[Python-3000] pre-PEP: Default Argument Expressions

[Mike Klaas]

On 2/13/07, Chris Rebert <cvrebert at gmail.com> wrote:
>      This PEP proposes new semantics for default arguments to remove
>      boilerplate code associated with non-constant default argument values,
>      allowing them to be expressed more clearly and succinctly.
> Specifically,
>      all default argument expressions are re-evaluated at each call as
> opposed
>      to just once at definition-time as they are now.

Seems like a huge barrel of worms.  The binding semantics are not only
a problem for mutable arguments, as you state in your pep:

In [2]: def a():
   ...:     g = 1
   ...:     def b():
   ...:         print g
   ...:     g = 2
   ...:     return b
   ...:
In [4]: a()()
2

In [5]: def a():
   ...:     g = 1
   ...:     def b(g=g):
   ...:         print g
   ...:     g = 2
   ...:     return b
In [6]: a()()
1

Creating closures and define-time local bindings is certainly not as
common as a "regular" function definition, it is important part of
python when programming in a semi-functional style.  Imagine that "def
b" is in a for loop.  Your presented alternatives either don't work or
go to rather extreme effort to duplicate this simple and useful
functionality.

I agree that newbies stumble over mutable default arguments.  I did.
If we could improve that learning process, I would be all for it.
However, besides this being a significant change in semantics, two
main stumbling blocks in my mind are:

1. Scoping.  Scoping issues are not minor consequences of changes to
default argument behaviour, but are integral.  I think that you'd have
to come up with a more obvious way to accomplish all the various
current behaviours of def args before changing their semantics.  This
is probably a larger project than the original proposal.

2. Performance.  The speed of python is influenced greatly by the
performance of function dispatch.  This may not show up in pystone.

-Mike