[Python-Dev] Breaking undocumented API

[Łukasz Langa]

Am 17.11.2010 14:11, schrieb Michael Foord:
> I don't think those reasons are compelling and the cost of splitting 
> the Python development style guide into multiple documents are higher. 
> (They run the risk of contradicting each other, if you want to find a 
> particular rule you have multiple places to check, there is no single 
> authoritative place to send people, people *wanting* to base documents 
> off the Python style rules now have to refer to multiple places, etc.)
>
> So -1 on splitting Python development style guide into multiple 
> documents.
>

Bah, again my English skills failed me in a critical moment ;) I was 
proposing creation of PEP 88 to supersede PEP 8. This would be better 
IMO for the following reasons:

1. Existing projects wouldn't have to explain afterwards why they differ 
from PEP 8, e.g. in terms of public/private API declaration. "Your 
project claims PEP8 conformance! Why don't you use __all__?" "Ah, that 
was before they've added this part to PEP8."

2. All other projects (new and old) would have a much more explicit 
(better than implicit) sign that *something significant has changed* in 
the recommended style.

3. As someone already said, PEP8 is not visible enough. Transition from 
PEP 8 to PEP 88 could help to make some hype that would help raise the 
awareness within the community.

Mutating PEP8 is bad form. We fight mercilessly over source code 
backwards compatibility so I think PEPs should be taken just as 
seriously in that regard.


Łukasz