Question

I am using a library that reads a file and returns its size in bytes.

This file size is then displayed to the end user; to make it easier for them to understand it, I am explicitly converting the file size to MB by dividing it by 1024.0 * 1024.0. Of course this works, but I am wondering is there a better way to do this in Python?

By better, I mean perhaps a stdlib function that can manipulate sizes according to the type I want. Like if I specify MB, it automatically divides it by 1024.0 * 1024.0. Somethign on these lines.

Answer 1

There is hurry.filesize that will take the size in bytes and make a nice string out if it.

>>> from hurry.filesize import size
>>> size(11000)
'10K'
>>> size(198283722)
'189M'

Or if you want 1K == 1000 (which is what most users assume):

>>> from hurry.filesize import size, si
>>> size(11000, system=si)
'11K'
>>> size(198283722, system=si)
'198M'

It has IEC support as well (but that wasn’t documented):

>>> from hurry.filesize import size, iec
>>> size(11000, system=iec)
'10Ki'
>>> size(198283722, system=iec)
'189Mi'

Because it’s written by the Awesome Martijn Faassen, the code is small, clear and extensible. Writing your own systems is dead easy.

Here is one:

mysystem = [
    (1024 ** 5, ' Megamanys'),
    (1024 ** 4, ' Lotses'),
    (1024 ** 3, ' Tons'), 
    (1024 ** 2, ' Heaps'), 
    (1024 ** 1, ' Bunches'),
    (1024 ** 0, ' Thingies'),
    ]

Used like so:

>>> from hurry.filesize import size
>>> size(11000, system=mysystem)
'10 Bunches'
>>> size(198283722, system=mysystem)
'189 Heaps'