Request for feedback on my first Python program

[Aahz]

In article <mailman.1054429562.11692.python-list at python.org>,
Sean Legassick  <sean at datamage.net> wrote:
>In message <slrnbdeevn.694.andrew-usenet at athena.jcn.srcf.net>, Andrew 
>Walkingshaw <andrew-usenet at lexical.org.uk> writes
>>
>>def isMeaningful(line):
>>    if line != "" and line[0] != "#":
>>        return True
>>    else:
>>        return False
>
>Yuck!
>
>def isMeaningful(line):
>     return line != "" and line[0] != "#";
>
>No offence intended, but I've seen this too often in real code not to 
>point out its redundancy here.

It is *NOT* redundant; it is making clear that True/False are the only
possible return values.  With your rewrite, reading and understanding
the code is necessary to clarify the intent.
-- 
Aahz (aahz at pythoncraft.com)           <*>         http://www.pythoncraft.com/

"In many ways, it's a dull language, borrowing solid old concepts from
many other languages & styles:  boring syntax, unsurprising semantics,
few automatic coercions, etc etc.  But that's one of the things I like
about it."  --Tim Peters on Python, 16 Sep 93