Late-binding of function defaults (was Re: What is a function parameter =[] for?)

[Antoon Pardon]

Op 25-11-15 om 14:24 schreef Chris Angelico:
> On Wed, Nov 25, 2015 at 11:25 PM, Antoon Pardon
> <antoon.pardon at rece.vub.ac.be> wrote:
>>> But there's a big difference between those who guess wrong from a position
>>> of ignorance, and then make an honest attempt to understand the behaviour
>>> and why it actually does make sense and is even sometimes useful (even if
>>> they don't like it), and those people who insist that it is nonsensical,
>>> magical and "bizarre".
>> There is an equally big difference between trying to explain what is going
>> on and insisting that what is going on is not bizarre.
> There is also a big difference between finding that something doesn't
> match your expectations and declaring that it is "bizarre", which
> implies that it makes no sense *to anyone*. What we've been pointing
> out to you is that Python's way *does* make sense - just a different
> sense from the one you're expecting.

I find the above a very defensive attitude. People are mostly not
very accurate in how they put things into words. People tend to
say that something was delicious instead of saying that they
found it delicious. So when someone declares as aspect of python
to be bizarre I interpret that as an indication of what impression
that aspect made on that person instead of some declaration of fact.
So stop feeling attacked because someone found something bizarre.

You also seem to think that bizarre contradicts making sense. It
is entirly possible to understand what is going on and still find
it bizarre that the designers allowed for certain kinds or result.

> If you want to call Python's system "bizarre", you have to show more
> than just that your expectations weren't matched by the language. You
> have to show that Python lacks internal sense or consistency. You
> have, so far, not shown anything of the kind, ergo we are continuing
> to insist that Python is NOT bizarre.

No I don't have to show any such thing. There are things with an internal
sense of consistency that can be found utterly bizarre. I also find it
telling that you go from me talking about someone thinking that what is
going on in a specific aspect of python being bizarre, to regarding 
such a person as calling Python's system "bizarre", as if judging one
aspect is like judging the whole system. 

-- 
Antoon.