[Python-Dev] Why does _PyUnicode_FromId return a new reference? (original) (raw)

"Martin v. Löwis" martin at v.loewis.de
Sun Nov 6 08:08:46 CET 2011

Am 05.11.2011 23:26, schrieb Antoine Pitrou:

Given it returns an eternal object, and it's almost always used temporarily (for attribute lookup, string joining, etc.), it would seem more practical for it to return a borrowed reference.

For purity reasons: all PyUnicode_From* functions return new references (most of them return actually new objects most of the time); having PyUnicode_FromId return a borrowed reference would break uniformity. I personally it difficult to remember which functions return borrowed references, and wish there were fewer of them in the API (with PyArg_ParseTuple being the notable exception where borrowed references are a good idea).

Now, practicality beats purity, so the real answer is: I just didn't consider that it might return a borrowed reference.

Regards, Martin

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