Test for an empty directory that could be very large if it is not empty?

[Ben Finney]

Tim Chase <python.list at tim.thechases.com> writes:

> The difference in timings when serving a web-request are noticeable
> (in my use-case, I had to change my algorithm and storage structure to
> simplify/avoid heavily-populated directories)

So, if the requirement is “test whether the directory is empty faster
than N microseconds”, that's quite different from “without the
generation of a list of the file names”.

The former may entail the latter, but that's not to be assumed, and
chasing an optimisation prematurely is a common cause of terrible code.

Therefore, I'm asking the OP what is their (so far unstated) reason for
caring about the implementation of a standard library call.

Without that, it would be folly to try to suggest a solution. With that,
it may turn out the stated requirement isn't relevant for satisfying the
actual requirement. I don't know (and it's possible the OP doesn't
know) the relevance of the “create a list of entries” part, so I asked.

-- 
 \         “Science is a way of trying not to fool yourself. The first |
  `\     principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the |
_o__)               easiest person to fool.” —Richard P. Feynman, 1964 |
Ben Finney