Extracting matrix from a text file

[Mark Lawrence]

telekab1 at hotmail.com wrote:
> Hello to all!!
> 
> I am new in python, and I am running it on Mac with Smultron editor. I
> need to read a textfile that includes numbers (in a matrix form),
> indexes, and strings, like this:
> 
> Marsyas-kea distance matrix for MIREX 2007 Audio Similarity Exchange
> Q/R        1                   2                   3
> 4                5
> 1        0                  4.54592        4.36685
> 5.29463        3.85728
> 2        4.54592        0                  3.97667
> 5.02151        4.64284
> 3        4.36685        3.97667        0
> 4.98743        4.83683
> 4        5.29463        5.02151        4.98743
> 0                  6.04393
> 5        3.85728        4.64284        4.83683        6.04393        0
> 
> My code to get this information is:
> 
> matrix = open("dmatrix_5.txt");
> 
> while 1:
>     mat = matrix.readline()
>     if not mat:
>     	break
>     pass # do something
>     print mat
> 
> 
> 
> So I just want to keep the matrix in the "middle" for math
> computations.
> 
>         0                  4.54592        4.36685
> 5.29463        3.85728
>         4.54592        0                  3.97667
> 5.02151        4.64284
>         4.36685        3.97667        0
> 4.98743        4.83683
>         5.29463        5.02151        4.98743
> 0                  6.04393
>         3.85728        4.64284        4.83683        6.04393        0
> 
> 
> I've seen and tried a lot of ways, like split or isinstance.. but
> never get the wanted result.... does anyone have an idea, or hint?
> Thank you once more for your help!
> 
> Best Regards,
> Bea
I think your best bet is to read and action the responses you got to 
your original email from three days ago.  If these have got lost in the 
post simply search online, they're bound to be archived somewhere.

-- 
Kindest regards.

Mark Lawrence.