Python Subprocesses

[Ed P]

I’m struggling with the Python subprocess class. (mainly used instead of os calls to launch and control external programs e.g. changing settings within vlc  running under a a raspberry pi. in response to button presses etc).

It appears that a lot of this is relatively new to Python 3, and I cannot find a good reference book. that covers the topic Has anyone come across such a book that they can recommend?

[Ed P]

I cracked my personal Python mental block. It basically arose because I come from a background of highly typed/structured programming languages such as c++ and I just wasn’t really up to speed on a language like Python where the compiler takes most of the strain. I did however find a useful book that helped me break my block. “The Python Cookbook“.

It did raise a different question in my mind – why is so much opensource documentation written to be completely incomprehensible,. while someone else can take the same subject and make it easy. Python Tuples are a good example of carpy Opensource documentation. The cookbook on the other hand shows that it is just simple data packing, where the compiler takes the strain.

e.g. given a tuple data= (‘ACME’, 50, 91.1, (2012, 12,21)

then this may be unpacked by setting

name, shares, price, (year, month, day) = date

where of course the value for year is 2012, month=12 and day=23

Packing is the opposite process.

[Anonymous]

Documentation in paid for products can be patchy sometimes. Don’t pay someone to do it, and it’s going to be very poor.

I learn best with examples, and I find many open-source are so patchy on their examples, giving the most basic and obvious implementation that doesn’t help with any corner cases!

[Author]

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