What is a class?

Python Questions and Answers

(Continued from previous question...)

What is a class?

A class is the particular object type created by executing a class statement. Class objects are used as templates to create instance objects, which embody both the data (attributes) and code (methods) specific to a datatype.

A class can be based on one or more other classes, called its base class(es). It then inherits the attributes and methods of its base classes. This allows an object model to be successively refined by inheritance. You might have a generic Mailbox class that provides basic accessor methods for a mailbox, and subclasses such as MboxMailbox, MaildirMailbox, OutlookMailbox that handle various specific mailbox formats.

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Other Interview Questions

• What is Python?
• Why can't I use an assignment in an expression?
• Is there a tool to help find bugs or perform static analysis?
• How do you set a global variable in a function?
• What are the rules for local and global variables in Python?
• How do I share global variables across modules?
• How can I pass optional or keyword parameters from one function to another?
• How do I write a function with output parameters (call by reference)?
• How do you make a higher order function in Python?
• How do I copy an object in Python?
• How can I find the methods or attributes of an object?
• How can my code discover the name of an object?
• Is there an equivalent of C's "?:" ternary operator?
• How do I convert a string to a number?
• How do I convert a number to a string?
• How do I modify a string in place?
• How do I use strings to call functions/methods?
• Is there an equivalent to Perl's chomp() for removing trailing newlines from strings?
• Is there a scanf() or sscanf() equivalent?
• Is there a scanf() or sscanf() equivalent?
• How do I convert between tuples and lists?
• What is a negative index?
• How do I iterate over a sequence in reverse order?
• How do you remove duplicates from a list?
• How do you make an array in Python?
• How do I create a multidimensional list?
• How do I apply a method to a sequence of objects?
• Can you do a Schwartzian Transform in Python?
• How can I sort one list by values from another list?
• What is a class?
• What is a method?
• What is self?
• How do I check if an object is an instance of a given class or of a subclass of it?
• What is delegation?
• How do I call a method defined in a base class from a derived class that overrides it?
• How can I organize my code to make it easier to change the base class?
• How do I create static class data and static class methods?
• How can I overload constructors (or methods) in Python?
• How do I find the current module name?
• __import__('x.y.z') returns < module 'x'>; how do I get z?
• When I edit an imported module and reimport it, the changes don't show up. Why does this happen?
• Where is the math.py (socket.py, regex.py, etc.) source file?
• How do I make a Python script executable on Unix?
• Why don't my signal handlers work?
• How do I test a Python program or component?
• None of my threads seem to run: why?
• How do I parcel out work among a bunch of worker threads?
• How do I delete a file? (And other file questions...)
• How do I copy a file?
• How do I read (or write) binary data?
• How do I run a subprocess with pipes connected to both input and output?
• How can I mimic CGI form submission (METHOD=POST)?
• How do I send mail from a Python script?
• How do I avoid blocking in the connect() method of a socket?
• Are there any interfaces to database packages in Python?
• How do I generate random numbers in Python?
• Can I create my own functions in C?
• Can I create my own functions in C++?
• How can I execute arbitrary Python statements from C?
• How can I evaluate an arbitrary Python expression from C?
• How do I extract C values from a Python object?
• How do I call an object's method from C?
• How do I catch the output from PyErr_Print() (or anything that prints to stdout/stderr)?
• How do I access a module written in Python from C?
• How do I interface to C++ objects from Python?
• How do I tell "incomplete input" from "invalid input"?
• How do I run a Python program under Windows?
• How do I make python scripts executable?
• How do I debug an extension?
• Where is Freeze for Windows?
• Is a *.pyd file the same as a DLL?
• How can I embed Python into a Windows application?
• How do I use Python for CGI?
• How do I emulate os.kill() in Windows?
• Why does os.path.isdir() fail on NT shared directories?
• Web Python
• The classical "Hello World" in python CGI fashion:
• How to Debugging in python?
• How to make Forms in python?
• How to use Shell Commands for Web python
• How to use Cookies for Web python
• How to use Sessions for Web python