On Wed, Nov 14, 2012 at 8:12 PM, Chris Withers <ch...@simplistix.co.uk> wrote: > I suspect I'm not the only one who finds: > > a_dict = dict( > x = 1, > y = 2, > z = 3, > ... > ) > > ...easier to read than: > > a_dict = { > 'x':1, > 'y':2, > 'z':3, > ... > } > > What can we do to speed up the former case?
Perhaps an alternative question: What can be done to make the latter less unpalatable? I personally prefer dict literal syntax to a dict constructor call, but no doubt there are a number of people who feel as you do. In what way(s) do you find the literal syntax less readable, and can some simple (and backward-compatible) enhancements help that? I've seen criticisms (though I don't recall where) of Python, comparing it to JavaScript/ECMAScript, that complain of the need to quote the keys. IMO this is a worthwhile downside, as it allows you to use variables as the keys, rather than requiring (effectively) literal strings. But it does make a dict literal that much more "noisy" than the constructor. ChrisA _______________________________________________ Python-Dev mailing list Python-Dev@python.org http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-dev Unsubscribe: http://mail.python.org/mailman/options/python-dev/archive%40mail-archive.com