On 14 May 2013 17:11, Marc Tompkins <marc.tompk...@gmail.com> wrote: > > The OP expressed some confusion between what a function DOES and what it > RETURNS. It occurs to me that the print() function (or, more generically, > ANY print() function - it doesn't have to be Python 3) is a good > demonstration. > > Our first exposure to print() is very simple: display something on the screen > - what could possibly go wrong? However, print() can redirect its output to > files, printers, skywriters, etc. - and sometimes it will be a real question > whether print() succeeded in producing any output. (If your program is > trying to write data into a file, you'd probably like to know whether it > worked or not.) So print() - like all functions - has an optional return > value, which your program can read to see whether it needs to retry, display > an error message, etc. > > Again, the return value of print() - e.g. success/failure - is separate from > what print() actually prints.
I was surprised by this so I've just tested it and checked the docs; the print() function does not return anything (i.e. it returns None). >>> a = print('qwe') qwe >>> a >>> print(a) None http://docs.python.org/3/library/functions.html#print Oscar _______________________________________________ Tutor maillist - Tutor@python.org To unsubscribe or change subscription options: http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/tutor