Signature-based Function Overloading in Python

[Jean-Michel Pichavant]

Jean-Michel Pichavant wrote:
> Michael Rudolf wrote:
>> First: Thanks for all the replies so far, they really helped me.
>>
>> Am 24.02.2010 11:28, schrieb Jean-Michel Pichavant:
>>>> >>> def a(x=None):
>>>>     if x is None:
>>>>         pass
>>>>     else:
>>>>         pass
>>>>
>>> This is the way to do it python, and it has its advantages: 1 
>>> docstring,
>>> 1 way do do it, 1 interface.
>>
>> Yes, I see. Actually I do now realize that even in Java I use method 
>> overloading mostly to implement optional arguments anyway, like:
>>
>> void constructor(){this.foo='foo'; this.initotherstuff();}
>> void constructor(int x) {this.x=x; this.constructor();}
>>
>> and so on.
>>
>> So most of the time the idiom above is exactly what I need, as the 
>> versions of the function share code anyway.
>>
>> But there are also cases where they do something completely different 
>> - in these cases I might use one of the other solutions provided here 
>> or simply make two or three functions and name them appropiately.
>>
>> I do now see that the pythonic approach is the "best" for most cases, 
>> but I really loved to see that you *can* do overloading in a 
>> convenient way if you really want to :D Those decorators just rock :D
>>
>> Thanks again,
>> Michael
> You said it yourself: "simply make two or three functions and name 
> them appropiately" :-)
>
> When 2 methods of a class were to have the same name for doing 
> completely different things like you said, there's a design flaw to my 
> opinion.
>
> JM
I wonder if I've just written that my opinion is flawed... It surely is, 
but that's not why I meant :-)

JM