calling functions style question

[Brian]

I just have a basic style question here. Suppose you have the program:

def foo1():
do something

def foo2()
do something else

Assume that you want to call these functions at execution. Is it more
proper to call them directly like:

foo1()
foo2()

or in an if __name__ == "__main__": ?

Both will execute when the script is called directly, I was just
wondering if there is a preference, and what the pros and cons to each
method were.

Thanks,
Brian

[Thomas Nelson]

Re: calling functions style question

The difference becomes clear when you import your program into another
program (or the command line python editor). __name__!='__ma in__' when
you import, so the functions will not be called if they're inside the
block. This is why you see this block so often at the end of scripts;
so that the script runs its main functions when called as a standalone
program, but you can also import the code and do something with it
without setting off those functions.

THN

Brian wrote:[color=blue]
> I just have a basic style question here. Suppose you have the program:
>
> def foo1():
> do something
>
> def foo2()
> do something else
>
> Assume that you want to call these functions at execution. Is it more
> proper to call them directly like:
>
> foo1()
> foo2()
>
> or in an if __name__ == "__main__": ?
>
> Both will execute when the script is called directly, I was just
> wondering if there is a preference, and what the pros and cons to each
> method were.
>
> Thanks,
> Brian[/color]

[Kay Schluehr]

Re: calling functions style question


Brian wrote:[color=blue]
> I just have a basic style question here. Suppose you have the program:
>
> def foo1():
> do something
>
> def foo2()
> do something else
>
> Assume that you want to call these functions at execution. Is it more
> proper to call them directly like:
>
> foo1()
> foo2()
>
> or in an if __name__ == "__main__": ?
>
> Both will execute when the script is called directly, I was just
> wondering if there is a preference, and what the pros and cons to each
> method were.
>
> Thanks,
> Brian[/color]

If you want those functions to be called each time your module gets
imported you have to apply calls out of the "if __name__ ..."
statement. If your module is, for certain reasons, always the __main__
module and never gets imported there is no obvious preference because
behaviour will be the same.