[Python-Dev] string.find() again (was Re: timsort for jython)

[Barry A. Warsaw]

Great analysis Guido, thanks.

    GvR> Strings are very important in lots of programs, and we want
    GvR> our notations for string operations to be readable and
    GvR> expressive.  (Regular expressions are extreme in
    GvR> expressiveness, but lack readability, which is why they're
    GvR> relegated to an imported module in Python.)  Substring
    GvR> containment testing is a common operation on strings, so
    GvR> being able to write it as 's1 in s2' rather than 's2.find(s1)
    GvR> >= 0' is a big win, IMO.

I agree completely.  The other thing about strings is that they are of
a dual nature, being both a sequence of characters, and an atomic
object.  At least, /I/ usually think about strings as whole units,
except when I want to slice and dice them.  And "substr in str" is
just such a natural extension of "char in str" because when I do the
former, I'm still thinking about looking for a substring, just one of
a single character in length.

-Barry