Question

Does a Python equivalent to the Ruby ||= operator (“set the variable if the variable is not set”) exist?

Example in Ruby :

 variable_not_set ||= 'bla bla'
 variable_not_set == 'bla bla'

 variable_set = 'pi pi'
 variable_set ||= 'bla bla'
 variable_set == 'pi pi'

Answer 1

No, the replacement is:

try:
   v
except NameError:
   v = 'bla bla'

However, wanting to use this construct is a sign of overly complicated code flow. Usually, you’d do the following:

try:
   v = complicated()
except ComplicatedError: # complicated failed
   v = 'fallback value'

and never be unsure whether v is set or not. If it’s one of many options that can either be set or not, use a dictionary and its get method which allows a default value.