[Python-3000] Reminder: Py3k PEPs due by April

[Phillip J. Eby]

At 01:03 PM 4/11/2007 -0400, Jason Orendorff wrote:
>On 4/10/07, Raymond Hettinger <python at rcn.com> wrote:
> > * Eliminate implicit string concatenation:   "abc" "def"
> > in favor of an explicit + operation.  That simplifies
> > the grammar just a bit and the compiler already is
> > smart enough to do constant fold this operation at
> > compile time. [...]
>
>My gut instinct was "whoa, don't change that".  But:
>
>I think this behavior comes from C, where it's useful mainly because
>of the preprocessor.  In Python it's not as useful.  And C experience
>is not as universal as it once was.  I bet this looks pretty confusing
>the first time you run into it.
>
>Sure, I use it, but if it went away, I would type the plus sign.  Not
>a problem.  And it would be one less thing for newcomers to learn, and
>explicit is better, right?

But there's another Python principle here, I think...  complexity of 
computation should be represented by complexity of syntax.  We don't 
generally like to use properties for expensive computation, or methods for 
simple field access, for example.  Putting in a '+' sign makes the code 
*feel* like there's more computation going on, even if the computation gets 
optimized away.