[Python-ideas] [Python-Dev] What's the status of PEP 505: None-aware operators?

[Nick Coghlan]

On 29 November 2017 at 21:53, Serhiy Storchaka <storchaka at gmail.com> wrote:
> 29.11.17 11:45, Steven D'Aprano пише:
>> On Wed, Nov 29, 2017 at 09:14:12AM +0200, Serhiy Storchaka wrote:
>>> What is the syntax of the ternary operator in these languages?
>>
>> All four use:
>>
>>      condition ? first : second
>>
>> for the ternary if operator.
>
> If all four use ?, it is natural that in operators which are shortcuts of
> the ternary operator they use ?. But in Python the bar of introducing ? is
> higher.

It's also noteworthy that they all offer "&&" and "||" as short
circuiting "and" and "or" operators. When you have that pattern
established, then "??" fits right in.

With Python's only spelling for the logical operators being "and" and
"or", the cryptic unpronounceable nature of "??" becomes much harder
to ignore.

   "a and b" -> pronounced "a and b"
   "a or b" -> pronounced "a or b"
   "a ?? b" -> pronounced "a <what??> b"

The only potentially pronounceable versions I've been able to come up
with are a fair bit longer:

    "a if def else b" -> pronounced "a if defined, else b"
    "a if ?? is not None else b" -> pronounced "a if the leftmost
operand is not None, else b"
    "a if ?? is None else ??.b" -> pronounced "a if the leftmost
operand is None, else the leftmost operand dot b"

(The last two examples there are a version where "??" appearing in
either the condition expression or the RHS of a conditional expression
would cause the leftmost operand to be eagerly evaluated, placed in a
hidden temporary variable and then referenced multiple times as a
subexpression. A similar construct could then also be used in filter
expressions in comprehensions to refer back to the loop's result
clause: "[f(x) for x in iterable if ?? is not None]". It's still
magical and hard to look up syntax, but "??" as a magic placeholder to
say "Reference the leftmost operand in the current expression here,
but still only evaluate it once" seems nicer to me than using it as a
cryptic binary operator)

Cheers,
Nick.

-- 
Nick Coghlan   |   ncoghlan at gmail.com   |   Brisbane, Australia