[Python-Dev] Breaking undocumented API (original) (raw)

Guido van Rossum guido at python.org
Thu Nov 18 17:50:22 CET 2010

On Thu, Nov 18, 2010 at 4:16 AM, Nick Coghlan <ncoghlan at gmail.com> wrote:

On Thu, Nov 18, 2010 at 7:22 AM, Georg Brandl <g.brandl at gmx.net> wrote:

So it comes down again to what we'd like all to mean foremost: public API, or just a list for "import *"? It's the list for star imports. This intended use case is borne out by the description of the feature when it was first added to the language back in 2.1: http://docs.python.org/dev/whatsnew/2.1.html?highlight=all#other-changes-and-fixes The public API (for documentation and introspection purposes) is any name that doesn't start with an underscore and isn't an imported module. If a tool is attempting to use all as more than just the list of names for star imports, I would call the tool buggy.

Not so fast. The feature's meaning has clearly evolved.

The use of the term "public names" in the language reference when describing the semantics of all is an unfortunate choice, but it is used specifically in the context of talking about star imports and clarifying which names they bring in without making any reference to standards for documentation or deprecation policies.

Let's live with a little ambiguity. There are more shades of gray here than you can imagine. I like gray.

-- --Guido van Rossum (python.org/~guido)

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