Request for feedback on my first Python program

[Erik Max Francis]

Scott Meyers wrote:

>   - I'm used to a compiler complaining if I reference a variable
>     without
>     declaring it.  Python doesn't do this, nor can I find mention of
>     some
>     kind of warning mode that will cause it to do it.  I've also read
>     a
>     tiny little bit about pyChecker.  Is it common to use such tools,
>     or do
>     real Python programmers go bareback?

It's hard to see how you would do this in Python, since Python lacks
declarations.  It's legal to reference a variable if you've already
defined it; it isn't otherwise (you get a NameError exception).

PyChecker can help with some systematic errors like this, and is always
worth running on any large project just as a sanity check, but
ultimately dynamic programming involves a different approach.

>   - Is it better to get into the habit of (a) importing modules and
>     using
>     fully qualified names or (b) importing selective names from
>     modules and
>     using them without qualification?  That is, which is generally
>     better?
> 
>       import sys               # a
>       sys.exit(1)
> 
>       from sys import exit     # b
>       exit(1)

It's mostly a matter of style; I personally prefer the former unless
that creates hugely long names in the code).  I would tend to say that
the latter approach is appropriate when you only need a few things from
the module in question.  if you're using quite a bit of it, the former
notation makes more sense (except, of course, when it results in long
names; then importing an intermediate package would probably be
warranted).

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