[Python-ideas] Why was Path.path added?

[Paul Moore]

On 21 April 2016 at 07:38, Antony Lee <antony.lee at berkeley.edu> wrote:
> Well, it's already there and it's probably too late to remove it, but

pathlib is provisional, so it *can* be removed (and indeed probably
will be - see the endless threads here and on python-dev)

> introducing the idiom
>
> path_str = getattr(arg, "path", arg)
>
>
> was not necessary: you could also write
>
> path_str = str(Path(arg))
>
>
> which works just as well.

The latter requires you to import pathlib, which is not Python
2.7-compatible. A minor point, but one reason why the path attribute
offers simpler code. Also, str(Path(arg)) applies an unnecessary call
to Path() if arg is already a path. (And str(arg) is not OK, as it
will also accept things like ints).

If you want the full details, please read the various threads that
have been going on here for about a month. It isn't worth reiterating
the debate again, I'm afraid - most people are fairly burned out on
pathlib discussions by now.

Paul