On Sep 21, 4:39 pm, Steven D'Aprano <[EMAIL PROTECTED] cybersource.com.au> wrote: > I have a class which is not intended to be instantiated. Instead of using > the class to creating an instance and then operate on it, I use the class > directly, with classmethods. Essentially, the class is used as a function > that keeps state from one call to the next. > > The problem is that I don't know what to call such a thing! "Abstract > class" isn't right, because that implies that you should subclass the > class and then instantiate the subclasses. > > What do you call such a class?
If defining it as a normal class, it is a namespace. Just a way to cluster multiple globals into a single global. The borg pattern does the same thing, but with a 12 page treatise on why it shouldn't do exactly what it's doing. If using a factory you should probably be using an instance; the fact that your instance is a class is a relatively minor implementation detail. Indeed, the only reason to have a class is to have your methods bound when looked up. You might want a metaclass to cripple it, preventing subclassing and whatnot. *shrug*. -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list