Index
Symbols
' (single quoted string delimiter) 46
- (subtraction operator), for numbers 47
- (unary minus operator) 352
!= (not equal) 97, 352
" (double quoted string delimiter) 45
# (comment header) 44
% (modulus operator)
for numbers 352
for strings 81, 360
& (bitwise and operator) 352
() (empty tuple) 64, 365
(tab character) 46
* (multiplication operator)
for lists 59, 363
for numbers 47
for strings 68, 358
for tuples 63, 365
use of __mult__ 384
use of __rmul__ 384
** (exponentiation operator) 352
/ (division operator) 47
[] (empty list) 53, 363
+ (addition operator) for numbers 47
+ (concatenation operator)
for lists 59, 363
for strings 68, 358
for tuples 63, 365
use of __add__ 384
use of __radd__ 384
< (less than) 97, 352
<< (shift left operator) 352
<= (less than or equal to) 97, 352
<> (not equal to) 97, 352
= (assignment operator)
for assigning to shelves 142, 379
for creating/assigning to dictionaries 83
for creating/assigning to a list 52, 363
for creating/assigning to a string 45
for creating/assigning to a tuple 63, 365
for creating/assigning to a variable 44
for instantiating a class 174, 381
== (equal to, comparison operator) 97, 352
> (greater than) 97, 352
>= (greater than or equal to) 97, 352
>> (shift right operator) 352
>>> (interactive mode prompt) 25
\ (statement continuation indicator) 96, 368
\'(single-quote character) 68
\" (double-quote character) 69
\\ (backslash character) 69
\a (bell character) 69
\b (backspace character) 69
\f (formfeed character) 69
\n (newline character) 46
\r (carriage return character) 69
\t (tab character) 46
\v (vertical tab character) 69
^ (bitwise exclusive or operator) 352
`` (backquote notation) 78, 359
{} (empty dictionary) 83
~ (bitwise negation operator) 352
__abs__ (special method attribute) 385
__add__ (special method attribute) 229, 384
__and__ (special method attribute) 384
__bases__ (base classes of an object) 222
__builtin__ (built-in module) 114
__builtins__ 115
__call__ (special method attribute) 383
__class__ (obtain the class of an instance)
178, 222
__cmp__ (special method attribute) 383
__coerce__ (special method attribute) 385
__del__ (class instance destructor) 189, 382
__delattr__ (special method attribute) 383
__delitem__ (special method attribute)
231, 383
__delslice__ (special method attribute)
231, 384
__div__ (special method attribute) 384
__divmod__ (special method attribute) 384
__doc__ (documentation string)
for built-in functions 118
for classes and methods 381
for classes and methodsobjectDoc 180
for functions 100, 369
for modules 371
__float__ (special method attribute) 385
__getattr__ (special method attribute) 383
__getitem__ (special method attribute)
229, 383
__getslice__ (special method attribute)
229, 384
__hash__ (special method attribute) 383
__hex__ (special method attribute) 385
__init__ (constructors for class instances) 174, 381, 382
__int__ (special method attribute) 385
__invert__ (special method attribute) 385
__len__ (special method attribute) 231, 383
__long__ (special method attribute) 385
__lshift__ (special method attribute) 384
__main__ (script or interactive session name) 115
__mod__ (special method attribute) 384
__mul__ (special method attribute) 231, 384
__name__ 115
__name__ (finding the class name of an object) 222
__neg__ (special method attribute) 385
__nonzero__ (special method attribute) 385
__oct__ (special method attribute) 385
__or__ (special method attribute) 384
__pos__ (special method attribute) 385
__pow__ (special method attribute) 384
__radd__ (special method attribute) 384
__repr__ (special method attribute) 382
__rmul__ (special method attribute) 384
__rshift__ (special method attribute) 384
__rsub__ (special method attribute) 384
__setattr__ (special method attribute) 383
__setitem__ (special method attribute) 229, 383
__setslice__ (special method attribute) 229, 384
__str__ (special method attribute) 225, 382
__sub__ (special method attribute) 384
__xor__ (special method attribute) 384
A
abs (absolute value) 355
absolute pathnames 121
in UNIX 121
in Windows 95/98/NT 121
Access
guidelines for using a Python client with 264
Python fetching data from 262
Python updating a record of 262
addition operator (+), for numbers 47
Amiga, Python support on 22
and (logical operator) 97, 352
anonymous functions (lambda) 100
append (list method) 54, 364
apply (call a function) 392
arguments. See command line or function(s)
arithmetic operators (+, -, *, /, **, %) 352
ArithmeticError (exception) 387
array module 51
array(s)
read values from a file into (fromfile) 377
write values to a file from (tofile) 377
assert statement (debug statement) 152, 223, 386
AssertionError (exception) 387
assignment operator (=)
for assigning to shelves 142, 379
for creating/assigning to a dictionary 83
for creating/assigning to a list 52, 363
for creating/assigning to a string 45
for creating/assigning to a tuple 63, 365
for creating/assigning to a variable 44
for instantiating a class 174, 381
associative arrays. See dictionaries
AttributeError (exception) 387
attributes 108
B
backquote notation (` `) 78, 359
backslash character (\\) 69
backspace character (\b) 69
bell character (\a) 69
BeOS, Python support on 22
binary data
reading from files (struct) 138
reading to and from strings 133
writing to files (struct) 138
binary mode
opening files in 133
binary records (for reading and writing data) 137
binary, unbuffered input/output 164, 374
bindings (names to objects in namespaces) 114
bisect module
bisect.bisect (sorted position in a list) 56, 365
bisect.insort (add element to a list maintaining sorted order) 56, 364
bitwise and operator (&) 352
bitwise exclusive or operator (^) 352
bitwise negation operator (~) 352
bitwise operators (<<, >>, &, |, ^, ~) 352
bitwise or operator (|) 352
block structure 42?43, 94?96
blocks. See block structure
Bobo. See Zope
boolean expressions 96?98
booleans 96?98
bound methods 175
break (statement)
in for loops 92, 369
in while loops 91, 369
built-in functions
list of 118
obtaining documentation strings of 118
overriding 118
built-in namespace ( __builtin__ ) 114
byte code. See code objects and .py files
bytecode (.pyc or .pyo files) 109
C
C
comparison with Python 4, 6
C++
comparison with Python 4, 6
C/C++
reading data files generated by (struct) 138
using for creating Python extensions. See extensions
writing data files for (struct) 138
cache implementation example 89, 140
carriage return character (\b) 69
cgi module 347
CGI programming. See Zope, HTMLgen, cgi module
characters. See strings
chr (obtain character represented by an integer) 358
class (class definition statement) 174
class instance objects 175
See also classes
classes
bound and unbound methods 175
class methods 179
cleanup methods 189
comparison rules for 353
classes (continued)
constructors for ( __init__ ) 174, 381
cyclical references in instances of 190
defining and using 174
definition template 381
destructor methods for ( __del__ ) 189
documentation strings for ( __doc__ ) 180, 381
finding the base classes of an instance
( __bases__ ) 222
inheritance, multiple 192
instance variables 175
instance variables, in inheritance 182
instantiation 174, 381
memory management of 189
methods 381
obtaining the class type of an instance
( __class__ ) 222
obtaining the name of an instance
( __name__ ) 222
private methods 184
private variables 184
using class variable to initialize instance variables 178
using the class name of ( __class__ ) 178
using to define structures 174
clear (dictionary method) 367
close
for files 132, 376
for shelves 142, 379
cmath module (for complex numbers) 49, 357
cmd module (command line interpreter development) 394
cmp (comparison function) 57, 355
code objects
creation of (compile) 393
execution (eval) 393
execution (exec statement) 392
coerce (coerce to same type) 355
COM integration for Python 243
calling Windows DLL?s from Python (calldll) 267
importing the Python COM Modules 246
installation and setup of PythonWin 246
introduction to 243
MFC wrappers for Python 267
ODBC support 266
possiblities for 244
Python as a COM client
fetching data from Access 262
guidelines for use 264
starting Excel and pushing in data 263
starting Word and pushing in data 263
updating an Access record 262
using COM?s type libraries (compile time binding) 263
writing helper functions for 264
Python as a COM server
callbacks to VB 257
code body 249
complete template 250
distributing with Distributed COM 261
instantiation from Visual Basic 251
other possibilities with an Excel client 261
passing lists to VB 254
passing numbers to and from VB 253
passing objects to and from VB 256
passing strings to and from VB 254
receiving lists from VB 254
registering with COM 248
sending data to Excel 259
sending multiple dimension lists to VB 256
sending odd shaped lists to VB 256
sending tabular data to VB 255
shutting down 253
starting from Excel 259
test code 248
troubleshooting 252
using with an Excel client 258
using with Visual Basic 252
writing methods for 248
Python script for creating Desktop shortcuts 265
registering Python with the Windows Scripting Host 265
setting up a Python COM server 247
sources of further information for 267
Windows API wrappers 267
command line arguments
for scripts 157
command line interpreters, developing (cmd module) 394
command line scripts. See scripts
comments (#) 44
comparison operators (<, <=, ==, >, >=, !=, <>, in, not in, is, is not) 97, 352
comparison ordering rules in 353
comparisons, compound 97
compile (create a code object) 393
complex (convert to a complex number) 357
complex numbers 49, 357
compound statements 94, 368
concatenation operator (+)
for lists 59, 363
for strings 68, 358
for tuples 63, 365
continue (statement)
in for loops 92, 369
in while loops 91, 369
continuing statements across multiple lines 96, 368
control flow constructs in Python 90, 368
conversions between types. See type conversions
copy (dictionary copy method) 368
copy module
copy.copy (make a shallow copy of an object) 394
copy.deepcopy (make a deep copy of an object) 62, 394
count (list matching method) 60, 365
cPickle module
cPickle.dump (write a Python object to a file) 138?141, 379
cPickle.load (read a Python object from a file) 138?141, 379
current date. See time module
current time. See time module
current working directory, getting the (os.getcwd) 122, 374
cyclical references, breaking 190
D
data members. See classes, instance variables
data persistence. See pickling and shelves
data serialization. See pickling
date, current. See time module
debug statements (assert) 152, 223, 386
deep copies (copy module) 394
def (function definition statement) 99, 369
def (method definition statement) 175, 381
default values, for function parameters 101
del (deletion statement)
deletion of dictionary entries 85, 367, 380
deletion of list elements 55, 364
deletion of module bindings 115
deletion of namespace entries 115
deletion of shelf entries 142, 379
deletion of variables 44
use of __delattr__ 383
use of __delitem__ 383
use of __delslice__ 384
development environment. See IDLE
dictionaries 34?35, 82?89
adding entries to (=) 83, 367, 379
adding multiple entries to (update) 86, 368
combining the contents of two (update) 86, 368
comparison rules for 353?354
copying (copy) 368
copying (copy, copy.deepcopy) 86
copying, deep (copy.deepcopy) 394
creating (=) 83, 367
creating (=), with initial entries 84, 367
deleting entries from (del) 85, 367, 380
delimiters [] 84
efficiency of 89
implementing a cache with 88?89
key membership (has_key) 85, 367
keys/indices of (keys) 84, 367, 379
key-value pairs in (items) 85, 367
number of entries in (len) 84, 368
persistent version of. See shelves
reading from a file (cPickle.load) 138?141, 379
removing all entries from (clear) 367
dictionaries (continued)
representing sparse matrices with 88
retrieving values from (get) 86, 367
subclassing (UserDict module) 395
tuples as keys for 87
valid keys for 87
values in (values) 85, 367
writing to a file (cPickle.dump) 138?141, 379
dir (display attributes of an object) 393
dir (display names in a module) 117, 220
directories
changing (os.chdir) 123, 380
copying recursively (shutil.copytree) 381
creating (os.mkdir, os.makedirs) 129, 380
deleting (os.rmdir) 129, 380
getting the current working directory (os.getcwd) 122, 374
listing the files in (os.listdir) 123, 128, 380
obtaining from a pathname (os.path.basename) 125, 374
obtaining the access time of (os.path.getatime) 375
obtaining the modification time of (os.path.getmtime) 375
obtaining the name of (os.path.dirname) 125, 374
processing files in a directory tree (os.path.walk) 129?130, 380
renaming (os.rename) 128, 380
testing the existence of (os.path.isdir) 127, 375
distributing Python programs 171
division operator (/), for numbers 47
divmod (find quotient and remainder) 355
DLLs
calling from Python (calldll) 267
documentation string ( __doc__ )
for built-in functions 118
for classes and methods 179?180, 381
for functions 100, 369
for modules 371
DOS, Python support on 22
double-quote character (") 69
E
elif (statement)
with if-else constructs 91, 369
else (statement)
with exceptions 150, 385
with for loops 92, 369
with if-else constructs 91, 369
with while loops 91, 369
empty value. See None
endian, converting when reading and writing data 138
environment variables (os.environ) 126, 380
environment variables, summary 373
EnvironmentError (exception) 387
EOFError (exception) 387
equal to (==), comparison operator 97, 352
equality tests
based on identity (is, is not) 98
based on value (==, !=, <>) 98
errors. See exceptions
escape sequences
basic (\', ", \\, \a, \b, \f, \n, \r, \t, \v) 69, 357
hexadecimal character representation (\xFF) 70, 357
octal character representation (\777) 70, 357
eval (evaluate an expression or code object) 393
Excel
guidelines for using a Python client with 264
possibilities for as a client for a Python COM server 261
retrieving data from a Python COM server 259
setting up a workbook with a server 259
started by a Python client and receiving data 263
starting a Python COM server from 259
using as a client for a Python COM server 258
except (statement) 150, 385
Exception (parent of all exceptions) 387
exception types
ArithmeticError 387
AssertionError 387
AttributeError 387
EnvironmentError 387
EOFError 387
Exception 387
FloatingPointError 387
ImportError 387
IndexError 387
IOError 387
KeyboardError 387
KeyError 387
LookupError 387
MemoryError 387
NameError 387
NotImplementedError 387
OSError 387
OverflowError 387
RuntimeError 387
StandardError 387
SyntaxError 388
SystemError 388
SystemExit 388
TypeError 388
ValueError 388
ZeroDivisionError 388
exceptions 144?155, 385?388
assert statements 152
catching and handling (try-except-else) 150, 385
defining new types of 151
hierarchy of in Python 148, 386
inheritance hierarchy, effect on catching of 153
raising (raise) 149, 386
summary of 386
types of in Python 148, 386
where to use 155
exec statement (execute Python code) 392
executables
creating as UNIX scripts 161
creating with the freeze tool 171
execute a system command (os.system) 394
exit the interpreter (sys.exit) 395
exiting the interactive mode 25
exponentiation operator (**) 352
expression(s) 45
boolean 97?98
in program evaluation of (eval) 393
extend (list method) 364
extensions (in C/C++) 269?278
compilation support for (in UNIX) 271
compilation support for (in Windows) 271
compiler choice 270
example 271?275
incrementing and decrementing reference counts 276?277
memory management, example 276?277
memory management, issues in 275
shared versus static extensions 270
template for 274
using C++ 278
F
false Boolean values 97
file object(s) 131
file object(s). See also file(s)
file(s)
closing (close) 132, 376
copying (shutil.copyfile, shutil.copy, shutil.copy2) 381
copying all of in a directory tree (shutil.copytree) 381
copying mode permissions information of (shutil.copymode) 381
copying stat information of (shutil.copystat) 381
deleting (os.remove) 129, 380
determine current position in (tell) 378
execute as code (exec statement) 392
expansion of names of (glob.glob) 128, 165, 376
force buffered output to be written to (flush) 378
move within (seek) 378
obtaining from a pathname (os.path.basename) 125, 374
obtaining the access time of (os.path.getatime) 375
obtaining the extension of (os.path.splitext) 125, 374
file(s) (continued)
obtaining the modification time of (os.path.getmtime) 375
obtaining the size of (os.path.getsize) 375
opening (open) 131, 132, 133
opening in binary mode 133
processing files in a directory tree (os.path.walk) 129?130, 380
read values into an array from (fromfile) 377
reading a binary record from (read) 137, 379
reading a fixed amount from (read) 133, 376
reading a line of (readline) 132, 133, 376
reading a Python object from (cPickle.load) 138?141, 379
reading all lines of (readlines) 133, 376
reading all of into a string (read) 133, 376
reading binary data from (read) 133
reading binary data from (struct) 138
reading lines from a set of (fileinput module) 378
renaming (os.rename) 128, 380
standard input, standard output, and standard error 135, 377
testing the existence of (os.path.isfile) 127, 375
write values from an array to (tofile) 377
writing a list of strings to (writelines) 134, 377
writing a Python object to (cPickle.dump) 138?141, 379
writing a string to (write) 134, 376
writing binary data to (struct) 138
writing binary data to (write) 134
filehandles. See file object(s)
fileinput module 160?161, 378
fileinput.close (close the stream) 161, 378
fileinput.filelineno (lines read in from current file) 161, 378
fileinput.filename (name of current file being read) 161, 378
fileinput.input (iterate over lines of input files) 378
fileinput.input (iterate over lines of input files) fileinput 160
fileinput.isfirstline (reading first line of file) 161, 378
fileinput.isstdin (reading standard input) 161, 378
fileinput.lineno (total lines read in) 161, 378
fileinput.nextfile (skip to the next input file) 161, 378
filesystem(s) 120?130
See also pathnames, files, directories
filter (built-in function) 393
finalizers (try-finally statements) 191, 386
finally statement 191, 386
findall ( find all occurrences of a regular expression in a string) 388
float (conversion function)
for converting a long integer to a floating point number 47, 355
for converting a string to a floating point number 73, 360
for converting an integer to a floating point number 47, 355
floating point numbers. See floats
FloatingPointError (exception) 387
floats (floating point numbers) 46, 354
flush (force buffered output to be written to a file) 378
for loops 92, 93, 227, 369
syntax for 92
use of __getitem__ 227
use with the range function 92
with tuple unpacking 93
formal string representation (repr) 78
format string
as a template for a binary record (struct) 137
formatting sequences with named parameters 360
formfeed character (\b) 69
freeze tool (create Python binaries) 171
Friedrich, Robin xxi
fromfile (read values into an array) 377
ftplib module (FTP protocol interface) 347
function(s) 99?105, 369?371
anonymous (lambda) 100
arguments, passing by parameter name 102, 370
assigning to a variable 100
built-in. See built-in functions
calling generically (apply) 392
definition of (def) 99, 369
documentation string of ( __doc__ ) 100, 369
global variables in 105
local variables in 104
parameters, default values 101, 370
parameters, indefinite number of - by keyword 103, 370
parameters, indefinite number of - by position 103, 370
parameters, keyword 102, 370
return value of (return) 99, 370
using operators as (operators module) 394
G
garbage collection 189
get (dictionary value retrieval method) 85, 367
getopt module (parse command line arguments) 159, 394
glob module
glob.glob (pathname pattern expansion) 128, 165, 376
global namespace 114
globals (obtain the global namespace) 115, 393
greater than (>) 97, 352
greater than or equal to (>=) 97, 352
group (obtain regular expression matches from a string) 238, 389
groupdict (named groups in a match object) 389
GUI development. See also Tk
GUI libraries for Python
Gtk (GNU Toolkit) 206
Qt Package (of the KDE) 206
Tk 194?206
H
has_key (key existence method)
for dictionaries 85, 367
for shelves 142, 379
hashtables. See dictionaries
help line, Python?s (python-help@python.org) 20
hex (convert an integer to a hexadecimal string representation) 356
hexadecimal character representation (\xFF) 70, 357
hexadecimal integers (0xFFFF) 354
home web page, Python?s (www.python.org) 19
HTML page generation. See Zope and
HTMLgen
HTML parsing (htmllib module) 347
HTMLgen (web page generation package) 297?320
BarChart (class) 320
barchart module for (barchart.py) 320
BasicDocument (class) 304
BulletList (class) 308
calendar creation with (HTMLcalendar.py) 320
CGI and Forms support in 316?319
color module for (HTMLcolors.py) 319
creating anchor tags with (Href) 312
creating frames in 309
creating image maps with (Map) 311
CSS1 (Cascading Style Sheet) support 313?315
defining lists with (List) 308
DefinitionList (class) 309
document hierarchy of 304
example - Quick Start 298
FrameSet (object) 309
FramesetDocument (class) 305, 309
future plans of 320
high speed object creation
(using __call__ ) 313
Href (class) 312
Image (class) 310
ImageBulletList (class) 309
HTMLgen (continued)
List (class) 308
Map (object) 311
NonBulletList (class) 309
NumberedList (class) 308
object rendering by 304
OrderedList (class) 308
persistence of Forms (StickyForm) 319
placing images in (Image) 310
resource file example 301
resource files for 299
samples (HTMLtest.py) 319
SeriesDocument (class) 299, 305
Simple Document (class) 299
StickyForm (class) 319
subclassing an existing Document class of 305
Table (class) 306
table generation in (Table, TableLite) 306
TableLite (class) 306
when to use 298
where to obtain 298
htmllib module (parse html) 347
HTTP programming. See Zope, httplib
httplib module 347
I
IDLE (Integrated Development Environment)
for creating/editing a module 107
introduction to 24
problems starting 24
starting 24
using the Python Shell window 25
if-elif-else statements 91, 369
image processing and displaying (PIL) 346
imaginary numbers. See complex numbers
immutability (non-modifiability)
of numbers 87
of strings 68
of tuples 63
import (bring in from a module) 110, 371
ImportError (exception) 110, 387
in (membership operator) 97
for lists 58, 365
for strings 77
for tuples 63, 366
summary 352
indentation 42?43, 94?96
index (list search method) 60, 365
index notation
for lists 52, 363
for strings 67, 358
for tuples 63, 366
See also slice notation
use of __getitem__ 227
IndexError (exception) 387
informal string representation (str) 79
inheritance, multiple 192?193
input (prompt for and read in a Python expression) 134, 377
input/output. See file(s)
insert (list insertion method) 55, 364
installing Python
on Macintosh 22
on UNIX (including Linux) 22
on Windows 95/98/NT 22
instance variables 175
int (conversion function)
for converting a float to an integer 47, 356
for converting a long integer to an integer 47, 356
for converting a string to an integer 73, 360
integers 46, 354
integers (hexadecimal) 354
integers (maximum allowed value of sys.maxint) 354
integers (octal) 354
integrated development environment. See IDLE
interactive mode 396
command prompt in (>>>) 25
exiting a session 25
for UNIX 23
for UNIX, command history 396
for UNIX, command line editing 396
for UNIX, key bindings 396
for Windows 95/98 23
for Windows 95/98, keybindings 396
starting a session 22
Windows 95/98, copy and paste 396
Windows 95/98, fixing paste problem 396
interpreter development, command line (cmd module) 394
IOError (exception) 387
is (identity operator) 98, 352
is not (identity operator) 98, 352
isinstance (built-in function) 222, 393
issubclass (built-in function) 223, 393
items (dictionary contents method) 85, 367
iteration. See for loops, while loops
J
Java
comparison with Python 4, 6
difference in memory management for 190
integration of Python with (JPython)
279
JPython 280?296
__builtin__ class 291
calling compiled Python code from Java 291
compiling to Java bytecode (jpythonc) 293
development approaches when using with Java 295
downloading and installing 283
example applet ('Hello World') 281
example java class (general ledger) 286
example java class extension (general ledger) 287
extending (subclassing) Java classes in 287
Java Bean property mappings 286
Java proxy classes 285
jpythonc (compile to java byte code) 293
Py.java2py method 290
PyDictionary class 289
PyList class 290
PyLong class 290
PyObject class 290
PySequence class 290
PyString class 290
Python Server Pages (PSP) 296
PythonInterpreter class 289
PyTuple class 290
speed of 281
using from within Java (PythonInterpreter) 289
using java classes from within 285
using special method attributes (PyObject) 290
using to test java classes 287
K
KeyboardError (exception) 387
KeyError (exception) 387
keys (dictionary indices) 84, 367, 379
keyword arguments 370
keyword arguments (for functions) 102
keywords in Python 351
L
lambda expressions 100, 370
Latteier, Amos xxi
legal restrictions on use, lack thereof 12
len (length function)
for dictionaries 84, 368
for lists 52, 365
for shelves 142, 379
for strings 68, 358
for tuples 63, 366
use in for loops with the range function 92
use of __len__ 383
less than (<) 97, 352
less than or equal to (<=) 97, 352
library modules 113
lines, splitting statements across 96, 368
links, testing for (os.path.islink) 128, 375
Linux, installing Python on 22
list (conversion function)
for converting a string to a list 66, 77, 363
for converting a tuple to a list 66, 363
list(s) 52?62, 364?365
appending an element to (append) 54, 364
bulk initialization of (*) 59, 363
comparison rules for 353
concatenation (+) 59, 363
copying 54, 62
list(s) (continued)
copying, deep (copy.deepcopy) 394
copying, shallow versus deep 62
creating (=) 52, 363
creating with the range function 93, 393
delimiters [] 52, 364
element deletion, by position (del) 55, 364
element deletion, by value (remove) 55, 364
empty [] 64
extending a list (extend) 364
finding sorted position in (bisect.bisect) 56, 365
finding the maximum value of (max) 59, 365
finding the minimum value of (min) 59, 365
index notation 52?54, 363
inserting an element in sorted order (bisect.insort) 56, 365
inserting an element into (insert) 55, 364
length (len) 52, 365
making an object behave like one (special method attributes) 228
matches in (count) 60, 365
membership determination (in) 58, 365
modification of 54
multidimensional 60, 363
multiplication operator (*) 59, 363
nested 60, 363
packing and unpacking 65
pop an element out of (pop) 364
reading from a file (cPickle.load) 138?141, 379
representing matrices with 60
reversal of (reverse) 56, 364
searching in (index) 60, 365
slice notation for 53, 363
sorted order, insert element in (bisect.inorder) 56, 365
sorted, partitioning (bisect.bisect) 56
sorting (sort) 56, 364
sorting with a custom ordering function 57?58, 365
subclassing (UserList module) 395
writing to a file (cPickle.dump) 138?141, 379
Lloyd, Brian xxi
local namespace 114
locals (obtain the local namespace) 115, 393
logical operators (and, or, not) 97, 352
long (conversion function)
for converting a float to a long integer 47, 356
for converting a string to a long integer 73, 360
for converting an integer to a long integer 47, 356
long integers (unlimited precision) 46, 354
LookupError (exception) 387
loops. See for loops, while loops
M
Macintosh, installing Python on 22
map (built-in function) 393
map objects. See dictionaries
match (determine if a string matches a regular expression) 389
match objects (regular expression match)
obtaining a named group from (group) 389
obtaining the named groups in (groupdict) 389
math module 48
math.acos (arc cosine) 355
math.asin (arc sine) 355
math.atan (arc tangent) 355
math.atan2 (arc tangent) 355
math.ceil (ceiling) 355
math.cos (cosine) 355
math.cosh (hyperbolic cosine) 355
math.e (e constant) 355
math.exp (value raised to e) 355
math.fabs (absolute value of a float) 355
math.floor (floor) 355
math.fmod (modulus of floats) 356
math.hypot (hypotenuse) 356
math.log (log base e) 356
math.log10 (log base 10) 356
math.modf (modulus of a fraction) 356
math.pi (pi constant) 356
math.sin (hyperbolic sine) 356
math.sinh (sine) 356
math.sqrt (square root) 356
math.tan (tangent) 357
math.tanh (hyperbolic tangent) 357
matrix
representation using lists 60
sparse matrix representation with dictionaries 88
max (maximum function)
for lists 59, 365
for tuples 63, 366
memory management 189
MemoryError (exception) 387
MFC wrappers for Python 267
Microsoft Access. See Access
Microsoft Excel. See Excel
Microsoft Windows. See Windows
Microsoft Word. See Word
min (minimum function)
for lists 59, 365
for tuples 63, 366
minus operator (-), unary 352
module(s) 106?114, 167?171, 371
combining with scripts 167
definition template 371
documentation string of ( __doc__) 371
importing from (import) 110, 371
library modules 113
private names in 112
regression testing with scripts 170
reloading (reload) 109, 372
search path for (sys.path) 110, 372
third-party modules 114
where to place them 111
modulus operator (%)
for numbers 352
for strings 76?81, 360?361
mount points, testing for (os.path.ismount) 128, 375
MS-DOS Prompt Window
executing a command on from Python (os.system) 394
starting a script from 164
multiline statements 96, 368
multiple inheritance 192?193
multiplication operator (*)
for lists 59, 363
for numbers 47
for strings 358
for tuples 63, 365
multithreaded programming, Java-like (threading module) 347
multithreaded programming, low-level (thread module) 347
N
NameError (exception) 387
namespaces 114?119
bindings in 114
built-in namespace ( __builtin__ ) 114
class namespace (self) 185
displaying the built-in namespace (dir) 117
for functions in interactive sessions 116
for functions in modules 117
for interactive sessions 114, 115
for modules 117
for scripts 114
global namespace 114
instance namespace (self) 185
local namespace 114
obtaining the global namespace (globals) 115, 393
obtaining the local namespace (locals) 115, 393
overriding built-in functions 118
superclass namespace (self) 185
newline character (\n) 46
newsgroup, Python?s (comp.lang.python) 19
nil value. See None
nntplib module (internet news interface) 347
None 50
not (logical operator) 97, 352
not equal to (!=, <>) 97, 352
not in (membership operator) 97, 352
NotImplementedError (exception) 387
number(s) 46?49, 355?357
addition operator (+) 47
number(s) (continued)
coerce to same type (coerce) 355
compare (cmp) 355
comparison rules for 353?354
complex numbers 49, 354, 357
division operator (/) 47
find absolute value (abs) 355
find absolute value of a float (math.fabs) 355
find arc cosine (math.acos) 355
find arc sine (math.asin) 355
find arc tangent (math.atan) 355
find arc tangent (math.atan2) 355
find ceiling (math.ceil) 355
find cosine (math.cos) 355
find e constant (math.e) 355
find floor (math.floor) 355
find hyperbolic cosine (math.cosh) 355
find hyperbolic sine (math.sin) 356
find hyperbolic tangent (math.tanh) 357
find hypotenuse (math.hypot) 356
find log base 10 (math.log10) 356
find log base e (math.log) 356
find modulus of a fraction (math.modf) 356
find modulus of floats (math.fmod) 356
find pi constant (math.pi) 356
find quotient and remainder (divmod) 355
find sine (math.sinh) 356
find square root (math.sqrt) 356
find tangent (math.tan) 357
find value raised to e (math.exp) 355
floats (floating point) 46, 354
integers 46, 354
long integers (unlimited precision) 46, 354
multiplication operator (*) 47
raise to power of (pow) 356
round to nearest integer (round) 356
subraction operator (-) 47
numeric computation 48
numeric functions
built in 47
in math module 48
NumPy (numeric computation package) 48, 346
O
object-oriented programming in Python 173?193 See also classes
objects See also classes
making shallow or deep copies of (copy module) 394
Python definition of 175
reading from a file (cPickle.load) 138?141, 379?381
writing to a file (cPickle.dump) 138?141, 379?380
oct (convert an integer to an octal string representation) 356
octal character representation (\777) 70, 357
octal integers (0777) 354
ODBC
Python COM support for 266
open (open a file) 131, 132, 133
Open Source Software discussion 11
operating system name (os.name, sys.platform) 126
operator overloading. See special method attributes
operators
arithmetic (+, -, *, /, **, %) 352
bitwise (<<, >>, &, |, ^, ~) 352
comparison (<, <=, ==, >, >=, !=, <>, in, not in, is, is not) 97, 352
logical (and, or, not) 97, 352
precedence 352
summary 351
using as functions (operators module) 394
operators module (use operators as functions) 394
or (logical operator) 97, 352
ord (obtain the integer that represents an ASCII character) 358
ordering function
customized for sorting lists 57
os module
os.chdir (change directory) 123, 380
os.curdir (current directory indicator) 123, 126, 374
os.environ (the environment variables) 126, 380
os.getcwd (get the current working directory) 122, 374
os.listdir (list the files in a directory) 123, 128, 380
os.makedirs (create a directory) 129, 380
os.mkdir (create a directory) 129, 380
os.name (operating system name) 126, 380
os.pardir (parent directory indicator) 126, 374
os.path.basename (obtain the base file/directory) 125, 374
os.path.commonprefix (find the common prefix in a set of pathnames) 125, 375
os.path.dirname (obtain the directory name) 125, 374
os.path.exists (test the existence of a pathname) 127, 375
os.path.expanduser (expand the user name variable) 126
os.path.expandvars (expand the system variables) 126, 375
os.path.getatime (obtain the access time of a file or directory) 375
os.path.getmtime (obtain the modification time of a file or directory) 375
os.path.getsize (obtain the size of a file) 375
os.path.isabs (test for an absolute pathname) 128, 375
os.path.isdir (test for a directory) 127, 375
os.path.isfile (test for a file) 127, 375
os.path.islink (test for a link) 128, 375
os.path.ismount (test for a mount point) 128, 375
os.path.join (creating pathnames) 123?125, 374
os.path.normcase (normalize the case of a pathname) 375
os.path.normpath (normalize a pathname) 375
os.path.samefile (test if two pathnames are the same file) 128, 375
os.path.split (splitting pathnames) 125, 374
os.path.splitdrive (split the drive out of a pathname) 376
os.path.splitext (obtain the file extension) 125, 374
os.path.walk (process files in a directory tree) 129?130, 380
os.remove (delete a file) 129, 380
os.rename (rename a file or directory) 128, 380
os.rmdir (delete a directory) 129, 380
os.system (execute system command) 394
OS/2, Python support on 22
OSError (exception) 387
output. See file(s)
OverflowError (exception) 387
P
.py files (Python source code files) 108, 115
.pyc files (compiled bytecode files) 109
.pyo files (optimized compiled bytecode files) 373
packages
__all__ attribute of 216
__init__.py file in 216
basic use of 211
defining and initializing (__init__.py) 216
example use 213
loading subpackages and submodules of 214
proper use of 218
packing
binary data (struct.pack) 138, 379
lists 65
tuples 65
use of __getitem__ 230
parameters. See function(s), parameters
pass (statement) 91, 368
pathname(s)
absolute 121
creating (os.path.join) 124?125, 374
expand the system variables of (os.path.expandvars) 126, 375
expand the user name variable of (os.path.expanduser) 126
expansion of (glob.glob) 128, 165, 376
pathname(s) (continued)
normalize (os.path.normpath) 375
normalizing the case of (os.path.normcase) 375
obtaining common prefix of a set of (os.path.commonprefix) 125, 375
obtaining the base of (os.path.basename) 125, 374
obtaining the directory of (os.path.dirname) 125, 374
obtaining the file extension of (os.path.splitext) 125, 374
relative 121
split the drive out of (os.path.splitdrive) 376
splitting (os.path.split) 125, 374
test if it is absolute (os.path.isabs) 128, 375
testing for a directory (os.path.isdir) 127, 375
testing for a file (os.path.isfile) 127, 375
testing the existence of (os.path.exists) 127, 375
paths. See pathname(s)
pattern matching. See regular expressions
Perl, comparison with Python 4, 9
persistent data. See pickling and shelves
pickling (reading and writing Python objects from files) 138?141, 379
pictures and images. See PIL
PIL (Python Imaging Library) 346
piping I/O between commands | 158
placeholder value. See None
platform specific test (os.name, sys.platform) 126
Pmw (Python Megawidgets), Tkinter extensions 205
pop (list element removal method) 364
pow (raise to power) 356
print statement 70, 377
printing
any Python object (using repr , str or ` `)objectToString 79
escape sequences 70?72
formatted strings with the modulus operator (%) 79?81
formatting sequences with named parameters 81
special formatting characters for (escape sequences) 69
to standard out 135
using a comma to avoid a newline being added 70
private variables/methods of classes 184
procedure(s) 100
programs. See scripts
prompting for an input expression (input) 134, 377
prompting for text input (raw_input) 134, 377
PSA (Python Software Association) 12
.pth files (additions to sys.path) 112
.pyc files (compiled bytecode files) 109
Python
comparison with C 4, 6?7
comparison with C++ 4, 6?7
comparison with Java 4, 6?7
comparison with Perl 4, 9?10
comparison with Tcl/Tk 4, 8?9
comparison with Visual Basic 4, 7?8
Python Help line (python-help@python.org) 20
Python Internet news group (comp.lang.python) 19
Python interpreter summary 372
Python keywords 351
Python Language Reference 19
Python Library Reference 19
Python Shell window of IDLE, using 25
Python SIGs (significant interest groups) 20
Python?s home web page (www.python.org) 19
PYTHONINSPECT (environment variable) 373
PYTHONOPTIMIZE (environment variable) 373
PYTHONPATH (module search path variable) 110, 373
PYTHONSTARTUP (startup file indicator) 373
PYTHONUNBUFFERED (binary unbuffered IO) 164, 374
PYTHONVERBOSE (environment variable) 374
PythonWin. See COM integration for Python
Q
QNX, Python support on 22
qualification 108
Quick Python
appendix, format conventions used in 350
chapter summaries 17?19
important point markers in 14
interactive examples in, formatting of 15
non-interactive examples in, formatting of 16
organization of 13
sending feedback on 20
quitting the interpreter (sys.exit) 395
R
raise (statement) 149, 386
random integer generation (whrandom.randint) 395
random number between 0.0 and 1.0 (whrandom.random) 395
randomly choose an element out of a list (whrandom.choice) 395
range (create a list sequence) 93, 393
raw strings (r" ") 234, 357
raw_input (prompt for and read in a string) 134, 377
re module (regular expressions)
re.compile (create and compile a regular expression) 233, 388
read
a binary record from a file 137, 379
a fixed amount from a file 133, 376
read the rest of a file into a string 376
reading
an expression from the screen (input) 134, 377
text from the screen (raw_input) 134, 377
readline
read a line from a file 132, 376
read a string from a file 133, 376
read all lines of a file 133, 376
redirecting input and output 135
reduce (built-in function) 393
reference counting 189
regular expressions 232?240, 388?392
creating and compiling (re.compile) 233
determine if a string matches (match) 389
extracting matched text with 236
extracting text from a string with (?P) 237, 391
find all occurrences of in a string (findall) 388
grouping ( ) 233, 391
lookahead assertion (?= ) 391
match a digit \d 236, 392
match a newline \n 392
match a non-alphanumeric \W 392
match a tab \t 392
match an alphanumeric \w 392
match any character 390
match beginning/end of a word \b 392
match end of string or line $ 390
match m to n repetitions {m,n} 390
match non-digit \D 392
match non-whitespace character \S 392
match one or more times + 236, 390
match optional ? 236, 390
match same as 'name' (?P=name) 391
match start of string or line ^ 390
match whitespace character \s 392
match zero or more times 390
negative lookahead assertion (?! ) 391
obtaining matches of from a string (group) 238, 389
or | 233, 391
search a string for a match (search) 233, 237, 238, 389
split a string on (split) 389
splitting into sections 237
substituting text in strings with (sub) 238, 389
summary 388
use of raw strings for 234
relative pathnames 121
in UNIX 121
in Windows 95/98/NT 121
reload (reload a module) 109, 372
remove (list value removal method) 55, 364
repr (convert an object to a string) 77?79, 359
reserved words in Python 351
return (return statement of a function) 99, 370
reverse (list reversal method) 56, 364
Robinson, Andy xxii
See also chapter 22
round (round to nearest integer) 356
RuntimeError (exception) 387
S
scientific computing in Python (NumPy) 346
scientific notation 46
scoping rules for Python 114?119, 185?188
See also namespaces
scripts 157?171, 372
combining with modules 167
command line arguments for 157, 372
execution options on Windows 161
making them executable on UNIX 161
parsing command line arguments of (getopt) 159, 394
purpose of controlling functions in 170
redirection of input and output for 158, 372
setting up and starting in Windows as a Shortcut 162
starting from a command line 157
starting from an MS-DOS Prompt Window 164
starting from the Windows Run box 163
starting in Windows as a document 162
starting in Windows by 'opening' (double click) 162
use for module regression testing 170
search (search a string for a regular expression match) 233, 237, 238, 389
seek (move within a file) 378
self (as first argument of methods) 174, 381
sequence creation (range) 93, 393
sequence object types
immutable. See string(s) and tuple(s)
&nb