how to read a syntax diagram

[Paul]

oops, please ignore the bit before "update(spreadsheetId=*, range=*, ..."

On Sun, May 27, 2018 at 9:17 PM, Paul <tallpaul at gmail.com> wrote:

> hi,
>    I'm using the Google Sheets API (the client library rather than the
> RESTful interface) and I'm confused about the meaning of the syntax
> diagrams.  This is from
> https://developers.google.com/resources/api-libraries/
> documentation/sheets/v4/python/latest/sheets_v4.spreadsheets.values.html#
> update
>
> efaults to ROWS.
>   }
>
> update(spreadsheetId=*, range=*, body=*, valueInputOption=None,
> x__xgafv=None, responseValueRenderOption=None,
> includeValuesInResponse=None, responseDateTimeRenderOption=None)
>
> Sets values in a range of a spreadsheet.
> The caller must specify the spreadsheet ID, range, and
> a valueInputOption.
>
> Args:
>   spreadsheetId: string, The ID of the spreadsheet to update. (required)
>   range: string, The A1 notation of the values to update. (required)
>   body: object, The request body. (required)
>     The object takes the form of:
>
> { # Data within a range of the spreadsheet.
>   "range": "A String", # The range the values cover, in A1 notation.
>       # For output, this range indicates the entire requested range,
>       # even though the values will exclude trailing rows and columns.
>       # When appending values, this field represents the range to search for a
>       # table, after which values will be appended.
>   "values": [ # The data that was read or to be written.  This is an array of arrays,
>       # the outer array representing all the data and each inner array
>       # representing a major dimension. Each item in the inner array
>       # corresponds with one cell.
>       #
>       # For output, empty trailing rows and columns will not be included.
>       #
>       # For input, supported value types are: bool, string, and double.
>       # Null values will be skipped.
>       # To set a cell to an empty value, set the string value to an empty string.
>     [
>       "",
>     ],
>   ],
>   "majorDimension": "A String", # The major dimension of the values.
>       #
>       # For output, if the spreadsheet data is: `A1=1,B1=2,A2=3,B2=4`,
>       # then requesting `range=A1:B2,majorDimension=ROWS` will return
>       # `[[1,2],[3,4]]`,
>       # whereas requesting `range=A1:B2,majorDimension=COLUMNS` will return
>       # `[[1,3],[2,4]]`.
>       #
>       # For input, with `range=A1:B2,majorDimension=ROWS` then `[[1,2],[3,4]]`
>       # will set `A1=1,B1=2,A2=3,B2=4`. With `range=A1:B2,majorDimension=COLUMNS`
>       # then `[[1,2],[3,4]]` will set `A1=1,B1=3,A2=2,B2=4`.
>       #
>       # When writing, if this field is not set, it defaults to ROWS.
> }
>
>   valueInputOption: string, How the input data should be interpreted....// I CUT IT OFF, HERE
>
>
> My specific questions are:
>    1) is this standard (python?) syntax notation?  I haven't found a key
> to this form of documentation.
>    1)  What does  '=*' mean?
>    2)  What does '=None' mean?    [my guess is that this means "no default
> value"].
>    3)  Note that it says that range is required.  Through trial, I see
> that *one* of the 'range' specifications is required.  I.E., I can specify
> 'range' outside body, or 'range' as part of body, or both, but I must have
> 'range' someplace.   This is a bit confusing to me ( as opposed to my usual
> understanding of "required").  Also, what does range mean, in these two
> different spots, and what does it mean if two different values of range are
> specified?
>
> thanks
>   Paul Czyzewski
>