#!/usr/bin/env python
# recordjar.py - Parse a Record-Jar into a list of dictionaries.
# Copyright 2005 Lutz Horn <lutz.horn@gmx.de>
# Licensed unter the same terms as Python.
def parse_jar(flo):
"""Parse a Record-Jar from a file like object into a list of dictionaries.
This method parses a file like object as described in "The Art of Unix
Programming" <http://www.faqs.org/docs/artu/ch05s02.html#id2906931>.
The records are divided by lines containing '%%'. Each record consists of
one or more lines, each containing a key, a colon, and a value. Whitespace
around both key and value are ignored.
>>> import StringIO
>>> flo = StringIO.StringIO("a:b\\nc:d\\n%%\\nx:y\\n")
>>> out = parse_jar(flo)
>>> print out
[{'a': 'b', 'c': 'd'}, {'x': 'y'}]
If a record contains a key more than once, the value for this key is a list
containing the values in their order of occurence.
>>> flo = StringIO.StringIO("a:b\\nc:d\\n%%\\nx:y\\nx:z\\n")
>>> out = parse_jar(flo)
>>> print out
[{'a': 'b', 'c': 'd'}, {'x': ['y', 'z']}]
Leading or trailing separator lines ('%%') and lines containing only
whitespace are ignored.
>>> flo = StringIO.StringIO("%%\\na:b\\nc:d\\n%%\\n\\nx:y\\nx:z\\n")
>>> out = parse_jar(flo)
>>> print out
[{'a': 'b', 'c': 'd'}, {'x': ['y', 'z']}]
"""
records = []
for record in flo.read().split("%%"):
dict = {}
for line in [line for line in record.split("\n") if line.strip() != ""]:
key, value = line.split(":", 1)
key, value = key.strip(), value.strip()
try:
dict[key].append(value)
except AttributeError:
dict[key] = [dict[key], value]
except KeyError:
dict[key] = value
if len(dict) > 0:
records.append(dict)
return records
def _test():
import doctest, recordjar
return doctest.testmod(recordjar)
if __name__ == "__main__":
_test()
