[Python-Dev] Unittest PEP do's and don'ts (BDFL pronouncement)

[Steve Holden]

Guido van Rossum wrote:
> On Wed, Jul 16, 2008 at 7:42 PM, Ben Finney <ben+python at benfinney.id.au> wrote:
>> The result I'm trying to avoid by this is that of having the
>> externally visible behaviour of functions drift from the promise made
>> by their names. Either rename the function, or create a new one for
>> the new functionality.
> 
> Oh get over it. This is getting ridiculous. Where did you *get* these
> design "principles" you are so fond of? Read the zen of Python and
> come back after you've memorized it.
> 
Thank you. I was about to suggest that len() should be renamed 
length_or_raise_exception_if_not_a_container().

But then I did remark (before I stopped adding to this thread's 
interminable length, some aeons ago) that this was getting silly. 
Someone would surely have replied that the proposal had negative 
connotations and the correct name was really 
length_as_long_as_a_container. Or something equally trivial.

regards
  Steve
-- 
Steve Holden        +1 571 484 6266   +1 800 494 3119
Holden Web LLC              http://www.holdenweb.com/