[Python-Dev] Making None a keyword

[Guido van Rossum]

> Wouldn't it be nice if there were a collection of programs (perhaps
> those owned by registered paranoids, but whatever) that you could
> use to get statistics about breakage under some syntax change?

Yes. :-)

But I think syntax changes aren't even the tip of the iceberg --
semantic changes are relevant too.

> Clearly extending this through to run-time would add a huge testing
> infrastructure that would need maintaining, but allowing people to
> add their own codes to the syntax-checker base might mollify them a
> bit about the prospect of future language change.
> 
> Call it the PythOnGuard (TM) database. :-) - if your programs would
> break you'll be mailed before it's committed to production.

Sounds like some kind of huge test suite.  The problem is, there's
always *something* that breaks... :-(

--Guido van Rossum (home page: http://www.python.org/~guido/)