The Glk API (which I'm implementing in native Python code) defines 120 or so constants that users must use. The constants already have fairly long names, e.g., gestalt_Version, evtype_Timer, keycode_PageDown.
Calls to Glk functions are thus ugly and tedious. scriptref = glk.fileref_create_by_prompt( glk.fileusage_Transcript | glk.fileusage_TextMode, glk.filemode_WriteAppend, 0) Please give me some good style advice for this situation. I know some modules are designed to be used as 'from XXX import *'. Since the Glk API is heavily influenced by its inception in C this might not be a huge problem. All the functions in the API have glk_ prepended, since C has no namespaces. I think it makes sense to stick the glk_'s back on the functions and instruct users to 'from Glk import *', but I know it doesn't conform with Python practice, and Python has plenty of modules that were originally designed in C, but don't insist on polluting the global namespace. Would it better to use strings instead? Some Python builtins use them as a way to avoid creating of global constants. scriptref = glk.fileref_create_by_prompt('Transcript+TextMode', 'WriteAppend', 0) Parsing the combinable bitfield contants might be slowish, though. Thanks for taking the time to consider my question. -- Neil Cerutti For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs. --Church Bulletin Blooper -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list