Charles Becker wrote:
I have a rather obscure question, and not sure where in the docs to find an
answer like this.
For functions that return values (ie the list method pop): If you don't assign
the returned value to anything does it still end up residing in memory? Just
seems like this could be a potential problem to watch out for when memory usage
is an issue (probably not most of the time).
Python is a modern language with a garbage collector. That means that behind
the scenes Python deletes objects which are no longer in use. So the short
answer is, yes, if you don't assign the returned value, it will be deleted by
the garbage collector and you don't normally have to worry about it.
Also, where can I begin to find these 'lower level' answers in the docs?
Mostly in the source code. Otherwise, scattered all over the documentation: it
depends on what you consider "lower level".
If you're familiar with C, or just curious, you might read this part:
http://docs.python.org/extending/extending.html#reference-counts
--
Steven
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