[Python-Dev] PEP 201 - Parallel iteration

[M.-A. Lemburg]

Moshe Zadka wrote:
> 
> (assume a = [1, 2, 3])
> 
> On Mon, 17 Jul 2000, Gordon McMillan wrote:
> 
> > How about a fourth: zip(a) is the same as zip(a, []) ?
> 
> Huh???????????????????

I think he meant: zip((a,[]))
 
> > Look at it this way: what should zip(a, pad=None) return?
> 
> [(1,), (2,), (3,)], of course
> 
> > Obviously: [(1, None), (2, None), (3, None)]
> 
> Why?

Good question ;-)

Here's another one: why should zip() have this special case
at all ? I mean, have you ever seen a zipper with only one
part ? Ok, there is one-hand clapping, but I wouldn't consider
this the normal mode of operation ;-) IMHO, all the special
casing does is mask programming errors.

And another one: zip() as defined is an operation which is -- in
some respects -- the inverse of itself, yet the name does not
carry this information. You can't zip a zipper twice. The
mathematical operation behind it is called transposition
(you view the sequence of sequences as matrix), so in that
light the natural name would be transpose()...
tranpose(transpose(matrix))) has the same structure as matrix
itself.

-- 
Marc-Andre Lemburg
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