ASV

Overview

ASV is a stable and mature platform independent Python module to input, manipulate and output `simple’ database storage file formats such as CSV (Comma Separated Value) and TSV (Tab Separated Value). Building your own input/output routines is simple if you need to handle arbitrary file formats.

ASV features include:

• Extendable input / output scheme.
• Built in input routines possess `good enough’ heuristics to parse even badly formed files.
• A command line interface for quick conversion between different formats.
• Built in format handlers for:

  • Colon separated values.

  • Comma Separated Values (CSV).

  • Tab Separated Values (TSV).

Download

ASV is distributed under a BSD licence.

Versions available for download:

• ASV 0.5 (3 December 2002) (approx 10Kb)
• ASV 0.4 (3 April 2001) (approx 10Kb)
• ASV 0.3 (1 March 2001) (approx 5Kb)

An example usage of the ASV module

    # Import the ASV module

    import ASV


    # Create a blank ASV instance

    my_data = ASV.ASV()

    # We are loading from a file called "test_data.csv"
    # We are using the CSV loader
    # The CSV file we are loading has column headings so that we can access data
    #   by name rather than number

    my_data.input_from_file("test_data.csv", ASV.CSV(), has_field_names = 1)

    # Now `my_data' will hold some rows of data (presuming test_data.csv
    #   wasn't blank). You can use `my_data' just like a normal Python list

    # Iterate over every row in my_data

    for row in my_data:
        # Print the row out - this gives us back an instance of the Row class

        print row

        # Print out a single element from the row

        print row[1]

        # Because our input file had field names, we can print out a named
        #   element in the row without having to know what its index is

        print row["address"]

    # Add a row to the end of `my_data'

    my_data.append(["Laurie", "England"])

    # Print out the row we just added

    print my_data[-1]

    # Save the data out as a TSV file

    my_data.output_to_file("test_data_out.tsv", ASV.TSV())

History

• ASV 0.5 - 3 December 2002

  • Fixed bug where giving a field with field_names to an ASV instance that didn’t have field names itself caused problems.

  • Fix ==/= typo in Row.__setitem__.

• ASV 0.4 - 3 April 2001

  • Fixed bug where __setitem__ ignored the field_names parameter.

  • Added switch to control whether “” in a field denotes a speech mark or not.

  • Added code to make ASV `executable’ with command line parameters etc.

• ASV 0.3 - 1 March 2001

  First public release.

• ASV 0.2 - 2 November 2000

• ASV 0.1 - 29 October 2000

See also

• http://www.object-craft.com.au/projects/csv/ for Dave Cole’s C-coded Python module, which may be more appropriate if you require absolute efficiency at the expense of ease of installation and flexibility of operation.