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tomtrnka
9,780 Pointswhy not pass LIST instead of *args
I understand why we used *args, but isn't it better just to pass a LIST as argument? (cause from previous lessons, LIST can contain any amount and type of data too, and its mutable... if we use *args, we always get a tuple). This whole *args and **kwargs is a bit consufing in a way: when to you them.
What happens when the function is defined with *args parameter, and I pass in a list? Will the parameter contain a list nested in a tuple?? Are *args really that common? Dont people 'prepare' the data first in ordered groups and then pass them and process them/use them afterwards?
3 Answers
Steven Parker
231,268 PointsAs I learned Python, I discovered it was not just a language but a style, and one hallmark of "pythonic" style is keeping things simple. It's certainly easier to write (and remember) something like "sum(1, 2, 3)" compared to "sum([1,2,3])".
Of course, nothing prevents you from creating your own functions to work that way if you want. But if you work in a team, the other development team members may have different coding style preferences.
Sergio Andrés Herrera Velásquez
Python Development Techdegree Graduate 12,966 PointsActually, it is a bad practice to pass lists due to their mutability, meaning you could be modifying the list itself, which is somethin that the *args wouldn't cause.
Steven Parker
231,268 PointsIt may not always be bad practice, as sometimes the function might be intended to modify a list.
Sergio Andrés Herrera Velásquez
Python Development Techdegree Graduate 12,966 Pointswell, but as a rule of thumb, what gets modified is a copy of the list, not the list in itself