static keyword

[Nick Jacobson]

> 
> Why do you call using OO ("wrapping it in a class", as you say)
> a "hack"?  Generally speaking, using objects to contain state
> information such as this is exactly what most people would call
> the cleanest, best approach.
> 
> class HasState:
>      def __init__(self):
>          self.firstCall = True
>          self.i = [10, 11]
> 
>      def foo(self):
>          if self.firstCall:
>              print "First pass"
>              self.firstCall = False
>          self.i[0] += 1
>          print self.i[0]
> 
> obj = HasState()
> obj.foo()
> obj.foo()
> 
> Now, without arguing that it has 11 lines instead of 8 to do the
> same thing (because then I'd just point out that this was a contrived
> example anyway, and that it is more easily extended, and more obvious
> what was going on, etc. :-) ), can you describe why you call this is
> a "hack"?
> 
> -Peter

I don't know if "hack" is the right word.  What I meant is it seems
like overkill to have to make (and name) a class, plus add a second
function, every time you want a function to have a static variable.