[PYTHON MATRIX-SIG] Matrix multiplies and syntactic nits

[P. Dubois]

Jim Hugunin wrote:

> The following are 2x3 matrices of integers.

> a) Matrix_i((1,2,3),(4,5,6))

> b) matrix([[1,2,3],[4,5,6]], 'i')

> Opinions on which you should get with str(M)?

I prefer Matrix_i. I would really prefer something explicit like IntegerMatrix,
CharacterMatrix, etc, with Matrix reserved as euphemism for RealMatrix or
as a "smart" constructor as I discussed before.

It turns out you just don't use this kind of constructor much anyway,
as most matrices are produced by array functions/operators, not literal lists.

In the particular case of python there is some history having to do with using
characters to represent popular types, so the present choice is reasonable
and I don't feel strongly about this.

"If it isn't an abbreviation, you don't have to remember which
abbreviation it is."

Paul


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