[newbie questions] if conditions - if isset - if empty

[Mahmoud Abdel-Fattah]

Hello,

I'm coming from PHP background ant totally new to Python, I just started
using scrapy, but has some generic question in python.

1. How can I write the following code in easier way in Python ?
if len(item['description']) > 0:
            item['description'] = item['description'][0]
        else:
            item['description'] = ''


In PHP I can write it as follows :
$item['description'] = (len(item['description']) > 0)
? item['description'][0] : '';

 So, is there similar way in Python ?



2. How can I check if this variable defined or not, in PHP I can use
isset();, in other way, how can I make the following syntax in Python ?
$variable = isset($array['element']) ? true : false;



Thanks a lot,
Mahmoud
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