sys.exit()

[Ivan Voras]

In a code such as:

if len(sys.argv) < 2:
print "I need arguments!"
sys.exit(1)

Is sys.exit() really a good choice? Is there something more elegant? (I
tried return but it is valid only in a function)
--
--
Every sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishab le from technology
- Arthur C Anticlarke

[Duncan Booth]

"Ivan Voras" <iv****@fer.h r> wrote in news:bm******** **@bagan.srce.h r:

In a code such as:

if len(sys.argv) < 2:
print "I need arguments!"
sys.exit(1)

Is sys.exit() really a good choice? Is there something more elegant? (I
tried return but it is valid only in a function)

More elegant might be to put your code in a function which would let you
use return, although even then you need to call sys.exit somewhere if you
want to set a return code. Remember that sys.exit just throws an exception,
so you can always catch it further out if you need to. Also you can combine
the print into the call to sys.exit and save a line:

import sys

def main(args):
if len(args) < 2:
sys.exit("I need arguments!")

print "rest of program..."

if __name__=='__ma in__':
main(sys.argv)

--
Duncan Booth du****@rcp.co.u k
int month(char *p){return(1248 64/((p[0]+p[1]-p[2]&0x1f)+1)%12 )["\5\x8\3"
"\6\7\xb\1\x9\x a\2\0\4"];} // Who said my code was obscure?

[Peter Hansen]

Ivan Voras wrote:

In a code such as:

if len(sys.argv) < 2:
print "I need arguments!"
sys.exit(1)

Is sys.exit() really a good choice? Is there something more elegant? (I
tried return but it is valid only in a function)

sys.exit() is the proper, defined, cross-platform way to exit from
a program and return a value to the calling program. Change your
definition of elegant and you could consider it easily the most elegant
of all solutions. ;-)

-Peter

[Ivan Voras]

Peter Hansen wrote:

Ivan Voras wrote:

Is sys.exit() really a good choice? Is there something more elegant?
(I tried return but it is valid only in a function)

sys.exit() is the proper, defined, cross-platform way to exit from
a program and return a value to the calling program. Change your
definition of elegant and you could consider it easily the most
elegant of all solutions. ;-)

Ok. :)

(Just for the record: I was looking for something that doesn't require a
module import. But it is not important.)

--
--
Every sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishab le from technology
- Arthur C Anticlarke

[Gerrit Holl]

Ivan Voras wrote:

In a code such as:

if len(sys.argv) < 2:
print "I need arguments!"
sys.exit(1)

Is sys.exit() really a good choice? Is there something more elegant? (I
tried return but it is valid only in a function)

An alternative that I often choose is:

raise SystemExit("I need arguments!")

This is the same in one line, and I think it is more elegant, because it
is higher-level: you are not using the low-level interface of error codes,
a non-programmer may not understand what '1' means, usually it means success
so that can be very confusing. I prefer raise SystemExit.

Gerrit.

--
30. If a chieftain or a man leave his house, garden, and field and
hires it out, and some one else takes possession of his house, garden, and
field and uses it for three years: if the first owner return and claims
his house, garden, and field, it shall not be given to him, but he who has
taken possession of it and used it shall continue to use it.
-- 1780 BC, Hammurabi, Code of Law
--
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http://people.nl.linux.org/~gerrit/
Kom in verzet tegen dit kabinet:
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[Ivan Voras]

Gerrit Holl wrote:

An alternative that I often choose is:

raise SystemExit("I need arguments!")

This is the same in one line, and I think it is more elegant, because
it
is higher-level: you are not using the low-level interface of error

Yes, I agree. This is what I was looking for (as always, it was obvious
:) ), thanks. Only, what error code is returned for this termination method?

--
--
Every sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishab le from technology
- Arthur C Anticlarke

[Gerrit Holl]

Ivan Voras wrote:

Gerrit Holl wrote:

An alternative that I often choose is:

raise SystemExit("I need arguments!")

This is the same in one line, and I think it is more elegant, because
it
is higher-level: you are not using the low-level interface of error

Yes, I agree. This is what I was looking for (as always, it was obvious
:) ), thanks. Only, what error code is returned for this termination method?

For a string, I believe it is 1, although I don't know when this holds and
when it doesn't - I don't care for myself, so I never tried to find out, really ;)

Gerrit.

--
258. If any one hire an ox-driver, he shall pay him six gur of corn per
year.
-- 1780 BC, Hammurabi, Code of Law
--
Asperger Syndroom - een persoonlijke benadering:
http://people.nl.linux.org/~gerrit/
Kom in verzet tegen dit kabinet:
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[George Young]

On Thu, 09 Oct 2003 20:44:55 +0200, Gerrit Holl wrote:

Ivan Voras wrote:

Gerrit Holl wrote:

> An alternative that I often choose is:
>
> raise SystemExit("I need arguments!")
>
> This is the same in one line, and I think it is more elegant, because
> it
> is higher-level: you are not using the low-level interface of error

Yes, I agree. This is what I was looking for (as always, it was obvious
:) ), thanks. Only, what error code is returned for this termination method?

For a string, I believe it is 1, although I don't know when this holds and
when it doesn't - I don't care for myself, so I never tried to find out, really ;)

Actually, SystemExit is a *lower* level operation. From the docs:
[ http://www.python.org/doc/current/lib/module-sys.html ]
=============== =============== =============== =============== ====
exit( [arg])

Exit from Python. This is implemented by raising the SystemExit
exception, so cleanup actions specified by finally clauses of try
statements are honored, and it is possible to intercept the exit
attempt at an outer level. The optional argument arg can be an integer
giving the exit status (defaulting to zero), or another type of
object. If it is an integer, zero is considered ``successful
termination'' and any nonzero value is considered ``abnormal
termination'' by shells and the like. Most systems require it to be in
the range 0-127, and produce undefined results otherwise. Some systems
have a convention for assigning specific meanings to specific exit
codes, but these are generally underdeveloped; Unix programs generally
use 2 for command line syntax errors and 1 for all other kind of
errors. If another type of object is passed, None is equivalent to
passing zero, and any other object is printed to sys.stderr and
results in an exit code of 1. In particular, sys.exit("some error
message") is a quick way to exit a program when an error occurs.
=============== =============== =============== =============== ====

So SystemExit is called by sys.exit. And one can use:

sys.exit('I need arguments!')

Thus it would seem that sys.exit is higher level, and probably a bit more
stable and portable.
-- George

[Gerrit Holl]

George Young wrote:

So SystemExit is called by sys.exit. And one can use:

sys.exit('I need arguments!')

Thus it would seem that sys.exit is higher level, and probably a bit more
stable and portable.

Ah, yes. I was probably confused with another function, I think with
os._exit. I don't really understand why _exit is in the os module
while exit is in the sys module; I have grown accostumed to raising
SystemExit, but I can de-grow it again I guess ;)

Gerrit.

--
240. If a merchantman run against a ferryboat, and wreck it, the master
of the ship that was wrecked shall seek justice before God; the master of
the merchantman, which wrecked the ferryboat, must compensate the owner
for the boat and all that he ruined.
-- 1780 BC, Hammurabi, Code of Law
--
Asperger Syndroom - een persoonlijke benadering:
http://people.nl.linux.org/~gerrit/
Kom in verzet tegen dit kabinet:
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[DogWalker]

BDFL has said: http://www.artima.com/weblogs/viewpost.jsp?thread=4829

"Ivan Voras" <iv****@fer.h r> wrote in message
news:bm******** **@bagan.srce.h r...
In a code such as:

if len(sys.argv) < 2:
print "I need arguments!"
sys.exit(1)

Is sys.exit() really a good choice? Is there something more elegant? (I
tried return but it is valid only in a function)
--
--
Every sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishab le from technology
- Arthur C Anticlarke