"Steven D'Aprano" <[email protected]> wrote
Actually, you can change a lot in Python, but often you shouldn't.
OK, I'll compromise and say you can change a bit.
But I define Python as the interpreter and standard library.
Any module you import, including builtins, can be monkey-patched
(modified on the fly), although that's rightfully considered to be
dangerous and best avoided except under very special circumstances.
OK, But by definition you can only do that from your own code,
so I'd argue thats not Python changing. But I'd admit its a grey
area depending on how you define Python and Change...
And of course when you start up Python, it reads a number of
environment
variables and config files, which give you an opportunity to have
Python remember your input from last session.
Actually thats true enough, and I hadn't thought about that.
You can create an arbitrary startup script that could potentially
even disable stdin or redirect it to an existing file such that it
always
reads the same input. Probably a very bad idea, but you could do it...
versions 2.6 to 2.5. Some people use it to customize things like the
prompt in the interactive interpreter, or install a tab-completion
module, provide history which survives shutting down the interpreter
(like most Linux shells already do), or otherwise provide added
functionality such as that provided by (e.g.) IPython.
Yes, and those are valid changes and the kinds of things I referred
to when I said you can''t change much. But those don't change how
Python runs a program.
My real concern was that it sounded like the OP was confused in
his mind about how much of the functionality was Python ( the
interpreter/language) and how much was his own code. Thats why
I made the distinction. It is important not to ascribe too much
"magic"
to Python.
So there are plenty of reasons to want Python to remember your
input,
and plenty of ways to do so.
I had forgotten the startup options so with that in mind I'll admit
that
yes, there are. Although for the specific example the OP gave they are
all either inappropriate or bad ideas.
--
Alan Gauld
Author of the Learn to Program web site
http://www.alan-g.me.uk/
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