[Python-Dev] Dictionary sparseness (original) (raw)

Guido van Rossum guido@python.org
Sun, 04 May 2003 20:34:33 -0400

After more dictionary sparseness experiments, I've become convinced that the ideal settings are better left up to the user who is in a better position to know:

* anticipated dictionary size * overall application memory issues * characteristic access patterns (stores vs. reads vs. deletions vs. iteration) * when the dictionary is growing, shrinking, or stablized. * whether many deletions have taken place

Hm. Maybe so, but it is a feature that there are no user controls over dictionary behavior, based on the observation that for every user who knows enough about the dict implementation to know how to tweak it, there are at least 1000 who don't, and the latter, in their ill-advised quest for more speed, will use the tweakage API to their detriment.

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