Is 'everything' a refrence or isn't it?

Antoon Pardon apardon at forel.vub.ac.be
Mon Jan 9 05:50:49 EST 2006


Op 2006-01-06, Steven D'Aprano schreef <steve at REMOVETHIScyber.com.au>:
> If we say "Python is call be reference" (or call by value, as many people
> also say) we *know* the consequence will be newbies writing in saying "I
> was told Python is call by reference, so I did this, and it didn't work,
> is that a bug in Python? What is wrong?" It is not a bug in Python, it is
> a bug in their mental model of how Python works, and we put that bug in
> their head. Every time that happens, it is *our* fault, not theirs, for
> using language guaranteed to mislead.

Well then I would think that the language that misleads is not
"reference" but assignment. Because it is not their idea of
call by reference that leads to the misconception, but their
idea of what an assignment does.

-- 
Antoon Pardon



More information about the Python-list mailing list