[Tutor] comments in python

[Michael Janssen]

On Thu, 9 Jan 2003, john gennard wrote:

> a. #blah blah blah
>         This of course is no problem, but then I've seen:-
>
> b. """
>    blah blah blah
>    """
>                                 and also:-
>
> c. ''' blah blah blah '''
>
>
> b. and c. only seem to be used in the 'meat' of the programs,
> usually after the exhortation 'do not alter below here'

"Tripple quotes" can be used to write strings over several lines:

multiline = "this
is broken"
multiline2 = """this
not"""

please take a look at section 3.1.2 of the Python Tutorial for the details
of this usage of tripple quotes.

Those "Tripple quotes"-Strings are also a way to provide inline
documentation and are therefore called docstrings.

E.g. you can use a docstrings to describe a function:

def func():
    """Return zero"""
    return 0

When you type this function into the interpreter and run the command
help(func) you will get the docstring as a explanation. Docstrings doesn't
do any programm-logic, but they are part of the programm: inline
documentation, as already said. Docstrings are described here:
http://www.python.org/doc/essays/styleguide.html

Michael

PS: b) and c) are functional equivalent. But nobody uses "single tripple
quotes": ugly.

>
> I can find in O'Reilly reference to the use of triple quotes under
> 'strings' but what I see in the programs appears to be quite
> different to this.
>
> Will someone say if I'm just being thick? Perhaps I don't understand
> what a 'string' is in plain language!
>
> Any help will be much appreciated.
>
> Regards,                John.
>
>
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