Confused: Newbie Function Calls

[Robert Kern]

On 8/11/10 11:07 AM, fuglyducky wrote:
> I am a complete newbie to Python (and programming in general) and I
> have no idea what I'm missing. Below is a script that I am trying to
> work with and I cannot get it to work. When I call the final print
> function, nothing prints. However, if I print within the individual
> functions, I get the appropriate printout.
>
> Am I missing something??? Thanks in advance!!!!
>
> ################################################
> # Global variable
> sample_string = ""
>
> def gen_header(sample_string):
>      HEADER = """
>      mymultilinestringhere
>      """
>
>      sample_string += HEADER
>      return sample_string

By default, all assignments inside of a function are local to the function. Even 
augmented assignments like +=. Python strings are immutable, so

   sample_string += HEADER

works exactly like

   sample_string = sample_string + HEADER

The string referred to by the global name sample_string is never modified and 
the global name is never reassigned.

http://docs.python.org/py3k/tutorial/classes.html#python-scopes-and-namespaces

> gen_header(sample_string)
> gen_nia(sample_string)
>
> print(sample_string)

You probably want something like the following:

sample_string = gen_header(sample_string)
sample_string = gen_nia(sample_string)

print(sample_string)

-- 
Robert Kern

"I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma
  that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had
  an underlying truth."
   -- Umberto Eco