Glossary

Contents

Indices and tables

• Index
• Module Index
• Search Page

A list of terms that relates to Python and this course.

Block

A block is a piece of Python program text that is executed as a unit. The following are blocks:

• A module
• A function body
• A class definition
• Each command typed interactively in the interpreter
• A script file (a file given as standard input to the interpreter or specified as a command line argument to the interpreter)
• A script command (a command specified on the interpreter command line with the ‘-c’ option)
• The string argument passed to the built-in functions eval() and exec() is a code block.

A code block is executed in an execution frame. A frame contains some administrative information (used for debugging) and determines where and how execution continues after the code block’s execution has completed. [1]

Class

The blueprint for a data-type. Describes the functionality of the data-type and how new instances of the data-type are to be created and initialized.

Class-Instance

A unique object that has been created and conforms to a class definition, complete with its own set of instance specific data.

Class-Object

The object that results from executing a class definition. The class-object represents the class definition or blueprint.

Deep-copy

Non-nested AND nested child objects are copied recursively.

Dunder

The use of 2 underscores sequentially, like __.

EOF

End of file

Hashable

In the context of Python, refers to an object that has the same has value throughout its lifetime and can be compared for equality. Mutable values are therefore by definition not hashable (their value can change over their lifetime). All of Python’s immutable built-in objects are hashable.

IDE

Integrated Development Environment. A project development tool that, at its minimum, usually consolidates a code editor and a debugger together in the same application.

Interpreter

A program that parses instructions provided at run-time, arranges for them to be executed and returns the results to the appropriate location.

JSON

JavaScript Object Notation. Specificed by RFC 7159. Also see the JSON web site.

Module

• Think of a module as a container with attributes, one attribute being a namespace

• Can be a file (with .py extension) containing python fn/class definitions and executable statements.

  • In this case, the module name is the name of the file

• Can be a directory (with a init.py file inside it), in which case it is referred to as a package.

  • Packages can contain other modules and sub-packages
  • In this case, the package name is the name of the directory
  • The module object created has a __path__ attribute

Thus, all packages are modules; not all modules are packages

Object

Can refer to either, an instance of a class, or, the ultimate base class of all objects (object)

PyCon

Python Conference. A trademarked term referring to worldwide conference activities put on to promote the Python language.

Shallow-Copy

Non-nested child objects are copied. Nested child objects still point to the original.

Wheel

A Built Distribution format introduced by PEP 427.

[1]	https://docs.python.org/3.5/reference/executionmodel.html#structure-of-a-program