[Python-ideas] Verbatim names (allowing keywords as names)

[Paul Moore]

On 16 May 2018 at 09:56, Eric V. Smith <eric at trueblade.com> wrote:
> On 5/16/18 4:47 AM, Eric V. Smith wrote:
>>
>> On 5/16/18 4:13 AM, Paul Moore wrote:
>
>
>>> Can you give a worked example of how this would
>>> help if we wanted to introduce a new keyword? For example, if we
>>> intended to make "where" a keyword, what would numpy and its users
>>> need to do to continue using `numpy.where`?
>>
>>
>> I think they'd have to change to `numpy.\where` when `where` became a
>> keyword.
>
>
> To be clear: this would apply to any code that uses numpy.where, not just
> the code that defines it.
>
> The only way to bullet-proof your code so that it would never need any
> modifications in the future would be to put a backslash in front of every
> identifier. Or maybe just all-lowercase identifiers, since we're unlikely to
> make a keyword with uppercase chars in it.
>
> And since no one in their right mind would do that, there's still the risk
> of your code breaking in the future. But at least there would be a way of
> fixing it in a way that would work both with old versions of python where
> the identifier isn't a keyword, and for versions where it is. That is, once
> "old versions" include ones that support verbatim names.

That's about what I thought - thanks.
Paul