[SciPy-user] fromfile, item, what other output than stdout / stderr is used ?

[Stef Mientki]

thanks Paul, Robert,

Robert Kern wrote:
> On Sun, May 10, 2009 at 05:02, Stef Mientki <s.mientki at ru.nl> wrote:
>   
>> hello,
>>
>> I'm using "fromfile" to read data from a file generated by another program.
>> The data is read on the same operating system as where the file was created.
>> I use on several locations, at the procedure seems to run very well, but ...
>> ... when run the program from the normal window command box,
>> I get an error message:
>>    "40 items requested but only 10 read"
>>
>> Normally I run all the programs with either a hidden command window or
>> from some kind of IDE.
>> In the IDE, stdout and stderr are redirected, and I see all print
>> commands and errors in the redirection window,
>> but I don't see the above error message from numpy.
>> So it seems that numpy is using a third kind of output device.
>> ???
>>     
>
> IDLE redirects sys.stdout and sys.stderr. It does nothing with the C
> stdout and stderr file handles. Presumably we are printing stuff out
> from the C level using printf(). We probably should be using the
> Python API function for printing to sys.std*. Patches welcome.
>
>   
Sorry but I've chosen Python, because I found C too difficult.
>> Now from the documentation at
>>  http://docs.scipy.org/doc/numpy/reference/generated/numpy.fromfile.html
>> I read:
>>
>> numpy.fromfile(/file/, /dtype=float/, /count=-1/, /sep=''/)
>>
>> *count* : int
>>
>>    Number of items to read. -1 means all items (i.e., the complete file).
>>
>>
>> What is a item ?
>> Is it in bytes, or as in my case, where dtype is an 32 bit integer, in
>> integers (which I would read from the documentation) ?
>>     
>
> An item is one instance of the dtype.
>
>   
>> Well it must be a byte I guess,
>> because if I use bytes as the count, the program is working well,
>> but I get the above error message in the windows command window.
>>     
>
> Since the number of bytes is greater than the number of items and you
> are getting errors suggesting that you have requested more items than
> there are available in the file, I really don't understand how this
> sentence can be true.
>   
Your absolutely right.
The error was caused by using the requested count later on,
which I've now replaced by the real fetched count.

cheers.
Stef