[Python-Dev] Noam's open regex requests (original) (raw)

Raymond Hettinger python at rcn.com
Sun Sep 19 00:34:08 CEST 2004

[Noam Raphael]

I've suggested three things that I think should be done in that case, and nobody objected.

1. Add a prominent note in the module contents page or in the module's main page, stating that some functionality can only be acheived by using compiled REs.

I would make that read "The methods of compiled regular expressions allow more options than their simplified function counterparts. Most non-trivial applications always use the compiled form."

2. Document the optional parameters which let you specify the start and end pos in the findall and finditer methods of a compiled RE object.

This seems reasonable to me. The API is already exposed and is useful. Why not document it. AFAICT, there are no plans to take away the functionality.

3. Add the optional parameter "flags" to the findall and finditer functions. Then, the four functions match, search, findall and finditer would have the same interface: function(pattern, string[, flags]).

This also seems reasonable to me. It is marginally useful and it may reduce the learning curve ever so slightly. There is nothing special about findall() and finditer() that makes them different from match() and search() with respect to flags.

Raymond Hettinger

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