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			28 KiB
		
	
	
	
		
			ReStructuredText
		
	
	
	
	
	
.. highlightlang:: c
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.. _arg-parsing:
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Parsing arguments and building values
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=====================================
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These functions are useful when creating your own extensions functions and
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methods.  Additional information and examples are available in
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:ref:`extending-index`.
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The first three of these functions described, :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTuple`,
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:c:func:`PyArg_ParseTupleAndKeywords`, and :c:func:`PyArg_Parse`, all use *format
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strings* which are used to tell the function about the expected arguments.  The
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format strings use the same syntax for each of these functions.
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-----------------
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Parsing arguments
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-----------------
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A format string consists of zero or more "format units."  A format unit
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describes one Python object; it is usually a single character or a parenthesized
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sequence of format units.  With a few exceptions, a format unit that is not a
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parenthesized sequence normally corresponds to a single address argument to
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these functions.  In the following description, the quoted form is the format
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unit; the entry in (round) parentheses is the Python object type that matches
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the format unit; and the entry in [square] brackets is the type of the C
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variable(s) whose address should be passed.
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Strings and buffers
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-------------------
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These formats allow to access an object as a contiguous chunk of memory.
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You don't have to provide raw storage for the returned unicode or bytes
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area.  Also, you won't have to release any memory yourself, except with the
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``es``, ``es#``, ``et`` and ``et#`` formats.
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However, when a :c:type:`Py_buffer` structure gets filled, the underlying
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buffer is locked so that the caller can subsequently use the buffer even
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inside a :c:type:`Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS` block without the risk of mutable data
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being resized or destroyed.  As a result, **you have to call**
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:c:func:`PyBuffer_Release` after you have finished processing the data (or
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in any early abort case).
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Unless otherwise stated, buffers are not NUL-terminated.
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.. note::
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   For all ``#`` variants of formats (``s#``, ``y#``, etc.), the type of
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   the length argument (int or :c:type:`Py_ssize_t`) is controlled by
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   defining the macro :c:macro:`PY_SSIZE_T_CLEAN` before including
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   :file:`Python.h`.  If the macro was defined, length is a
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   :c:type:`Py_ssize_t` rather than an :c:type:`int`. This behavior will change
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   in a future Python version to only support :c:type:`Py_ssize_t` and
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   drop :c:type:`int` support. It is best to always define :c:macro:`PY_SSIZE_T_CLEAN`.
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``s`` (:class:`str`) [const char \*]
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   Convert a Unicode object to a C pointer to a character string.
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   A pointer to an existing string is stored in the character pointer
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   variable whose address you pass.  The C string is NUL-terminated.
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   The Python string must not contain embedded NUL bytes; if it does,
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   a :exc:`TypeError` exception is raised. Unicode objects are converted
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   to C strings using ``'utf-8'`` encoding. If this conversion fails, a
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   :exc:`UnicodeError` is raised.
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   .. note::
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      This format does not accept bytes-like objects.  If you want to accept
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      filesystem paths and convert them to C character strings, it is
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      preferable to use the ``O&`` format with :c:func:`PyUnicode_FSConverter`
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      as *converter*.
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``s*`` (:class:`str`, :class:`bytes`, :class:`bytearray` or buffer compatible object) [Py_buffer]
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   This format accepts Unicode objects as well as objects supporting the
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   buffer protocol.
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   It fills a :c:type:`Py_buffer` structure provided by the caller.
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   In this case the resulting C string may contain embedded NUL bytes.
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   Unicode objects are converted to C strings using ``'utf-8'`` encoding.
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``s#`` (:class:`str`, :class:`bytes` or read-only buffer compatible object) [const char \*, int or :c:type:`Py_ssize_t`]
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   Like ``s*``, except that it doesn't accept mutable buffer-like objects
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   such as :class:`bytearray`.  The result is stored into two C variables,
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   the first one a pointer to a C string, the second one its length.
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   The string may contain embedded null bytes. Unicode objects are converted
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   to C strings using ``'utf-8'`` encoding.
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``z`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [const char \*]
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   Like ``s``, but the Python object may also be ``None``, in which case the C
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   pointer is set to *NULL*.
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``z*`` (:class:`str`, :class:`bytes`, :class:`bytearray`, buffer compatible object or ``None``) [Py_buffer]
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   Like ``s*``, but the Python object may also be ``None``, in which case the
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   ``buf`` member of the :c:type:`Py_buffer` structure is set to *NULL*.
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``z#`` (:class:`str`, :class:`bytes`, read-only buffer compatible object or ``None``) [const char \*, int]
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   Like ``s#``, but the Python object may also be ``None``, in which case the C
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   pointer is set to *NULL*.
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``y`` (:class:`bytes`) [const char \*]
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   This format converts a bytes-like object to a C pointer to a character
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   string; it does not accept Unicode objects.  The bytes buffer must not
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   contain embedded NUL bytes; if it does, a :exc:`TypeError`
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   exception is raised.
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``y*`` (:class:`bytes`, :class:`bytearray` or buffer compatible object) [Py_buffer]
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   This variant on ``s*`` doesn't accept Unicode objects, only objects
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   supporting the buffer protocol.  **This is the recommended way to accept
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   binary data.**
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``y#`` (:class:`bytes`) [const char \*, int]
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   This variant on ``s#`` doesn't accept Unicode objects, only bytes-like
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   objects.
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``S`` (:class:`bytes`) [PyBytesObject \*]
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   Requires that the Python object is a :class:`bytes` object, without
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   attempting any conversion.  Raises :exc:`TypeError` if the object is not
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   a bytes object.  The C variable may also be declared as :c:type:`PyObject\*`.
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``Y`` (:class:`bytearray`) [PyByteArrayObject \*]
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   Requires that the Python object is a :class:`bytearray` object, without
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   attempting any conversion.  Raises :exc:`TypeError` if the object is not
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   a :class:`bytearray` object. The C variable may also be declared as :c:type:`PyObject\*`.
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``u`` (:class:`str`) [Py_UNICODE \*]
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   Convert a Python Unicode object to a C pointer to a NUL-terminated buffer of
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   Unicode characters.  You must pass the address of a :c:type:`Py_UNICODE`
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   pointer variable, which will be filled with the pointer to an existing
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   Unicode buffer.  Please note that the width of a :c:type:`Py_UNICODE`
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   character depends on compilation options (it is either 16 or 32 bits).
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   The Python string must not contain embedded NUL characters; if it does,
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   a :exc:`TypeError` exception is raised.
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   .. note::
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      Since ``u`` doesn't give you back the length of the string, and it
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      may contain embedded NUL characters, it is recommended to use ``u#``
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      or ``U`` instead.
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``u#`` (:class:`str`) [Py_UNICODE \*, int]
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   This variant on ``u`` stores into two C variables, the first one a pointer to a
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   Unicode data buffer, the second one its length.
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``Z`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [Py_UNICODE \*]
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   Like ``u``, but the Python object may also be ``None``, in which case the
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   :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` pointer is set to *NULL*.
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``Z#`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [Py_UNICODE \*, int]
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   Like ``u#``, but the Python object may also be ``None``, in which case the
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   :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` pointer is set to *NULL*.
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``U`` (:class:`str`) [PyUnicodeObject \*]
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   Requires that the Python object is a Unicode object, without attempting
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   any conversion.  Raises :exc:`TypeError` if the object is not a Unicode
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   object.  The C variable may also be declared as :c:type:`PyObject\*`.
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``w*`` (:class:`bytearray` or read-write byte-oriented buffer) [Py_buffer]
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   This format accepts any object which implements the read-write buffer
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   interface. It fills a :c:type:`Py_buffer` structure provided by the caller.
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   The buffer may contain embedded null bytes. The caller have to call
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   :c:func:`PyBuffer_Release` when it is done with the buffer.
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``es`` (:class:`str`) [const char \*encoding, char \*\*buffer]
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   This variant on ``s`` is used for encoding Unicode into a character buffer.
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   It only works for encoded data without embedded NUL bytes.
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   This format requires two arguments.  The first is only used as input, and
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   must be a :c:type:`const char\*` which points to the name of an encoding as a
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   NUL-terminated string, or *NULL*, in which case ``'utf-8'`` encoding is used.
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   An exception is raised if the named encoding is not known to Python.  The
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   second argument must be a :c:type:`char\*\*`; the value of the pointer it
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   references will be set to a buffer with the contents of the argument text.
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   The text will be encoded in the encoding specified by the first argument.
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   :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTuple` will allocate a buffer of the needed size, copy the
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   encoded data into this buffer and adjust *\*buffer* to reference the newly
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   allocated storage.  The caller is responsible for calling :c:func:`PyMem_Free` to
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   free the allocated buffer after use.
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``et`` (:class:`str`, :class:`bytes` or :class:`bytearray`) [const char \*encoding, char \*\*buffer]
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   Same as ``es`` except that byte string objects are passed through without
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   recoding them.  Instead, the implementation assumes that the byte string object uses
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   the encoding passed in as parameter.
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``es#`` (:class:`str`) [const char \*encoding, char \*\*buffer, int \*buffer_length]
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   This variant on ``s#`` is used for encoding Unicode into a character buffer.
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   Unlike the ``es`` format, this variant allows input data which contains NUL
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   characters.
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   It requires three arguments.  The first is only used as input, and must be a
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   :c:type:`const char\*` which points to the name of an encoding as a
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   NUL-terminated string, or *NULL*, in which case ``'utf-8'`` encoding is used.
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   An exception is raised if the named encoding is not known to Python.  The
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   second argument must be a :c:type:`char\*\*`; the value of the pointer it
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   references will be set to a buffer with the contents of the argument text.
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   The text will be encoded in the encoding specified by the first argument.
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   The third argument must be a pointer to an integer; the referenced integer
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   will be set to the number of bytes in the output buffer.
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   There are two modes of operation:
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   If *\*buffer* points a *NULL* pointer, the function will allocate a buffer of
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   the needed size, copy the encoded data into this buffer and set *\*buffer* to
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   reference the newly allocated storage.  The caller is responsible for calling
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   :c:func:`PyMem_Free` to free the allocated buffer after usage.
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   If *\*buffer* points to a non-*NULL* pointer (an already allocated buffer),
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   :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTuple` will use this location as the buffer and interpret the
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   initial value of *\*buffer_length* as the buffer size.  It will then copy the
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   encoded data into the buffer and NUL-terminate it.  If the buffer is not large
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   enough, a :exc:`ValueError` will be set.
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   In both cases, *\*buffer_length* is set to the length of the encoded data
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   without the trailing NUL byte.
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``et#`` (:class:`str`, :class:`bytes` or :class:`bytearray`) [const char \*encoding, char \*\*buffer, int \*buffer_length]
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   Same as ``es#`` except that byte string objects are passed through without recoding
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   them. Instead, the implementation assumes that the byte string object uses the
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   encoding passed in as parameter.
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Numbers
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-------
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``b`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned char]
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   Convert a nonnegative Python integer to an unsigned tiny int, stored in a C
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   :c:type:`unsigned char`.
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``B`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned char]
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   Convert a Python integer to a tiny int without overflow checking, stored in a C
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   :c:type:`unsigned char`.
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``h`` (:class:`int`) [short int]
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   Convert a Python integer to a C :c:type:`short int`.
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``H`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned short int]
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   Convert a Python integer to a C :c:type:`unsigned short int`, without overflow
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   checking.
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``i`` (:class:`int`) [int]
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   Convert a Python integer to a plain C :c:type:`int`.
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``I`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned int]
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   Convert a Python integer to a C :c:type:`unsigned int`, without overflow
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   checking.
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``l`` (:class:`int`) [long int]
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   Convert a Python integer to a C :c:type:`long int`.
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``k`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned long]
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   Convert a Python integer to a C :c:type:`unsigned long` without
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   overflow checking.
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``L`` (:class:`int`) [PY_LONG_LONG]
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   Convert a Python integer to a C :c:type:`long long`.  This format is only
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   available on platforms that support :c:type:`long long` (or :c:type:`_int64` on
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   Windows).
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``K`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned PY_LONG_LONG]
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   Convert a Python integer to a C :c:type:`unsigned long long`
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   without overflow checking.  This format is only available on platforms that
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   support :c:type:`unsigned long long` (or :c:type:`unsigned _int64` on Windows).
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``n`` (:class:`int`) [Py_ssize_t]
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   Convert a Python integer to a C :c:type:`Py_ssize_t`.
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``c`` (:class:`bytes` of length 1) [char]
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   Convert a Python byte, represented as a :class:`bytes` object of length 1,
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   to a C :c:type:`char`.
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``C`` (:class:`str` of length 1) [int]
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   Convert a Python character, represented as a :class:`str` object of
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   length 1, to a C :c:type:`int`.
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``f`` (:class:`float`) [float]
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   Convert a Python floating point number to a C :c:type:`float`.
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``d`` (:class:`float`) [double]
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   Convert a Python floating point number to a C :c:type:`double`.
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``D`` (:class:`complex`) [Py_complex]
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   Convert a Python complex number to a C :c:type:`Py_complex` structure.
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Other objects
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-------------
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``O`` (object) [PyObject \*]
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   Store a Python object (without any conversion) in a C object pointer.  The C
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   program thus receives the actual object that was passed.  The object's reference
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   count is not increased.  The pointer stored is not *NULL*.
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``O!`` (object) [*typeobject*, PyObject \*]
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   Store a Python object in a C object pointer.  This is similar to ``O``, but
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   takes two C arguments: the first is the address of a Python type object, the
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   second is the address of the C variable (of type :c:type:`PyObject\*`) into which
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   the object pointer is stored.  If the Python object does not have the required
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   type, :exc:`TypeError` is raised.
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``O&`` (object) [*converter*, *anything*]
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   Convert a Python object to a C variable through a *converter* function.  This
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   takes two arguments: the first is a function, the second is the address of a C
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   variable (of arbitrary type), converted to :c:type:`void \*`.  The *converter*
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   function in turn is called as follows::
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      status = converter(object, address);
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   where *object* is the Python object to be converted and *address* is the
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   :c:type:`void\*` argument that was passed to the :c:func:`PyArg_Parse\*` function.
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   The returned *status* should be ``1`` for a successful conversion and ``0`` if
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   the conversion has failed.  When the conversion fails, the *converter* function
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   should raise an exception and leave the content of *address* unmodified.
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   If the *converter* returns ``Py_CLEANUP_SUPPORTED``, it may get called a
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   second time if the argument parsing eventually fails, giving the converter a
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   chance to release any memory that it had already allocated. In this second
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   call, the *object* parameter will be NULL; *address* will have the same value
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   as in the original call.
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   .. versionchanged:: 3.1
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      ``Py_CLEANUP_SUPPORTED`` was added.
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``(items)`` (:class:`tuple`) [*matching-items*]
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   The object must be a Python sequence whose length is the number of format units
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   in *items*.  The C arguments must correspond to the individual format units in
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   *items*.  Format units for sequences may be nested.
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It is possible to pass "long" integers (integers whose value exceeds the
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platform's :const:`LONG_MAX`) however no proper range checking is done --- the
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most significant bits are silently truncated when the receiving field is too
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small to receive the value (actually, the semantics are inherited from downcasts
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in C --- your mileage may vary).
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A few other characters have a meaning in a format string.  These may not occur
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inside nested parentheses.  They are:
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``|``
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   Indicates that the remaining arguments in the Python argument list are optional.
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   The C variables corresponding to optional arguments should be initialized to
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   their default value --- when an optional argument is not specified,
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   :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTuple` does not touch the contents of the corresponding C
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   variable(s).
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``:``
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   The list of format units ends here; the string after the colon is used as the
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   function name in error messages (the "associated value" of the exception that
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   :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTuple` raises).
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``;``
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   The list of format units ends here; the string after the semicolon is used as
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   the error message *instead* of the default error message.  ``:`` and ``;``
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   mutually exclude each other.
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Note that any Python object references which are provided to the caller are
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*borrowed* references; do not decrement their reference count!
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Additional arguments passed to these functions must be addresses of variables
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whose type is determined by the format string; these are used to store values
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from the input tuple.  There are a few cases, as described in the list of format
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units above, where these parameters are used as input values; they should match
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what is specified for the corresponding format unit in that case.
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For the conversion to succeed, the *arg* object must match the format
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and the format must be exhausted.  On success, the
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:c:func:`PyArg_Parse\*` functions return true, otherwise they return
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false and raise an appropriate exception. When the
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:c:func:`PyArg_Parse\*` functions fail due to conversion failure in one
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of the format units, the variables at the addresses corresponding to that
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and the following format units are left untouched.
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API Functions
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-------------
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.. c:function:: int PyArg_ParseTuple(PyObject *args, const char *format, ...)
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 | 
						|
   Parse the parameters of a function that takes only positional parameters into
 | 
						|
   local variables.  Returns true on success; on failure, it returns false and
 | 
						|
   raises the appropriate exception.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
.. c:function:: int PyArg_VaParse(PyObject *args, const char *format, va_list vargs)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   Identical to :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTuple`, except that it accepts a va_list rather
 | 
						|
   than a variable number of arguments.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
.. c:function:: int PyArg_ParseTupleAndKeywords(PyObject *args, PyObject *kw, const char *format, char *keywords[], ...)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   Parse the parameters of a function that takes both positional and keyword
 | 
						|
   parameters into local variables.  Returns true on success; on failure, it
 | 
						|
   returns false and raises the appropriate exception.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
.. c:function:: int PyArg_VaParseTupleAndKeywords(PyObject *args, PyObject *kw, const char *format, char *keywords[], va_list vargs)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   Identical to :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTupleAndKeywords`, except that it accepts a
 | 
						|
   va_list rather than a variable number of arguments.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
.. c:function:: int PyArg_ValidateKeywordArguments(PyObject *)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   Ensure that the keys in the keywords argument dictionary are strings.  This
 | 
						|
   is only needed if :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTupleAndKeywords` is not used, since the
 | 
						|
   latter already does this check.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   .. versionadded:: 3.2
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
.. XXX deprecated, will be removed
 | 
						|
.. c:function:: int PyArg_Parse(PyObject *args, const char *format, ...)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   Function used to deconstruct the argument lists of "old-style" functions ---
 | 
						|
   these are functions which use the :const:`METH_OLDARGS` parameter parsing
 | 
						|
   method.  This is not recommended for use in parameter parsing in new code, and
 | 
						|
   most code in the standard interpreter has been modified to no longer use this
 | 
						|
   for that purpose.  It does remain a convenient way to decompose other tuples,
 | 
						|
   however, and may continue to be used for that purpose.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
.. c:function:: int PyArg_UnpackTuple(PyObject *args, const char *name, Py_ssize_t min, Py_ssize_t max, ...)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   A simpler form of parameter retrieval which does not use a format string to
 | 
						|
   specify the types of the arguments.  Functions which use this method to retrieve
 | 
						|
   their parameters should be declared as :const:`METH_VARARGS` in function or
 | 
						|
   method tables.  The tuple containing the actual parameters should be passed as
 | 
						|
   *args*; it must actually be a tuple.  The length of the tuple must be at least
 | 
						|
   *min* and no more than *max*; *min* and *max* may be equal.  Additional
 | 
						|
   arguments must be passed to the function, each of which should be a pointer to a
 | 
						|
   :c:type:`PyObject\*` variable; these will be filled in with the values from
 | 
						|
   *args*; they will contain borrowed references.  The variables which correspond
 | 
						|
   to optional parameters not given by *args* will not be filled in; these should
 | 
						|
   be initialized by the caller. This function returns true on success and false if
 | 
						|
   *args* is not a tuple or contains the wrong number of elements; an exception
 | 
						|
   will be set if there was a failure.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   This is an example of the use of this function, taken from the sources for the
 | 
						|
   :mod:`_weakref` helper module for weak references::
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
      static PyObject *
 | 
						|
      weakref_ref(PyObject *self, PyObject *args)
 | 
						|
      {
 | 
						|
          PyObject *object;
 | 
						|
          PyObject *callback = NULL;
 | 
						|
          PyObject *result = NULL;
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
          if (PyArg_UnpackTuple(args, "ref", 1, 2, &object, &callback)) {
 | 
						|
              result = PyWeakref_NewRef(object, callback);
 | 
						|
          }
 | 
						|
          return result;
 | 
						|
      }
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   The call to :c:func:`PyArg_UnpackTuple` in this example is entirely equivalent to
 | 
						|
   this call to :c:func:`PyArg_ParseTuple`::
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
      PyArg_ParseTuple(args, "O|O:ref", &object, &callback)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
---------------
 | 
						|
Building values
 | 
						|
---------------
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
.. c:function:: PyObject* Py_BuildValue(const char *format, ...)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   Create a new value based on a format string similar to those accepted by the
 | 
						|
   :c:func:`PyArg_Parse\*` family of functions and a sequence of values.  Returns
 | 
						|
   the value or *NULL* in the case of an error; an exception will be raised if
 | 
						|
   *NULL* is returned.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   :c:func:`Py_BuildValue` does not always build a tuple.  It builds a tuple only if
 | 
						|
   its format string contains two or more format units.  If the format string is
 | 
						|
   empty, it returns ``None``; if it contains exactly one format unit, it returns
 | 
						|
   whatever object is described by that format unit.  To force it to return a tuple
 | 
						|
   of size 0 or one, parenthesize the format string.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   When memory buffers are passed as parameters to supply data to build objects, as
 | 
						|
   for the ``s`` and ``s#`` formats, the required data is copied.  Buffers provided
 | 
						|
   by the caller are never referenced by the objects created by
 | 
						|
   :c:func:`Py_BuildValue`.  In other words, if your code invokes :c:func:`malloc`
 | 
						|
   and passes the allocated memory to :c:func:`Py_BuildValue`, your code is
 | 
						|
   responsible for calling :c:func:`free` for that memory once
 | 
						|
   :c:func:`Py_BuildValue` returns.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   In the following description, the quoted form is the format unit; the entry in
 | 
						|
   (round) parentheses is the Python object type that the format unit will return;
 | 
						|
   and the entry in [square] brackets is the type of the C value(s) to be passed.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   The characters space, tab, colon and comma are ignored in format strings (but
 | 
						|
   not within format units such as ``s#``).  This can be used to make long format
 | 
						|
   strings a tad more readable.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``s`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [char \*]
 | 
						|
      Convert a null-terminated C string to a Python :class:`str` object using ``'utf-8'``
 | 
						|
      encoding. If the C string pointer is *NULL*, ``None`` is used.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``s#`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [char \*, int]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C string and its length to a Python :class:`str` object using ``'utf-8'``
 | 
						|
      encoding. If the C string pointer is *NULL*, the length is ignored and
 | 
						|
      ``None`` is returned.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``y`` (:class:`bytes`) [char \*]
 | 
						|
      This converts a C string to a Python :func:`bytes` object.  If the C
 | 
						|
      string pointer is *NULL*, ``None`` is returned.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``y#`` (:class:`bytes`) [char \*, int]
 | 
						|
      This converts a C string and its lengths to a Python object.  If the C
 | 
						|
      string pointer is *NULL*, ``None`` is returned.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``z`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [char \*]
 | 
						|
      Same as ``s``.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``z#`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [char \*, int]
 | 
						|
      Same as ``s#``.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``u`` (:class:`str`) [Py_UNICODE \*]
 | 
						|
      Convert a null-terminated buffer of Unicode (UCS-2 or UCS-4) data to a Python
 | 
						|
      Unicode object.  If the Unicode buffer pointer is *NULL*, ``None`` is returned.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``u#`` (:class:`str`) [Py_UNICODE \*, int]
 | 
						|
      Convert a Unicode (UCS-2 or UCS-4) data buffer and its length to a Python
 | 
						|
      Unicode object.   If the Unicode buffer pointer is *NULL*, the length is ignored
 | 
						|
      and ``None`` is returned.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``U`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [char \*]
 | 
						|
      Same as ``s``.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``U#`` (:class:`str` or ``None``) [char \*, int]
 | 
						|
      Same as ``s#``.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``i`` (:class:`int`) [int]
 | 
						|
      Convert a plain C :c:type:`int` to a Python integer object.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``b`` (:class:`int`) [char]
 | 
						|
      Convert a plain C :c:type:`char` to a Python integer object.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``h`` (:class:`int`) [short int]
 | 
						|
      Convert a plain C :c:type:`short int` to a Python integer object.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``l`` (:class:`int`) [long int]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`long int` to a Python integer object.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``B`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned char]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`unsigned char` to a Python integer object.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``H`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned short int]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`unsigned short int` to a Python integer object.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``I`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned int]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`unsigned int` to a Python integer object.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``k`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned long]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`unsigned long` to a Python integer object.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``L`` (:class:`int`) [PY_LONG_LONG]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`long long` to a Python integer object. Only available
 | 
						|
      on platforms that support :c:type:`long long` (or :c:type:`_int64` on
 | 
						|
      Windows).
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``K`` (:class:`int`) [unsigned PY_LONG_LONG]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`unsigned long long` to a Python integer object. Only
 | 
						|
      available on platforms that support :c:type:`unsigned long long` (or
 | 
						|
      :c:type:`unsigned _int64` on Windows).
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``n`` (:class:`int`) [Py_ssize_t]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`Py_ssize_t` to a Python integer.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``c`` (:class:`bytes` of length 1) [char]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`int` representing a byte to a Python :class:`bytes` object of
 | 
						|
      length 1.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``C`` (:class:`str` of length 1) [int]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`int` representing a character to Python :class:`str`
 | 
						|
      object of length 1.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``d`` (:class:`float`) [double]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`double` to a Python floating point number.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``f`` (:class:`float`) [float]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`float` to a Python floating point number.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``D`` (:class:`complex`) [Py_complex \*]
 | 
						|
      Convert a C :c:type:`Py_complex` structure to a Python complex number.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``O`` (object) [PyObject \*]
 | 
						|
      Pass a Python object untouched (except for its reference count, which is
 | 
						|
      incremented by one).  If the object passed in is a *NULL* pointer, it is assumed
 | 
						|
      that this was caused because the call producing the argument found an error and
 | 
						|
      set an exception. Therefore, :c:func:`Py_BuildValue` will return *NULL* but won't
 | 
						|
      raise an exception.  If no exception has been raised yet, :exc:`SystemError` is
 | 
						|
      set.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``S`` (object) [PyObject \*]
 | 
						|
      Same as ``O``.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``N`` (object) [PyObject \*]
 | 
						|
      Same as ``O``, except it doesn't increment the reference count on the object.
 | 
						|
      Useful when the object is created by a call to an object constructor in the
 | 
						|
      argument list.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``O&`` (object) [*converter*, *anything*]
 | 
						|
      Convert *anything* to a Python object through a *converter* function.  The
 | 
						|
      function is called with *anything* (which should be compatible with :c:type:`void
 | 
						|
      \*`) as its argument and should return a "new" Python object, or *NULL* if an
 | 
						|
      error occurred.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``(items)`` (:class:`tuple`) [*matching-items*]
 | 
						|
      Convert a sequence of C values to a Python tuple with the same number of items.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``[items]`` (:class:`list`) [*matching-items*]
 | 
						|
      Convert a sequence of C values to a Python list with the same number of items.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   ``{items}`` (:class:`dict`) [*matching-items*]
 | 
						|
      Convert a sequence of C values to a Python dictionary.  Each pair of consecutive
 | 
						|
      C values adds one item to the dictionary, serving as key and value,
 | 
						|
      respectively.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   If there is an error in the format string, the :exc:`SystemError` exception is
 | 
						|
   set and *NULL* returned.
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
.. c:function:: PyObject* Py_VaBuildValue(const char *format, va_list vargs)
 | 
						|
 | 
						|
   Identical to :c:func:`Py_BuildValue`, except that it accepts a va_list
 | 
						|
   rather than a variable number of arguments.
 |