Schif Schaf wrote:
On Feb 7, 8:57 am, Tim Chase <python.l...@tim.thechases.com> wrote:
Steve Holden wrote:
Really? Under what circumstances does a simple one-for-one character
replacement operation fail?
Failure is only defined in the clarified context of what the OP
wants :) Replacement operations only fail if the OP's desired
output from the above mess doesn't change *all* of the ]/[
characters, but only those with some form of parity (nested or
otherwise). But if the OP *does* want all of the ]/[ characters
replaced regardless of contextual nature, then yes, replace is a
much better solution than regexps.
I need to do the usual "pipe text through and do various search/
replace" thing fairly often. The above case of having to replace
brackets with braces is only one example. Simple string methods run
out of steam pretty quickly and much of my work relies on using
regular expressions. Yes, I try to keep focused on simplicity, and
often regexes are the simplest solution for my day-to-day needs.
Could you post a complex case? It's a kindness to your helpers to
simplify your case, but if the simplification doesn't cover the full
scope of your problem you can't expect the suggestions to cover it.
Frederic
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