[Python-Dev] Re: anonymous blocks

[Shane Hathaway]

Guido van Rossum wrote:
> I don't know. What exactly is the audience supposed to be of this
> high-level statement? It would be pretty darn impossible to explain
> even the for-statement to people who are new to programming, let alone
> generators. And yet explaining the block-statement *must* involve a
> reference to generators. I'm guessing most introductions to Python,
> even for experienced programmers, put generators off until the
> "advanced" section, because this is pretty wild if you're not used to
> a language that has something similar. (I wonder how you'd explain
> Python generators to an experienced Ruby programmer -- their mind has
> been manipulated to the point where they'd be unable to understand
> Python's yield no matter how hard they tried. :-)

I think this concept can be explained clearly.  I'd like to try
explaining PEP 340 to someone new to Python but not new to programming.
 I'll use the term "block iterator" to refer to the new type of
iterator.  This is according to my limited understanding.

"Good programmers move commonly used code into reusable functions.
Sometimes, however, patterns arise in the structure of the functions
rather than the actual sequence of statements.  For example, many
functions acquire a lock, execute some code specific to that function,
and unconditionally release the lock.  Repeating the locking code in
every function that uses it is error prone and makes refactoring difficult.

"Block statements provide a mechanism for encapsulating patterns of
structure.  Code inside the block statement runs under the control of an
object called a block iterator.  Simple block iterators execute code
before and after the code inside the block statement.  Block iterators
also have the opportunity to execute the controlled code more than once
(or not at all), catch exceptions, or receive data from the body of the
block statement.

"A convenient way to write block iterators is to write a generator.  A
generator looks a lot like a Python function, but instead of returning a
value immediately, generators pause their execution at "yield"
statements.  When a generator is used as a block iterator, the yield
statement tells the Python interpreter to suspend the block iterator,
execute the block statement body, and resume the block iterator when the
body has executed.

"The Python interpreter behaves as follows when it encounters a block
statement based on a generator.  First, the interpreter instantiates the
generator and begins executing it.  The generator does setup work
appropriate to the pattern it encapsulates, such as acquiring a lock,
opening a file, starting a database transaction, or starting a loop.
Then the generator yields execution to the body of the block statement
using a yield statement.  When the block statement body completes,
raises an uncaught exception, or sends data back to the generator using
a continue statement, the generator resumes.  At this point, the
generator can either clean up and stop or yield again, causing the block
statement body to execute again.  When the generator finishes, the
interpreter leaves the block statement."

Is it understandable so far?

Shane