people have different goals than I do and that's why they see the above as a "win".

Paul Prescod