[Tutor] addressbook program

[Alan Gauld]

"FT" <chester_lab at fltg.net> wrote

> #Copying the Address Book With New Name!
> def copy_Book (book):
>     save = 1
>     file_name2 = text_Input(" Enter Name Of File To Save Address 
> Book:")
>     if file_name2 == "":
>         print "No File Saved!"
>        save = 0
>     if save == 1:
>        try:
>            store = open(file_name2, 'w')
>         except:
>            print "File Error! No File Saved!"
>            save = 0
>    if save == 1:
>        for name,entry in book.items():
>            store.write(name + '\n')
>            store.write(entry + '\n')
>        store.close()
>        print "%s File Saved and Closed!" % file_name2

This is unnecessarily complex. By rearranging the logic slightly we
can write it as:

def copy_Book (book):
     file_name2 = text_Input(" Enter Name Of File To Save Address 
Book:")
     if file_name2:
        try:
           store = open(file_name2, 'w')
           for name,entry in book.items():
              store.write(name + '\n')
              store.write(entry + '\n')
           store.close()
           print "%s File Saved and Closed!" % file_name2
        except:
            print "File Error! No File Saved!"
            return

However, I'd prefer to pass the filename in as an argument since
mixing processing and user interaction is usually a bad idea.
Also in the tutorial I don't use try/except because I haven't
covered them yet!

> #Getting User Input
> def get_Choice( menu, msg=""):
>     e=1
>     while e==1:
>         e=0
>         try:
>             choice =  key_input(msg)
>         except:
>             choice=0

Again the use of the e flag is making the structure more complex
than is necessary. In Python you can usually avoid the use of
such flags by reworking the logic - often by reversing a boolean
test as I did above.

> #DO TEXT INPUT WITH ENTRY ON NEXT LINE!
> def text_Input(prompt):
>     print prompt
>     return (raw_input(">> "))

Just use:

raw_input(prompt + "\n>> " )

> def add_Entry (book):
>     name = text_Input("Enter a name: ")
>     if name != "":
>         entry = text_Input("Enter Street, City/Town and Phone 
> Number: ")
>    if name != "" and entry != "":
>        book[ name.capitalize()] = entry
>    else:
>         print "No entry saved!"

Could be simplified to:

def add_Entry (book):
     name = text_Input("Enter a name: ")
     entry = text_Input("Enter Street, City/Town and Phone Number: ")
     if name and entry:
         book[ name.capitalize()] = entry
     else:
         print "No entry saved!"


> def key_input( msg):
>     "ENTER A KEY OR FUNCTION KEY, (ALT, CTRL, SHIFT...KEY)"
>     # clear the keyboard buffer
>     ch=""; ch1=""; sch=""
>     while msvcrt.kbhit():
>         ch = msvcrt.getch()

Given the OP was a novice I suspect this might be a tad advanced
at this stage :-)

-- 
Alan Gauld
Author of the Learn to Program web site
http://www.freenetpages.co.uk/hp/alan.gauld