to close or not to close?

[Donn Cave]

Quoth ge at nowhere.none (Grant Edwards):
...
| In article <8m5vfk01gl3 at news2.newsguy.com>, Alex Martelli wrote:
| I think we're loosing one of the big advantages of Python if
| users can't rely on objects "going away" when they're no longer
| used and instead have to explicitly free() them.  The current
| reference-counting problem that CPython has with circular
| references is something I can live.  Having to explicitly
| dispose of objects when I'm done with them would completely
| ruin the "feel" of the language.

I would (and have) put it more strongly than "feel".  It makes
very little difference in most programs, I guess, but there are
times when this is a huge feature.  Luckily there seem to be some
ideas about garbage collection as an accessory that would solve
cycles but otherwise preserve normal reference counting behavior.
If we're losing it, it's news to me.

	Donn Cave, donn at u.washington.edu