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Diffstat (limited to 'Doc/lib/libos.tex')
| -rw-r--r-- | Doc/lib/libos.tex | 72 |
1 files changed, 38 insertions, 34 deletions
diff --git a/Doc/lib/libos.tex b/Doc/lib/libos.tex index 4297175..18760c7 100644 --- a/Doc/lib/libos.tex +++ b/Doc/lib/libos.tex @@ -1,31 +1,31 @@ \section{\module{os} --- - Miscellaneous OS interfaces} + Miscellaneous operating system interfaces} \declaremodule{standard}{os} -\modulesynopsis{Miscellaneous OS interfaces.} +\modulesynopsis{Miscellaneous operating system interfaces.} This module provides a more portable way of using operating system -(OS) dependent functionality than importing an OS dependent built-in -module like \refmodule{posix} or \module{nt}. +dependent functionality than importing a operating system dependent +built-in module like \refmodule{posix} or \module{nt}. -This module searches for an OS dependent built-in module like +This module searches for an operating system dependent built-in module like \module{mac} or \refmodule{posix} and exports the same functions and data -as found there. The design of all Python's built-in OS dependent +as found there. The design of all Python's built-in operating system dependent modules is such that as long as the same functionality is available, it uses the same interface; for example, the function \code{os.stat(\var{path})} returns stat information about \var{path} in the same format (which happens to have originated with the \POSIX{} interface). -Extensions peculiar to a particular OS are also available through the -\module{os} module, but using them is of course a threat to -portability! +Extensions peculiar to a particular operating system are also +available through the \module{os} module, but using them is of course a +threat to portability! Note that after the first time \module{os} is imported, there is \emph{no} performance penalty in using functions from \module{os} -instead of directly from the OS dependent built-in module, so there -should be \emph{no} reason not to use \module{os}! +instead of directly from the operating system dependent built-in module, +so there should be \emph{no} reason not to use \module{os}! % Frank Stajano <fstajano@uk.research.att.com> complained that it @@ -65,13 +65,13 @@ When exceptions are strings, the string for the exception is \end{excdesc} \begin{datadesc}{name} -The name of the OS dependent module imported. The following names -have currently been registered: \code{'posix'}, \code{'nt'}, +The name of the operating system dependent module imported. The +following names have currently been registered: \code{'posix'}, \code{'nt'}, \code{'dos'}, \code{'mac'}, \code{'os2'}, \code{'ce'}, \code{'java'}. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{path} -The corresponding OS dependent standard module for pathname +The corresponding operating system dependent standard module for pathname operations, such as \module{posixpath} or \module{macpath}. Thus, given the proper imports, \code{os.path.split(\var{file})} is equivalent to but more portable than @@ -636,7 +636,7 @@ is \code{0777} (octal). Return system configuration information relevant to a named file. \var{name} specifies the configuration value to retrieve; it may be a string which is the name of a defined system value; these names are -specified in a number of standards (\POSIX.1, Unix95, Unix98, and +specified in a number of standards (\POSIX.1, \UNIX 95, \UNIX 98, and others). Some platforms define additional names as well. The names known to the host operating system are given in the \code{pathconf_names} dictionary. For configuration variables not @@ -737,9 +737,9 @@ order \code{st_mtime}, \code{st_ctime}. More items may be added at the end by some implementations. Note that -on the Macintosh, the time values are floating point values, like all -time values on the Macintosh. -(On MS Windows, some items are filled with dummy values.) +on the Mac OS, the time values are floating point values, like all +time values on the Mac OS. +(On Windows, some items are filled with dummy values.) Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. Note: The standard module \refmodule{stat}\refstmodindex{stat} defines @@ -983,8 +983,9 @@ Availability: Windows. \begin{funcdesc}{startfile}{path} Start a file with its associated application. This acts like double-clicking the file in Windows Explorer, or giving the file name -as an argument to the DOS \program{start} command: the file is opened -with whatever application (if any) its extension is associated. +as an argument to the \program{start} command from the interactive +command shell: the file is opened with whatever application (if any) +its extension is associated. \function{startfile()} returns as soon as the associated application is launched. There is no option to wait for the application to close, @@ -1012,8 +1013,8 @@ Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{times}{} -Return a 5-tuple of floating point numbers indicating accumulated (CPU -or other) +Return a 5-tuple of floating point numbers indicating accumulated +(processor or other) times, in seconds. The items are: user time, system time, children's user time, children's system time, and elapsed real time since a fixed point in the past, in that order. See the \UNIX{} manual page @@ -1100,7 +1101,7 @@ Availability: \UNIX{}. Return string-valued system configuration values. \var{name} specifies the configuration value to retrieve; it may be a string which is the name of a defined system value; these names are -specified in a number of standards (\POSIX, Unix95, Unix98, and +specified in a number of standards (\POSIX, \UNIX 95, \UNIX 98, and others). Some platforms define additional names as well. The names known to the host operating system are given in the \code{confstr_names} dictionary. For configuration variables not @@ -1151,17 +1152,19 @@ Higher-level operations on pathnames are defined in the \begin{datadesc}{curdir} -The constant string used by the OS to refer to the current directory. +The constant string used by the operating system to refer to the current +directory. For example: \code{'.'} for \POSIX{} or \code{':'} for the Macintosh. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{pardir} -The constant string used by the OS to refer to the parent directory. +The constant string used by the operating system to refer to the parent +directory. For example: \code{'..'} for \POSIX{} or \code{'::'} for the Macintosh. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{sep} -The character used by the OS to separate pathname components, +The character used by the operating system to separate pathname components, for example, \character{/} for \POSIX{} or \character{:} for the Macintosh. Note that knowing this is not sufficient to be able to parse or concatenate pathnames --- use \function{os.path.split()} and @@ -1169,15 +1172,16 @@ parse or concatenate pathnames --- use \function{os.path.split()} and \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{altsep} -An alternative character used by the OS to separate pathname components, -or \code{None} if only one separator character exists. This is set to -\character{/} on DOS and Windows systems where \code{sep} is a backslash. +An alternative character used by the operating system to separate pathname +components, or \code{None} if only one separator character exists. This is +set to \character{/} on DOS and Windows systems where \code{sep} is a +backslash. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{pathsep} -The character conventionally used by the OS to separate search patch -components (as in \envvar{PATH}), such as \character{:} for \POSIX{} or -\character{;} for DOS and Windows. +The character conventionally used by the operating system to separate +search patch components (as in \envvar{PATH}), such as \character{:} for +\POSIX{} or \character{;} for DOS and Windows. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{defpath} @@ -1188,6 +1192,6 @@ doesn't have a \code{'PATH'} key. \begin{datadesc}{linesep} The string used to separate (or, rather, terminate) lines on the current platform. This may be a single character, such as \code{'\e -n'} for \POSIX{} or \code{'\e r'} for MacOS, or multiple characters, -for example, \code{'\e r\e n'} for MS-DOS and MS Windows. +n'} for \POSIX{} or \code{'\e r'} for the Mac OS, or multiple characters, +for example, \code{'\e r\e n'} for DOS and Windows. \end{datadesc} |