[Python-Dev] Int FutureWarnings and other 2.4 TODOs

[Nick Coghlan]

Guido van Rossum wrote:
> I don't particularly like either approach, because the 'long' type is
> an implementation detail over which the user has no control (this is a
> change of heart since Python's original design!).  I guess that means
> I have to work harder and make the single int type support both
> representations.  I'm sure it can be done.

Isn't the 'long' format the more general representation, with the 'int' 
format then being a performance hack to take advantage of the speed of C 
integer arithmetic?

I'm just wondering if a different way of thinking about it might help 
with figuring out how to handle a combined implementation.

Cheers,
Nick.