The title says it. What are the benefits of using if variable >= 1 then if if variable > 0 then works just fine?
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What are the benefits of using if variable >= 1 then if if variable > 0 then works just fine?
3 answers
✓ Accepted answer
They're not the same thing if you're not working with integers!
0 < 0.5 but not (1 <= 0.5)!
In fact, this nature usually helps me decide which I want to use.
For example, for checking that an index is in-bounds, I write
if 1 <= i and i <= #list then
That's because anything lower than 1 is no good (but 1 is a good index). (Writing 0 < i would work, but doesn't as clearly communicate the intent). The same reasoning applies for the other end.
If I was working with some strings and only wanted to handle two-digit numbers, I would probably write
if n < 100 then
assert(#tostring(n) <= 2)
That's because this identifies 100 as the first problematic number, which is more important than 99 being the last OK number.
As a general readability tip, I find keeping all of my comparisons as < and <=, so that the values increase from left to right as we do when we are counting.
In particular, I find 0 < n and n < 10 much easier to read than what is more typical n > 0 and n < 10 which places the comparisons in an "inside-out" order just so that the variable appears first.
5 comments
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I understand why you'd prefer to write your comparisons like that; it looks a bit like what you'd see in mathematics. But I honestly find the latter easier to read, personally.
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Python has a neat min < x < max syntax, though.
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Could you explain this: That's because this identifies 100 as the first problematic number, which is more important than 99 being the last OK number. more clearly
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I don't know what you mean by problematic number
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oh wait never mind. I understand now. Thanks for your help
If your variable is an integer then there are no benefits besides clarity. Go with whichever sounds the clearest to you at the time.
x >= 1 implies to the programmer that x should be at least 1, whereas
x > 0 implies that x must be strictly positive.
In some case the latter may sound clearer and make your code easier to understand.
1 comment
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Thank you.
Using < and > checks if number X is greater then/lesser then number Y. But using <= and >= checks if number X is greater then or equal to/lesser then or equal to number Y.
2 comments
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correct
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While not incorrect, this is missing the point of the question entirely.
This discussion is preserved as it was. New answers, comments, and votes are closed.
1 comment
In addition to all the answers, don't forget that float values between 0 and 1 will be accepted when using
if variable > 0but not when usingif variable >= 1!