explicit self revisited

[Michele Simionato]

Peter Maas wrote:
> The Python FAQ 1.4.5 gives 3 reasons for explicit self (condensed version):
>
> 1. Instance variables can be easily distinguished from local variables.
>
> 2. A method from a particular class can be called as
>    baseclass.methodname(self, <argument list>).
>
> 3. No need for declarations to disambiguate assignments to local/instance
>    variables.
>
> All these reasons are valid and retained by the following suggestion: let
> self be represented by the dot <snip>

This suggestion has been discussed in the past (I remember having the
same idea
myself when I first learned Python). But at the end I believe the
explicit 'self' is
a better solution, because there are cases where it is useful to have
it (see Steven
d'Aprano's post) and also I like the fact that  I can spell it 'cls' in
classmethods and in
metaclasses. After a while one gets used to it and if you think a bit
it makes quite a
lot sense. Also, having the self explicit, makes Python object system
better (i.e.
it goes more in the direction of CLOS and less in the direction of
Java).

          Michele Simionato