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authorGuido van Rossum <guido@python.org>1999-02-23 16:40:55 (GMT)
committerGuido van Rossum <guido@python.org>1999-02-23 16:40:55 (GMT)
commit264bd59221ab02998c4893f707051818c7b9a927 (patch)
tree91b18e8b130929a295239b5fb09b8db44650a94e
parent124eff022578980310f47a351525b4b6cd5f7b27 (diff)
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1. Clarify that immutability isn't entirely the same as unchangeable
value (because of immutable containers containing mutable objects). 2. Document that func_code, func_defaults and func_doc / __doc__ are now writable.
-rw-r--r--Doc/ref/ref3.tex14
1 files changed, 12 insertions, 2 deletions
diff --git a/Doc/ref/ref3.tex b/Doc/ref/ref3.tex
index 7ae92c0..233e416 100644
--- a/Doc/ref/ref3.tex
+++ b/Doc/ref/ref3.tex
@@ -24,6 +24,12 @@ possible values for objects of that type. The
objects can change. Objects whose value can change are said to be
\emph{mutable}; objects whose value is unchangeable once they are
created are called \emph{immutable}.
+(The value of an immutable container object that contains a reference
+to a mutable object can change when the latter's value is changed;
+however the container is still considered immutable, because the
+collection of objects it contains cannot be changed. So, immutability
+is not strictly the same as having an unchangeable value, it is more
+subtle.)
An object's mutability is determined by its type; for instance,
numbers, strings and tuples are immutable, while dictionaries and
lists are mutable.
@@ -375,7 +381,7 @@ parameter list.
\obindex{function}
\obindex{user-defined function}
-Special read-only attributes: \member{func_doc} or \member{__doc__} is the
+Special attributes: \member{func_doc} or \member{__doc__} is the
function's documentation string, or None if unavailable;
\member{func_name} or \member{__name__} is the function's name;
\member{func_defaults} is a tuple containing default argument values for
@@ -384,7 +390,11 @@ have a default value; \member{func_code} is the code object representing
the compiled function body; \member{func_globals} is (a reference to)
the dictionary that holds the function's global variables --- it
defines the global namespace of the module in which the function was
-defined. Additional information about a function's definition can be
+defined.
+Of these, \member{func_code}, \member{func_defaults} and
+\member{func_doc} (and this \member{__doc__}) may be writable; the
+others can never be changed.
+Additional information about a function's definition can be
retrieved from its code object; see the description of internal types
below.
\withsubitem{(function attribute)}{