[Python-Dev] Deprecation warning on integer shifts and such

[Guido van Rossum]

> >> Just a thougth: if it's true that those using hex() and %x are more
> >> interested in the bit values than the numerical value of the whole number,
> >> would a format like ~0xff000 be easier to interpret (and stop this debate) ?
> >
> >Hmm...  It has a perverse Pythonic smell...  But I fear it would
> >introduce more backwards incompatibilities, because it would have to
> >apply to longs as well, and hence change the output whenever a
> >negative long is converted to hex or octal.  (And what about %u?
> >Should "%u" % -1 return "~0" too?)
> 
> Didn't you say "%u" would be going away ?

Yes, but not any time soon.

> You're right about octal, that would be nice to change, too.
> Maybe the right time to do the change would be when the L goes away,
> since that would be similarly invasive ?

I see, you meant this idea for Python 3000, not for 2.3 or even 2.4.
That's fine, but doesn't help for the immediate pain.

--Guido van Rossum (home page: http://www.python.org/~guido/)