- cross-posted to:
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- cross-posted to:
- [email protected]
Also, do y’all call main() in the if block or do you just put the code you want to run in the if block?
Also, do y’all call main() in the if block or do you just put the code you want to run in the if block?
All code needs to have an entry point.
For Python and some other languages, this is the start of the file.
For other languages, this is a special function name reserved for this purpose - generally, “main”.
In the first kind of language, the thought process is basically: I have the flow of execution, starting at the top of the file. If I want to make a library, I should build the things I want to build, then get out of the way.
In the other kind of language, the thought process is basically: I am building a library. If I want to make an executable, I should create an entry point they the execution starts at.
The debate is honestly pretty dumb.
Python doesn’t need the name main check to function at all. that’s just a convenience feature that lets developers also include arbitrary entry points into modules that are part of a library and expected to be used as such. If you’re writing a script, a file with a single line in it reading
print("hello world")will work fine when run:python thescript.pyYes, because
Note the “I have the flow of execution”, and the “if I want to build a library”.
If you just want to build an executable, do as you wish, you already have the flow of execution.
If you want to build a library, make the relevant classes and functions and get out of the way (i.e., no IO, no long-running tasks).
If you want to combine them, use the main name check - or, make a package and do entry points that way. Either way works, because both can fulfill the goal of staying out of the way of those importing this as a library.