On 2011-04-08 17:59 , candide wrote:
Le 09/04/2011 00:03, Ethan Furman a écrit :

> bool([x])
> Convert a value to a Boolean, using the standard truth testing
> procedure.
>

As you can see, the parameter name is 'x'.


OK, your response is clarifying my point ;)


I didn't realize that in the bool([x]) syntax, identifier x refers to a
"genuine" argument [I was considering x as referring to a "generic" object
having a boolean value].


Nevertheless, compare with the definition the doc provides for the builtin
function dir():

dir([object])
[definition omited, just observe the declaration syntax]

Now, lets make a try

 >>> dir(object="Explicit is better than implicit")
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "<stdin>", line 1, in <module>
TypeError: dir() takes no keyword arguments
 >>>

Not very meaningful, isn't it ?

No one is saying that every instance of "foo([arg])" in the docs means that the given argument is named such that it is available for keyword arguments. What people are saying is that for bool(), *that happens to be the case*.

--
Robert Kern

"I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma
 that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had
 an underlying truth."
  -- Umberto Eco

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