[Python-ideas] bool keyword: (was [Python-Dev] bool conversion wart?)

[Collin Winter]

On 3/2/07, Ron Adam <rrr at ronadam.com> wrote:
> Collin Winter wrote:
> > On 3/2/07, Ron Adam <rrr at ronadam.com> wrote:
> >> Josiah Carlson wrote:
> >> > Ron Adam <rrr at ronadam.com> wrote:
> >> >> Interpretation:
> >> >>
> >> >> The "small" inconsistency (if any) here is the 'not' keyword vs the
> >> >> 'bool()' constructor. They pretty much do the same thing yet work in
> >> >> modestly different ways.
> >> >
> >> > Maybe I'm missing something, but is there a place where the
> >> following is
> >> > true?
> >> >
> >> >     (not not x) != bool(x)
> >> >
> >> > I can't think of any that I've ever come across.
> >> >
> >> >  - Josiah
> >>
> >> I don't think you are missing anything.  I did say it was a *small*
> >> inconsistency in how they are used in relation to 'and', 'or' and 'not'.
> >> ie.. a constructor vs a keyword in a similar situation.
> >
> > 'and', 'or' and 'not' are operators (and hence keywords) because
> > making them functions is incredibly ugly: and(or(a, b), not(c)).
>
> I agree.
>
> > Changing "bool(x)" to "bool x" introduces a much larger inconsistency
> > between bool and the other built-in types.
>
> A bool keyword would not be a built-in type but be an operator just like
> 'and', 'or', and 'not'.  So it would be even more consistent.
[snip]
> Bool() with a capital 'B' would be the built in type and only the very
> *tiny* naming inconsistency of the capital 'B' would exist in relation to
> 'int' and the other built_in types.
>
> So I think this adds more consistency than it does inconsistency.

Added consistency:
- Things related to booleans are operators (bool, not, and, or).

Added inconsistency:
- The Bool type does not follow the same naming convention as int,
float, dict, list, tuple and set.
- There's now a keyword that has 99% of the same spelling, fulfills
*fewer* of the same uses-cases and has the *exact* same semantics as a
built-in constructor/function.


That's a bizarre trade-off. -1000.

Collin Winter