Noob in Python. Problem with fairly simple test case

[Chris Angelico]

On Fri, Jul 17, 2015 at 2:15 PM, Rick Johnson
<rantingrickjohnson at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Thursday, July 16, 2015 at 9:44:56 PM UTC-5, Steven D'Aprano wrote:
>> [...] My take from all this is that overall, Python 3
>> take-up is probably > around 10% of all Python users,
>
> All that rambling just to agree with me? My educated guess
> is a minimum of 75% still using Python2.x. But i'll take
> your 90% because it makes my argument stronger! O:-D

You said "vast majority". That's not 75:25, which is just a 3:1 ratio.

> Well, that's one way of coping with it. I know a lot of
> folks worked hard to get Python3 up and running, but they
> need to realize that these sort of transitions take time.
> Heck, there is always the possibility that Python3 never
> gets any real traction. Until it's usage reaches 50%, it's
> only spinning tires in the mud, digging a deeper hole.

Given how easily the two coexist, I would say that demanding 50%
before giving Py3 any respect at all is a bit presumptuous. Py3 has
already gained very real traction; it just hasn't achieved a majority
of usage.

> Not to mention the elephant in the room: We have been moving
> towards mobile and cloud ubiquity, and this trend is not
> going to stop. If Python wants to survive it had better
> start adapting, and adapting fast. If not, it shall become
> just another forgotten language relegated to obscurity
> within the dark corners of academia.

Mobile is just how people access things. Usually there has to be a
server on the back end. "Cloud" also implies some sort of server. What
languages are people using on servers? Python is right up there among
them. The basic notion of client-server infrastructure has been around
for three parts of forever, and it isn't going anywhere.

Thank you for your FUD. Allow me to offer my preferred alternative.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6e1hZGDaqIw

ChrisA