Can global variable be passed into Python function?

[Mark Lawrence]

On 01/03/2014 00:40, Ned Batchelder wrote:
> On 2/28/14 6:36 PM, Mark H. Harris wrote:
>> On Friday, February 28, 2014 3:03:25 PM UTC-6, Marko Rauhamaa wrote:
>>>
>>> Marko
>>
>>     ...  and between me and you, here is a snip from dmath.py from the
>> atan(x) function:
>>
>>      if (n**2 < D(1)):
>>          a = __atan__(n)
>>      elif (n == D(1)):
>>          a = gpi/4
>>      elif (n == D(-1)):
>>          a = -(gpi/4)
>>      elif (n < D(-1)):
>>          a = __atan__Lt_neg1__(n)
>>      else:
>>          a = __atan__Gt_1__(n)
>>
>>     This if--elif--else  is not only ugly, its just not readable
>> either, and besides that, its not elegant, nor is it humanly
>> helpful...   its does work though, and its absolutely necessary.   ugh.
>>
>>     First, its not immediately clear what it does. Well, there isn't
>> just one atan(x) routine,  there are at least four of them, depending
>> on whether you're a purist, and they must be selected.
>>
>>     Second, because of the strict intent ideology of python in the
>> first place, I can't indent this code to make it more readable without
>> breaking python's syntax.
>>
>>     Third, this is a VERY simple if elif block.  More complex ones are
>> much worse... for human reading that is...
>>
>>       I know its a pain in the neck, but python does need a switch
>> statement.   Is it a stubborn question?  I don't really think that
>> almost every modern computer language has a switch block because of
>> some C paradigm. I think its because most coders find them useful, at
>> least readable, and therefore essential.
>
> I don't understand: you show an if/elif chain that cannot be expressed
> as a switch statement (because it uses < ), and then conclude that
> Python needs a switch statement?  That doesn't make any sense.
>

What a sneaky trick, trying to confuse people here with mere *FACTS* :)

-- 
My fellow Pythonistas, ask not what our language can do for you, ask 
what you can do for our language.

Mark Lawrence

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