making a class return None from __init__

[Erik Max Francis]

Aahz wrote:

> In article <3D9E0E80.36F8E03D at alcyone.com>,
> Erik Max Francis  <max at alcyone.com> wrote:
>
> >The proper way to handle this case is to raise an exception from the
> >constructor if something goes wrong.
> 
> __init__() is *NOT* a constructor, it's an initializer.  If you want a
> constructor, inherit from object and use __new__().

It's a constructor in the same way that a C++ or Java constructor is
one; this is standard terminology.  By the time the constructor gets
called, the object has already been created.  Strictly speaking it's an
initializer.  __new__ would be analogous to an overridden operator new
in C++, which is _not_ a constructor.

If you are trying to make a point that the role what is usually called a
"constructor" is really more along the lines of an initializer, the
point is well-taken, but I was using standard terminology in the
accepted way.

-- 
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