[Python-checkins] python/dist/src/Misc NEWS,1.463,1.464

[gvanrossum@users.sourceforge.net]

Update of /cvsroot/python/python/dist/src/Misc
In directory usw-pr-cvs1:/tmp/cvs-serv21212

Modified Files:
	NEWS 
Log Message:
New news about __class__ assignment restrictions and speed-up of
new-style object creation/deallocation.

Moved all news about type/class unification and new-stype classes to a
separate section at the top.


Index: NEWS
===================================================================
RCS file: /cvsroot/python/python/dist/src/Misc/NEWS,v
retrieving revision 1.463
retrieving revision 1.464
diff -C2 -d -r1.463 -r1.464
*** NEWS	12 Aug 2002 03:33:32 -0000	1.463
--- NEWS	12 Aug 2002 03:42:03 -0000	1.464
***************
*** 5,8 ****
--- 5,59 ----
  Type/class unification and new-style classes
  
+ - Assignment to __class__ is disallowed if either the old and the new
+   class is a statically allocated type object (such as defined by an
+   extenson module).  This prevents anomalies like 2.__class__ = bool.
+ 
+ - New-style object creation and deallocation have been sped up
+   significantly; they are now faster than classic instance creation
+   and deallocation.
+ 
+ - The __slots__ variable can now mention "private" names, and the
+   right thing will happen (e.g. __slots__ = ["__foo"]).
+ 
+ - The built-ins slice() and buffer() are now callable types.  The
+   types classobj (formerly class), code, function, instance, and
+   instancemethod (formerly instance-method), which have no built-in
+   names but are accessible through the types module, are now also
+   callable.  The type dict-proxy is renamed to dictproxy.
+ 
+ - Cycles going through the __class__ link of a new-style instance are
+   now detected by the garbage collector.
+ 
+ - Classes using __slots__ are now properly garbage collected.
+   [SF bug 519621]
+ 
+ - Tightened the __slots__ rules: a slot name must be a valid Python
+   identifier.
+ 
+ - The constructor for the module type now requires a name argument and
+   takes an optional docstring argument.  Previously, this constructor
+   ignored its arguments.  As a consequence, deriving a class from a
+   module (not from the module type) is now illegal; previously this
+   created an unnamed module, just like invoking the module type did.
+   [SF bug 563060]
+ 
+ - A new type object, 'basestring', is added.  This is a common base type
+   for 'str' and 'unicode', and can be used instead of
+   types.StringTypes, e.g. to test whether something is "a string":
+   isinstance(x, basestring) is True for Unicode and 8-bit strings.  This
+   is an abstract base class and cannot be instantiated directly.
+ 
+ - Changed new-style class instantiation so that when C's __new__
+   method returns something that's not a C instance, its __init__ is
+   not called.  [SF bug #537450]
+ 
+ - Fixed super() to work correctly with class methods.  [SF bug #535444]
+ 
+ - If you try to pickle an instance of a class that has __slots__ but
+   doesn't define or override __getstate__, a TypeError is now raised.
+   This is done by adding a bozo __getstate__ to the class that always
+   raises TypeError.  (Before, this would appear to be pickled, but the
+   state of the slots would be lost.)
+ 
  Core and builtins
  
***************
*** 81,96 ****
    was one or when the slice range was all inclusive.
  
- - The __slots__ variable can now mention "private" names, and the
-   right thing will happen (e.g. __slots__ = ["__foo"]).
- 
  - Unicode objects in sys.path are no longer ignored but treated
    as directory names.
  
- - The built-ins slice() and buffer() are now callable types.  The
-   types classobj (formerly class), code, function, instance, and
-   instancemethod (formerly instance-method), which have no built-in
-   names but are accessible through the types module, are now also
-   callable.  The type dict-proxy is renamed to dictproxy.
- 
  - Fixed string.startswith and string.endswith builtin methods
    so they accept negative indices.  [SF bug 493951]
--- 132,138 ----
***************
*** 103,122 ****
    gives "dlrow olleh".
  
- - Cycles going through the __class__ link of a new-style instance are
-   now detected by the garbage collector.
- 
- - Classes using __slots__ are now properly garbage collected.
-   [SF bug 519621]
- 
- - Tightened the __slots__ rules: a slot name must be a valid Python
-   identifier.
- 
- - The constructor for the module type now requires a name argument and
-   takes an optional docstring argument.  Previously, this constructor
-   ignored its arguments.  As a consequence, deriving a class from a
-   module (not from the module type) is now illegal; previously this
-   created an unnamed module, just like invoking the module type did.
-   [SF bug 563060]
- 
  - A new warning PendingDeprecationWarning was added to provide
    direction on features which are in the process of being deprecated.
--- 145,148 ----
***************
*** 125,134 ****
    as a command line option or warnings.filterwarnings() in code.
  
- - A new type object, 'basestring', is added.  This is a common base type
-   for 'str' and 'unicode', and can be used instead of
-   types.StringTypes, e.g. to test whether something is "a string":
-   isinstance(x, basestring) is True for Unicode and 8-bit strings.  This
-   is an abstract base class and cannot be instantiated directly.
- 
  - Deprecated features of xrange objects have been removed as
    promised.  The start, stop, and step attributes and the tolist()
--- 151,154 ----
***************
*** 159,168 ****
    value corresponding to key.  [SF patch #539949]
  
- - Changed new-style class instantiation so that when C's __new__
-   method returns something that's not a C instance, its __init__ is
-   not called.  [SF bug #537450]
- 
- - Fixed super() to work correctly with class methods.  [SF bug #535444]
- 
  - A new built-in type, bool, has been added, as well as built-in
    names for its two values, True and False.  Comparisons and sundry
--- 179,182 ----
***************
*** 183,192 ****
    and lets them use the same API with Python versions from 1.5.2
    onwards.
- 
- - If you try to pickle an instance of a class that has __slots__ but
-   doesn't define or override __getstate__, a TypeError is now raised.
-   This is done by adding a bozo __getstate__ to the class that always
-   raises TypeError.  (Before, this would appear to be pickled, but the
-   state of the slots would be lost.)
  
  - PyErr_Display will provide file and line information for all exceptions
--- 197,200 ----