Any other Python flaws?

Paul Prescod paulp at ActiveState.com
Fri Jun 15 18:54:33 EDT 2001


Mitch Chapman wrote:
> 
>...
> 
> I need to manage long-running, parameter-rich computations from
> GUI applications while still responding to the user.  I think I
> need threads because they make it easier to exchange all of those
> parameters between the GUI controller and the background computation
> than do separate processes.  I think I need processes because I
> need to be able to cancel the background computation.  

When I need to do something like that I do this:

while not self._cancel:
    do_more_computation()

Then I let the controller thread flick the do_more_computation switch.
This is not convenient but it not as inconvenient as separate processes.
Even if it takes a second for the UI to tell the background process to
halt, that is better than hanging the *entire UI* for a second at a
time.

-- 
Take a recipe. Leave a recipe.  
Python Cookbook!  http://www.ActiveState.com/pythoncookbook




More information about the Python-list mailing list