Re: how to inherit docstrings?

Eric Snow wrote:
p.s. Am I missing something or can you really not change the docstring
of a class? I was thinking about the idea of inheriting class
docstrings too.

8<--------------------------------------------------------
"""module level docstring"""

def func():
"""function level docstring"""

class Test(object):
"""class level docstring"""
def meth(self):
"""method level docstring"""


if __name__ == '__main__':
import sys
import traceback
hmmm = (
sys.modules['__main__'],
func,
Test(),
Test().meth,
Test,
Test.meth,
)
for obj in hmmm:
try:
obj.__doc__ = 'new docstring'
print('successfully changed %s\n' % obj)
except:
traceback.print_exc()
print()
8<--------------------------------------------------------

Tested from 2.5 - 3.2. The first three always work, the last one works in 3.1+, the fourth and fifth always fail.

-----------------actual output for 2.5--------------------
successfully changed <module '__main__' from 'docstring.py'>

successfully changed <function func at 0x00A8F570>

successfully changed <__main__.Test object at 0x00A94230>

Traceback (most recent call last):
File "docstring.py", line 25, in <module>
obj.__doc__ = 'new docstring'
AttributeError: attribute '__doc__' of 'instancemethod' objects is not writable
()
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "docstring.py", line 25, in <module>
obj.__doc__ = 'new docstring'
AttributeError: attribute '__doc__' of 'type' objects is not writable
()
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "docstring.py", line 25, in <module>
obj.__doc__ = 'new docstring'
AttributeError: attribute '__doc__' of 'instancemethod' objects is not writable
()
-----------------actual output for 3.2--------------------
successfully changed <module '__main__' from 'docstring.py'>

successfully changed <function func at 0x00BE6F60>

successfully changed <__main__.Test object at 0x00BFE730>

Traceback (most recent call last):
File "docstring.py", line 25, in <module>
obj.__doc__ = 'new docstring'
AttributeError: attribute '__doc__' of 'method' objects is not writable

Traceback (most recent call last):
File "docstring.py", line 25, in <module>
obj.__doc__ = 'new docstring'
AttributeError: attribute '__doc__' of 'type' objects is not writable

successfully changed <function meth at 0x00BE6ED0>
-----------------actual output----------------------------

~Ethan~
.

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