[Python-Dev] Priority queue (binary heap) python code

[Gustavo Niemeyer]

> I don't know how efficient it would be, but I usually think that most
> applications have a small, fixed set of possible priorities, like ("low",
> "medium", "high") or ("info", "warning", "error", "fatal").  In this sort of
> situation my initial inclination would be to implement a dict of Queue
> instances which corresponds to the fixed set of priorities, something like:

If priority queues were to be included, I'd rather add the necessary
support in Queue to easily attach priority handling, if that's not
already possible. Maybe adding a generic **kw parameter, and passing it
to _put() could help a bit.

The applications of a priority Queue I've used until now weren't able
to use your approach. OTOH, there are many cases where you're right, and
we could benefit from this.

If it's of common sense that priority queues are that useful, we should
probably add one or two subclasses of Queue in the Queue module (one
with your approach and one with the more generic one).  Otherwise,
subclassing Queue is already easy enough, IMO (adding the **kw
suggestion would avoid overloading put(), and seems reasonable to me).

Thanks!

-- 
Gustavo Niemeyer

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