iterating over a variable which could be None, a single object, or a list

[Stefan Behnel]

adam carr wrote:
> I call a function get_items() which returns a list of items.
> However, in some cases, it returns just one item.
> It returns the item as an object though, not as a list containing one object.
> In other cases it simply returns None.
> 
> What is the cleanest way to iterate over the return value of this function?
> Or would it be better to fix the get_items() function itself to always
> return lists no matter what?

Given the name "get_items()" in plural, I'd opt for letting it always
return a list. That also reduces the special case of returning None, where
it would now return an empty list.

Stefan