[Tutor] creating files with python and a thanks

[Sheila King]

On Mon, 18 Feb 2002 03:12:55 +0000, Eve Kotyk <e.kotyk@shaw.ca>  wrote
about Re: [Tutor] creating files with python and a thanks:

> > What Python Shell are you using? What operating system?
> 
> I'm using version 1.5.2 on Linux. 

Well, I'm really flabbergasted. I just logged into my web host, where I
have a shell account, and they have 1.5.2 on Linux, but it worked for me
there, as well:

Python 1.5.2 (#1, Dec 21 2000, 15:29:08)  [GCC egcs-2.91.66
19990314/Linux (egcs - on linux-i386
Copyright 1991-1995 Stichting Mathematisch Centrum, Amsterdam
>>> def gather_data():
...     items = raw_input("Add food item: ")
...     portion = input("Enter number of portions: ")
...     cal_portion = input("Enter calories per portion: ")
...     output = [items, portion, cal_portion]
...     f = open('myfile.txt', 'w')
...     f.write(str(output))
...     f.close()
...
>>> gather_data()
Add food item: cumquats
Enter number of portions: 10
Enter calories per portion: 50
>>>

Let's look at that error message you showed before:

Traceback (innermost last):
  File "<pyshell#78>", line 1, in ?
    gather_data()
  File "<pyshell#75>", line 9, in gather_data
    f.write(output)
TypeError: read-only buffer, list

It says:
  File "<pyshell#75>", line 9, in gather_data
    f.write(output)
TypeError: read-only buffer, list

Notice how it seems to think that your write statement is
f.write(output)
and not f.write(str(output))

For some reason, it has an old copy of the gather_data function in
memory, I'm thinking.

Try closing down the interpreter and starting up a new session and type
everything over again and see if it doesn't work this time.

(Sorry, I didn't catch the importance of that error message previously.)

-- 
Sheila King
http://www.thinkspot.net/sheila/

"When introducing your puppy to an adult cat,
restrain the puppy, not the cat." -- Gwen Bailey,
_The Perfect Puppy: How to Raise a Well-behaved Dog_