On Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 5:21 AM, Joshua Landau <joshua.landau...@gmail.com> wrote: > Because Python uses indentation, what would "if A: print(1); if B: print(2)" > even do? It has to fail, because we have to assume consistent indentation > for ";"s*. With "\n" as I proposed, you still have to indent: it is just a > method to bypass lame shells [it would become "if A: print(1)\nif B: > print(2)"].
sikorsky@sikorsky:~/cpython$ python -c "if False: print(1); print(2)" sikorsky@sikorsky:~/cpython$ python -c "if True: print(1); print(2)" 1 2 sikorsky@sikorsky:~/cpython$ The semicolon separates statements, but doesn't change nesting levels. The if statement increases the nesting level, which demands a corresponding indentation increase if you go onto a new line; the statement you describe is illegal because the 'if' isn't allowed to not be at the beginning of the line, but it's unambiguous. Of course, since Python lacks a non-whitespace way of indicating the end of an if block, there's no way to put your "if A" and "if B" onto the same line as peers. But that's a consequence of a design decision, and one that can't easily be changed. Every language has warts like that; eschewing variable declarations prevents infinite nesting of scopes, but demanding variable declarations makes interactive work harder. To paraphrase the Pirate King: Always follow the dictates of your conscience, and accept the consequences. ChrisA -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
