Dive Into Python

This example shows the initialization of the FileInfo class using the __init__ method.

Example 5.5. Initializing the FileInfo Class

class FileInfo(UserDict):
    "store file metadata"              
    def __init__(self, filename=None):   

	Classes can (and should) have doc strings too, just like modules and functions.
	__init__ is called immediately after an instance of the class is created. It would be tempting but incorrect to call this the constructor of the class. It's tempting, because it looks like a constructor (by convention, __init__ is the first method defined for the class), acts like one (it's the first piece of code executed in a newly created instance of the class), and even sounds like one (“init” certainly suggests a constructor-ish nature). Incorrect, because the object has already been constructed by the time __init__ is called, and you already have a valid reference to the new instance of the class. But __init__ is the closest thing you're going to get to a constructor in Python, and it fills much the same role.
	The first argument of every class method, including __init__, is always a reference to the current instance of the class. By convention, this argument is always named self. In the __init__ method, self refers to the newly created object; in other class methods, it refers to the instance whose method was called. Although you need to specify self explicitly when defining the method, you do not specify it when calling the method; Python will add it for you automatically.
	__init__ methods can take any number of arguments, and just like functions, the arguments can be defined with default values, making them optional to the caller. In this case, filename has a default value of None, which is the Python null value.

	By convention, the first argument of any Python class method (the reference to the current instance) is called self. This argument fills the role of the reserved word this in C++ or Java, but self is not a reserved word in Python, merely a naming convention. Nonetheless, please don't call it anything but self; this is a very strong convention.

Example 5.6. Coding the FileInfo Class

class FileInfo(UserDict):
    "store file metadata"
    def __init__(self, filename=None):
        UserDict.__init__(self)        
        self["name"] = filename        
                                       

	Some pseudo-object-oriented languages like Powerbuilder have a concept of “extending” constructors and other events, where the ancestor's method is called automatically before the descendant's method is executed. Python does not do this; you must always explicitly call the appropriate method in the ancestor class.
	I told you that this class acts like a dictionary, and here is the first sign of it. You're assigning the argument filename as the value of this object's name key.
	Note that the __init__ method never returns a value.

When defining your class methods, you must explicitly list self as the first argument for each method, including __init__. When you call a method of an ancestor class from within your class, you must include the self argument. But when you call your class method from outside, you do not specify anything for the self argument; you skip it entirely, and Python automatically adds the instance reference for you. I am aware that this is confusing at first; it's not really inconsistent, but it may appear inconsistent because it relies on a distinction (between bound and unbound methods) that you don't know about yet.

Whew. I realize that's a lot to absorb, but you'll get the hang of it. All Python classes work the same way, so once you learn one, you've learned them all. If you forget everything else, remember this one thing, because I promise it will trip you up:

	__init__ methods are optional, but when you define one, you must remember to explicitly call the ancestor's __init__ method (if it defines one). This is more generally true: whenever a descendant wants to extend the behavior of the ancestor, the descendant method must explicitly call the ancestor method at the proper time, with the proper arguments.