[Python-ideas] Where did we go wrong with negative stride?

[MRAB]

On 31/10/2013 00:05, אלעזר wrote:
> 2013/10/31 MRAB <python at mrabarnett.plus.com>:
>> On 30/10/2013 23:00, Eric Snow wrote:
>>>
>>> On Wed, Oct 30, 2013 at 4:47 PM, Terry Reedy <tjreedy at udel.edu> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> I though of using a magic symbol, $, for that -- a[$-n]. But aside from
>>>> the issue of using one of the 2 remaining unused ascii symbols for
>>>> something that can already be done, it would not work in a slice call.
>>>
>>>
>>> Is that like where you have 1 more shot on your camera and you don't
>>> want to use it for fear that something more spectacular might show up
>>> afterward?  (and hope that you didn't leave your lens cap on when you
>>> finally take the picture!)  :-)
>>>
>> I don't think it's that bad; I count 3: "!", "$" and "?". :-)
>>
> Can't it be done by adding a __sub__ method to len?
>
> a[:len-n]
>
> Readable and short.
>
-1

I don't like how it makes that function special. I'd much prefer "end"
(or "End") instead.