[Python-Dev] Re: PEP 331: Locale-Independent Float/String Conversions

[P at draigBrady.com]

Christian Robottom Reis wrote:
> The LC_NUMERIC PEP has just been allocated a number, PEP 331. 
> 
>     http://www.python.org/peps/pep-0331.html
> 
> Though the code has been integrated, comments and corrections to the PEP
> would be appreciated -- in particular, Tim might have some comments on
> the thread-safety issues, Gustavo, about the implementation or Martin,
> about the actual constraints on the change itself.

Oh cool. Since we're now setting LC_NUMERIC at the glibc level
can we fix up locale.format. It's is very simplistic at the moment
as it groups %s items as numbers:
     locale.format("%s",1234,1) -> '1,234'
and treats non numbers as numbers:
      locale.format("%s\n",1234,1) -> '12,34\n'

This could be fixed by only allowing numbers in?
Better though would be to pass things down to glibc's snprintf
I.E. use the glibc facility of the ' modifier. e.g "%'d"
This applies to any decimal conversion (i,d,u,f,F,g,G)
You wouldn't have to use it directly, instead in locale.format()
you could add in a ' in the appropriate places.
Note the ' formating mechanism is SUSV2 not just glibc

Pádraig.