[Python-Dev] Switch statement

Mon Jun 19 19:21:51 CEST 2006

>> A switch-statement offers only a modest readability improvement over
>> if-elif chains.
>>> Probably, which is why it hasn't been added yet. :-)
>> But there is a definite readability improvement in that you *know*
> that it's always the same variable that is being compared and that no
> other conditions are snuck into some branches.

Hmm, when I saw that "arbitrary expressions" were being proposed, I took 
that took mean that the variable would have to be repeated in the branches:
 switch x:
 case x.endswith('wart'): salicylic_acid()
 case x.endswith('roid'): preparation_h()
 default: chicken_soup()
> I would
> think that it would be fine if some switches could be compiled into
> some kind of lookup table while others would just be translated into a
> series of if/elifs. As long as the compiler can tell the difference.
>That's a worthy goal; of course, the devil is in the details. Given:
 switch x:
 case 1: one()
 case 2: two()
 case 3: three()
 default: too_many()
Do we require that x be hashable so that the compiler can use a lookup 
table?
Raymond