summaryrefslogtreecommitdiffstats
path: root/Doc/ref/ref5.tex
diff options
context:
space:
mode:
authorGuido van Rossum <guido@python.org>1994-08-01 12:22:53 (GMT)
committerGuido van Rossum <guido@python.org>1994-08-01 12:22:53 (GMT)
commit6938f06047a6d2170523cfc3ab8e797bae0a6c05 (patch)
tree1da91a88f322e85f03c8eedfc191f610209dfb4e /Doc/ref/ref5.tex
parentab3a2504b97d5131779f400717dc491919783dd0 (diff)
downloadcpython-6938f06047a6d2170523cfc3ab8e797bae0a6c05.zip
cpython-6938f06047a6d2170523cfc3ab8e797bae0a6c05.tar.gz
cpython-6938f06047a6d2170523cfc3ab8e797bae0a6c05.tar.bz2
Merge alpha100 branch back to main trunk
Diffstat (limited to 'Doc/ref/ref5.tex')
-rw-r--r--Doc/ref/ref5.tex137
1 files changed, 70 insertions, 67 deletions
diff --git a/Doc/ref/ref5.tex b/Doc/ref/ref5.tex
index 55f523f..3e60931 100644
--- a/Doc/ref/ref5.tex
+++ b/Doc/ref/ref5.tex
@@ -12,14 +12,14 @@ may be used wherever an expression is required by enclosing it in
parentheses. The only places where expressions are used in the syntax
instead of conditions is in expression statements and on the
right-hand side of assignment statements; this catches some nasty bugs
-like accidentally writing \verb\x == 1\ instead of \verb\x = 1\.
+like accidentally writing \verb@x == 1@ instead of \verb@x = 1@.
\indexii{assignment}{statement}
The comma plays several roles in Python's syntax. It is usually an
operator with a lower precedence than all others, but occasionally
serves other purposes as well; e.g. it separates function arguments,
is used in list and dictionary constructors, and has special semantics
-in \verb\print\ statements.
+in \verb@print@ statements.
\index{comma}
When (one alternative of) a syntax rule has the form
@@ -28,8 +28,8 @@ When (one alternative of) a syntax rule has the form
name: othername
\end{verbatim}
-and no semantics are given, the semantics of this form of \verb\name\
-are the same as for \verb\othername\.
+and no semantics are given, the semantics of this form of \verb@name@
+are the same as for \verb@othername@.
\index{syntax}
\section{Arithmetic conversions}
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ are the same as for \verb\othername\.
When a description of an arithmetic operator below uses the phrase
``the numeric arguments are converted to a common type'',
this both means that if either argument is not a number, a
-\verb\TypeError\ exception is raised, and that otherwise
+\verb@TypeError@ exception is raised, and that otherwise
the following conversions are applied:
\exindex{TypeError}
\indexii{floating point}{number}
@@ -71,11 +71,13 @@ enclosure: parenth_form | list_display | dict_display | string_conversion
\index{identifier}
An identifier occurring as an atom is a reference to a local, global
-or built-in name binding. If a name can be assigned to anywhere in a
-code block, and is not mentioned in a \verb\global\ statement in that
-code block, it refers to a local name throughout that code block.
-Otherwise, it refers to a global name if one exists, else to a
-built-in name.
+or built-in name binding. If a name is assigned to anywhere in a code
+block (even in unreachable code), and is not mentioned in a
+\verb@global@ statement in that code block, then it refers to a local
+name throughout that code block. When it is not assigned to anywhere
+in the block, or when it is assigned to but also explicitly listed in
+a \verb@global@ statement, it refers to a global name if one exists,
+else to a built-in name (and this binding may dynamically change).
\indexii{name}{binding}
\index{code block}
\stindex{global}
@@ -84,7 +86,7 @@ built-in name.
When the name is bound to an object, evaluation of the atom yields
that object. When a name is not bound, an attempt to evaluate it
-raises a \verb\NameError\ exception.
+raises a \verb@NameError@ exception.
\exindex{NameError}
\subsection{Literals}
@@ -197,10 +199,10 @@ A string conversion evaluates the contained condition list and
converts the resulting object into a string according to rules
specific to its type.
-If the object is a string, a number, \verb\None\, or a tuple, list or
+If the object is a string, a number, \verb@None@, or a tuple, list or
dictionary containing only objects whose type is one of these, the
resulting string is a valid Python expression which can be passed to
-the built-in function \verb\eval()\ to yield an expression with the
+the built-in function \verb@eval()@ to yield an expression with the
same value (or an approximation, if floating point numbers are
involved).
@@ -234,7 +236,7 @@ attributeref: primary "." identifier
The primary must evaluate to an object of a type that supports
attribute references, e.g. a module or a list. This object is then
asked to produce the attribute whose name is the identifier. If this
-attribute is not available, the exception \verb\AttributeError\ is
+attribute is not available, the exception \verb@AttributeError@ is
raised. Otherwise, the type and value of the object produced is
determined by the object. Multiple evaluations of the same attribute
reference may yield different objects.
@@ -266,7 +268,7 @@ the value in the mapping that corresponds to that key.
If it is a sequence, the condition must evaluate to a plain integer.
If this value is negative, the length of the sequence is added to it
-(so that, e.g. \verb\x[-1]\ selects the last item of \verb\x\.)
+(so that, e.g. \verb@x[-1]@ selects the last item of \verb@x@.)
The resulting value must be a nonnegative integer smaller than the
number of items in the sequence, and the subscription selects the item
whose index is that value (counting from zero).
@@ -318,7 +320,7 @@ objects, and methods of class instances are callable). If it is a
class, the argument list must be empty; otherwise, the arguments are
evaluated.
-A call always returns some value, possibly \verb\None\, unless it
+A call always returns some value, possibly \verb@None@, unless it
raises an exception. How this value is computed depends on the type
of the callable object. If it is:
@@ -328,7 +330,7 @@ of the callable object. If it is:
executed, passing it the argument list. The first thing the code
block will do is bind the formal parameters to the arguments; this is
described in section \ref{function}. When the code block executes a
-\verb\return\ statement, this specifies the return value of the
+\verb@return@ statement, this specifies the return value of the
function call.
\indexii{function}{call}
\indexiii{user-defined}{function}{call}
@@ -371,22 +373,22 @@ All unary arithmetic (and bit-wise) operations have the same priority:
u_expr: primary | "-" u_expr | "+" u_expr | "~" u_expr
\end{verbatim}
-The unary \verb\"-"\ (minus) operator yields the negation of its
+The unary \verb@"-"@ (minus) operator yields the negation of its
numeric argument.
\index{negation}
\index{minus}
-The unary \verb\"+"\ (plus) operator yields its numeric argument
+The unary \verb@"+"@ (plus) operator yields its numeric argument
unchanged.
\index{plus}
-The unary \verb\"~"\ (invert) operator yields the bit-wise inversion
+The unary \verb@"~"@ (invert) operator yields the bit-wise inversion
of its plain or long integer argument. The bit-wise inversion of
-\verb\x\ is defined as \verb\-(x+1)\.
+\verb@x@ is defined as \verb@-(x+1)@.
\index{inversion}
In all three cases, if the argument does not have the proper type,
-a \verb\TypeError\ exception is raised.
+a \verb@TypeError@ exception is raised.
\exindex{TypeError}
\section{Binary arithmetic operations}
@@ -404,7 +406,7 @@ m_expr: u_expr | m_expr "*" u_expr
a_expr: m_expr | aexpr "+" m_expr | aexpr "-" m_expr
\end{verbatim}
-The \verb\"*"\ (multiplication) operator yields the product of its
+The \verb@"*"@ (multiplication) operator yields the product of its
arguments. The arguments must either both be numbers, or one argument
must be a plain integer and the other must be a sequence. In the
former case, the numbers are converted to a common type and then
@@ -412,40 +414,40 @@ multiplied together. In the latter case, sequence repetition is
performed; a negative repetition factor yields an empty sequence.
\index{multiplication}
-The \verb\"/"\ (division) operator yields the quotient of its
+The \verb@"/"@ (division) operator yields the quotient of its
arguments. The numeric arguments are first converted to a common
type. Plain or long integer division yields an integer of the same
type; the result is that of mathematical division with the `floor'
function applied to the result. Division by zero raises the
-\verb\ZeroDivisionError\ exception.
+\verb@ZeroDivisionError@ exception.
\exindex{ZeroDivisionError}
\index{division}
-The \verb\"%"\ (modulo) operator yields the remainder from the
+The \verb@"%"@ (modulo) operator yields the remainder from the
division of the first argument by the second. The numeric arguments
are first converted to a common type. A zero right argument raises
-the \verb\ZeroDivisionError\ exception. The arguments may be floating
-point numbers, e.g. \verb\3.14 % 0.7\ equals \verb\0.34\. The modulo
+the \verb@ZeroDivisionError@ exception. The arguments may be floating
+point numbers, e.g. \verb@3.14 % 0.7@ equals \verb@0.34@. The modulo
operator always yields a result with the same sign as its second
operand (or zero); the absolute value of the result is strictly
smaller than the second operand.
\index{modulo}
The integer division and modulo operators are connected by the
-following identity: \verb\x == (x/y)*y + (x%y)\. Integer division and
-modulo are also connected with the built-in function \verb\divmod()\:
-\verb\divmod(x, y) == (x/y, x%y)\. These identities don't hold for
+following identity: \verb@x == (x/y)*y + (x%y)@. Integer division and
+modulo are also connected with the built-in function \verb@divmod()@:
+\verb@divmod(x, y) == (x/y, x%y)@. These identities don't hold for
floating point numbers; there a similar identity holds where
-\verb\x/y\ is replaced by \verb\floor(x/y)\).
+\verb@x/y@ is replaced by \verb@floor(x/y)@).
-The \verb\"+"\ (addition) operator yields the sum of its arguments.
+The \verb@"+"@ (addition) operator yields the sum of its arguments.
The arguments must either both be numbers, or both sequences of the
same type. In the former case, the numbers are converted to a common
type and then added together. In the latter case, the sequences are
concatenated.
\index{addition}
-The \verb\"-"\ (subtraction) operator yields the difference of its
+The \verb@"-"@ (subtraction) operator yields the difference of its
arguments. The numeric arguments are first converted to a common
type.
\index{subtraction}
@@ -470,7 +472,7 @@ shift by $n$ bits is defined as multiplication with $2^n$; for plain
integers there is no overflow check so this drops bits and flip the
sign if the result is not less than $2^{31}$ in absolute value.
-Negative shift counts raise a \verb\ValueError\ exception.
+Negative shift counts raise a \verb@ValueError@ exception.
\exindex{ValueError}
\section{Binary bit-wise operations}
@@ -484,18 +486,18 @@ xor_expr: and_expr | xor_expr "^" and_expr
or_expr: xor_expr | or_expr "|" xor_expr
\end{verbatim}
-The \verb\"&"\ operator yields the bitwise AND of its arguments, which
+The \verb@"&"@ operator yields the bitwise AND of its arguments, which
must be plain or long integers. The arguments are converted to a
common type.
\indexii{bit-wise}{and}
-The \verb\"^"\ operator yields the bitwise XOR (exclusive OR) of its
+The \verb@"^"@ operator yields the bitwise XOR (exclusive OR) of its
arguments, which must be plain or long integers. The arguments are
converted to a common type.
\indexii{bit-wise}{xor}
\indexii{exclusive}{or}
-The \verb\"|"\ operator yields the bitwise (inclusive) OR of its
+The \verb@"|"@ operator yields the bitwise (inclusive) OR of its
arguments, which must be plain or long integers. The arguments are
converted to a common type.
\indexii{bit-wise}{or}
@@ -507,7 +509,7 @@ converted to a common type.
Contrary to C, all comparison operations in Python have the same
priority, which is lower than that of any arithmetic, shifting or
bitwise operation. Also contrary to C, expressions like
-\verb\a < b < c\ have the interpretation that is conventional in
+\verb@a < b < c@ have the interpretation that is conventional in
mathematics:
\index{C}
@@ -519,23 +521,23 @@ comp_operator: "<"|">"|"=="|">="|"<="|"<>"|"!="|"is" ["not"]|["not"] "in"
Comparisons yield integer values: 1 for true, 0 for false.
Comparisons can be chained arbitrarily, e.g. $x < y <= z$ is
-equivalent to $x < y$ \verb\and\ $y <= z$, except that $y$ is
+equivalent to $x < y$ \verb@and@ $y <= z$, except that $y$ is
evaluated only once (but in both cases $z$ is not evaluated at all
when $x < y$ is found to be false).
\indexii{chaining}{comparisons}
\catcode`\_=8
Formally, $e_0 op_1 e_1 op_2 e_2 ...e_{n-1} op_n e_n$ is equivalent to
-$e_0 op_1 e_1$ \verb\and\ $e_1 op_2 e_2$ \verb\and\ ... \verb\and\
+$e_0 op_1 e_1$ \verb@and@ $e_1 op_2 e_2$ \verb@and@ ... \verb@and@
$e_{n-1} op_n e_n$, except that each expression is evaluated at most once.
Note that $e_0 op_1 e_1 op_2 e_2$ does not imply any kind of comparison
between $e_0$ and $e_2$, e.g. $x < y > z$ is perfectly legal.
\catcode`\_=12
-The forms \verb\<>\ and \verb\!=\ are equivalent; for consistency with
-C, \verb\!=\ is preferred; where \verb\!=\ is mentioned below
-\verb\<>\ is also implied.
+The forms \verb@<>@ and \verb@!=@ are equivalent; for consistency with
+C, \verb@!=@ is preferred; where \verb@!=@ is mentioned below
+\verb@<>@ is also implied.
The operators {\tt "<", ">", "==", ">=", "<="}, and {\tt "!="} compare
the values of two objects. The objects needn't have the same type.
@@ -544,8 +546,8 @@ objects of different types {\em always} compare unequal, and are
ordered consistently but arbitrarily.
(This unusual definition of comparison is done to simplify the
-definition of operations like sorting and the \verb\in\ and \verb\not
-in\ operators.)
+definition of operations like sorting and the \verb@in@ and
+\verb@not in@ operators.)
Comparison of objects of the same type depends on the type:
@@ -556,7 +558,7 @@ Numbers are compared arithmetically.
\item
Strings are compared lexicographically using the numeric equivalents
-(the result of the built-in function \verb\ord\) of their characters.
+(the result of the built-in function \verb@ord@) of their characters.
\item
Tuples and lists are compared lexicographically using comparison of
@@ -579,11 +581,11 @@ execution of a program.
\end{itemize}
-The operators \verb\in\ and \verb\not in\ test for sequence
-membership: if $y$ is a sequence, $x ~\verb\in\~ y$ is true if and
+The operators \verb@in@ and \verb@not in@ test for sequence
+membership: if $y$ is a sequence, $x ~\verb@in@~ y$ is true if and
only if there exists an index $i$ such that $x = y[i]$.
-$x ~\verb\not in\~ y$ yields the inverse truth value. The exception
-\verb\TypeError\ is raised when $y$ is not a sequence, or when $y$ is
+$x ~\verb@not in@~ y$ yields the inverse truth value. The exception
+\verb@TypeError@ is raised when $y$ is not a sequence, or when $y$ is
a string and $x$ is not a string of length one.%
\footnote{The latter restriction is sometimes a nuisance.}
\opindex{in}
@@ -591,9 +593,9 @@ a string and $x$ is not a string of length one.%
\indexii{membership}{test}
\obindex{sequence}
-The operators \verb\is\ and \verb\is not\ test for object identity:
-$x ~\verb\is\~ y$ is true if and only if $x$ and $y$ are the same
-object. $x ~\verb\is not\~ y$ yields the inverse truth value.
+The operators \verb@is@ and \verb@is not@ test for object identity:
+$x ~\verb@is@~ y$ is true if and only if $x$ and $y$ are the same
+object. $x ~\verb@is not@~ y$ yields the inverse truth value.
\opindex{is}
\opindex{is not}
\indexii{identity}{test}
@@ -613,38 +615,39 @@ lambda_form: "lambda" [parameter_list]: condition
In the context of Boolean operations, and also when conditions are
used by control flow statements, the following values are interpreted
-as false: \verb\None\, numeric zero of all types, empty sequences
+as false: \verb@None@, numeric zero of all types, empty sequences
(strings, tuples and lists), and empty mappings (dictionaries). All
other values are interpreted as true.
-The operator \verb\not\ yields 1 if its argument is false, 0 otherwise.
+The operator \verb@not@ yields 1 if its argument is false, 0 otherwise.
\opindex{not}
-The condition $x ~\verb\and\~ y$ first evaluates $x$; if $x$ is false,
+The condition $x ~\verb@and@~ y$ first evaluates $x$; if $x$ is false,
its value is returned; otherwise, $y$ is evaluated and the resulting
value is returned.
\opindex{and}
-The condition $x ~\verb\or\~ y$ first evaluates $x$; if $x$ is true,
+The condition $x ~\verb@or@~ y$ first evaluates $x$; if $x$ is true,
its value is returned; otherwise, $y$ is evaluated and the resulting
value is returned.
\opindex{or}
-(Note that \verb\and\ and \verb\or\ do not restrict the value and type
+(Note that \verb@and@ and \verb@or@ do not restrict the value and type
they return to 0 and 1, but rather return the last evaluated argument.
-This is sometimes useful, e.g. if \verb\s\ is a string that should be
+This is sometimes useful, e.g. if \verb@s@ is a string that should be
replaced by a default value if it is empty, the expression
-\verb\s or 'foo'\ yields the desired value. Because \verb\not\ has to
+\verb@s or 'foo'@ yields the desired value. Because \verb@not@ has to
invent a value anyway, it does not bother to return a value of the
-same type as its argument, so e.g. \verb\not 'foo'\ yields \verb\0\,
-not \verb\''\.)
+same type as its argument, so e.g. \verb@not 'foo'@ yields \verb@0@,
+not \verb@''@.)
Lambda forms (lambda expressions) have the same syntactic position as
conditions. They are a shorthand to create anonymous functions; the
-expression \verb\lambda\ {\em arguments}\verb\:\ {\em condition}
+expression {\em {\tt lambda} arguments{\tt :} condition}
yields a function object that behaves virtually identical to one
-defined with \verb\def\ {\em name}\verb\(\{\em arguments}\verb\) :
-return\ {\em condition}. See section \ref{function} for the syntax of
+defined with
+{\em {\tt def} name {\tt (}arguments{\tt ): return} condition}.
+See section \ref{function} for the syntax of
parameter lists. Note that functions created with lambda forms cannot
contain statements.
\label{lambda}
@@ -686,4 +689,4 @@ tuple, but rather yields the value of that expression (condition).
\indexii{trailing}{comma}
(To create an empty tuple, use an empty pair of parentheses:
-\verb\()\.)
+\verb@()@.)