General Type Checks (int, str, tuple, etc.)

[Fabian Steiner]

Hello!

So far, I am using something like »if isinstance(var, int):« to
determine, whether var's value is an integer. Now I would like to know
if there is any better possibility to do such general checks or may a
construct with isinstance() even fail in certain cases?

Cheers,
Fabian

 

[Scott David Daniels]

Hello!

So far, I am using something like »if isinstance(var, int):« to
determine, whether var's value is an integer. Now I would like to know
if there is any better possibility to do such general checks or may a
construct with isinstance() even fail in certain cases?

The general rule is: don't check, let it fail if it wants to.
If you are looking for an integral value check, you might prefer:

isinstance(x, (int, long))

but again, think long and hard about your requirements. Embrace
dynamic typing; don't try to write your old language in Python.

--Scott David Daniels
(e-mail address removed)