[Python-Dev] Consenting adults considered beneficial [was: How far to go with user-friendliness]

[Stephen J. Turnbull]

Robert Collins writes:

 > I rejected an argument that just because some APIs are are
 > intrinsically able to be misused, that we should not try to write
 > better APIs.

Well, at least to me what you wrote was inconsistent with that
explanation of what you wanted to express:

 >> What I am doing is rejecting the argument that because we can't
 >> fix every mis-use users might make, we therefore should not fix
 >> the cases where we can fix it.

As far as I can tell, that sentence says it is permissible to "fix"
*user mis-use* of APIs, not the Python *APIs themselves*, and in
context it seemed to imply we *should* "fix" user code (perhaps by
invalidating it, as this feature in mock does), although you didn't
think that appropriate in this case.  So I completely misread your
intention despite the fact that we are in violent agreement.  I'm
sorry.

BTW, I changed Subject: precisely because I have no quarrel in
principle with the path you proposed to dealing with this issue in
mock, but lack the knowledge to comment on the practical feasibility
or desirability of your proposal.