[Python-ideas] PEP 3101 (Advanced string formatting) base 36 integer presentation type

[Ethan Furman]

Antoine Pitrou wrote:
> On Fri, 07 Oct 2011 21:14:44 -0600
> Jeffrey <jss.bulk at gmail.com> wrote:
>> I would like to suggest adding an integer presentation type for base 36
>> to PEP 3101.  I can't imagine that it would be a whole lot more
>> difficult than the existing types.  Python's built-in long integers
>> provide a nice way to prototype and demonstrate cryptographic
>> operations, especially with asymmetric cryptography.  (Alice and Bob
>> stuff.)  Built-in functions provide modular reduction, modular
>> exponentiation, and lots of nice number theory stuff that supports a
>> variety of protocols and algorithms.  A frequent need is to represent a
>> message by a number.  Base 36 provides a way to represent all 26 letters
>> in a semi-standard way, and simple string transformations can
>> efficiently make zeros into spaces or vice versa.
> 
> Why base 36 rather than, say, base 64 or even base 80?

Because there are 26 ascii letters and 10 ascii digits?

~Ethan~