[Tutor] Anti-Patterns in Python Programming

[Joseph Lee]

Hi Deb and others,
Answers are below.

-----Original Message-----
From: Deb Wyatt [mailto:codemonkey at inbox.com] 
Sent: Friday, July 11, 2014 9:51 PM
To: Joseph Lee; tutor at python.org
Subject: RE: [Tutor] Anti-Patterns in Python Programming




Thank you for answering.  I used to be a Clipper/dBase programmer years ago.
I got sick, couldn't work, and technology passed me by.  I've always been
kind of ticked off that my career was short circuited because of illness, so
I decided to see if I could get a handle on OOP. 
The more I learn about Python, the more I loved it.

JL: Ah, OOP (Object-oriented Programming), a very treasured territory in
some circles. Python does have facilities for OOP, namely classes, objects
(in fact, objects are first-class citizens in Python world), inheritance and
polymorphism (actually, those who've dealt with sequences may have noticed
that Python can iterate through them no matter which type it is, an example
of polymorphism). From reading the list archives, if I understand your
background, it appears that there are certain things that you might want to
get acquainted coming from a language like Basic, such as syntax
differences, indentation (I usually use tabs for four spaces for my code)
and transplanting what you know from 80's and 90's to 2010's. I'm sure there
are books and sites which talks about Python from another language's point
of view (I know there is a book out there called "C++ for Java
programmers").

Message:
So much has been invented since my dos programming days and it is
overwhelming, but I'm having the time of my life learning all this stuff. My
head explodes quite often :).

JL: Yes, there were more inventions since then, including Linux (which I use
as a virtual machine), GUI frameworks such as WXPython and QT and so on (web
programming included). But the concepts that were invented way back still
apply here, including console input and output, memory access (no, not
directly at first), network programming and string manipulation (Python is
good as an instant noodle-type of meal - that is, verifying your idea
quickly via interpreter, as it checks your input for you and displays what
it thinks it's doing). Please let us know if you'd like explanations (if
searching on Google fails, the next best place to ask would be here and
other lists you're in).
BTW, Python is a fun language with lots of fuel to last you a long time (I
mean it).
P.S. I know at least one programmer onboard who comes from COBOL, so he
might have something to say about transitioning to a new language.
Cheers,
Joseph
University of California, Riverside 
Translator and code contributor, NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access)

  

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