[Tutor] Clunky Password maker

[Alan Gauld]

"Wolf Halton" <wolf.halton at gmail.com> wrote

> Is there a less clunky way to do this?

> def new_pass():
>    series = ['`', '1', '2', '3', '4', '5', '6', '7', '8', '9', '0', 
> '-',
> '=', \
>              '~', '!', '@', '#', '$', '%', '^', '&', '*', '(', ')', 
> '_',
> '+', \
>              'q', 'w', 'e', 'r', 't', 'y', 'u', 'i', 'o', 'p', '[', 
> ']',
> '\\', \
>              'Q', 'W', 'E', 'R', 'T', 'Y', 'U', 'I', 'O', 'P', '{', 
> '}',
> '|', \
>              'a', 's', 'd', 'f', 'g', 'h', 'j', 'k', 'l', ';', "'", 
> \
>              'A', 'S', 'D', 'F', 'G', 'H', 'J', 'K', 'L', ':', '"', 
> \
>              'z', 'x', 'c', 'v', 'b', 'n', 'm', ',', '.', '/', \
>              'Z', 'X', 'C', 'V', 'B', 'N', 'M', '<', '>', '?']

You don't need a list here a simple string would
do and be easier to type and use. You can index
a string as easily as a list.

>    passwd = []
>    p = input("Enter the length you want your password to be: ")
>              # length of password
>    for i in range(p):
>        r = random.randint(0, 94)
>        passwd.append(series[r]) # Append a random char from series[] 
> to
> passwd

You could do this with a list comprehension and using
the choice() function from the whrandom module.

passwd = [whrandom.choice(series) for n in range(p)]

>    print "".join(map(str, passwd)), " is your new password. \n"

You might want to return the string rather than print it.
Then you can print with

new_p = new_pass()
print new_p, 'is your new password'

I'd also move the length question out of the function
and make it a parameter so your final code looks like:

ln = raw_input("Length of password?")
np = new_pass(ln)
print np, 'is your new password'


For extra points make the alphabet a parameter with
a default value so you can use it for non latin alphabets
too...

klingon = "......."
ln = raw_input(klingon_phrases['length'])
np = new_pass(ln, klingon)
print np, klingon_phrases['new']

HTH,


-- 
Alan Gauld
Author of the Learn to Program web site
http://www.alan-g.me.uk/