assert 0, "foo" vs. assert(0, "foo")

[Scott David Daniels]

Thomas Guettler wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> Python 2.3.3 (#1, Feb  5 2005, 16:22:10) [GCC 3.3.3 (SuSE Linux)] on linux2
> 
>>>>assert 0, "foo"
> 
> Traceback (most recent call last):
>   File "<stdin>", line 1, in ?
> AssertionError: foo
> 
>>>>assert(0, "foo")
>>>>
> 
> 
> If you use parenthesis for the assert statement, it never
> raises an exception.
> 
> Up to now I raised strings, but since this is deprecated,
> I switched to use the second argument for the assert
> statement.
> 
> Is it possible to change future python versions, that
> assert accept parenthesis?
You are confusing assert with raise.

     assert test, text

behaves like:

     if __debug__ and test:
         raise AssertionError, text

As far as raise goes, where you have been writing:

     raise "some complaint"

you could simply use:

     raise ValueError, "some complaint"

or:

     raise ValueError("some complaint")

--Scott David Daniels
Scott.Daniels at Acm.Org