list of lists of dictionaries? - list

Question

I need to create a structure, in my mind similar to an array of linked lists (where a python list = array and dictionary = linked list). I have a list called blocks, and this is something like what I am looking to make:
blocks[0] = {dictionary},{dictionary},{dictionary},...
blocks[1] = {dictionary},{dictionary},{dictionary},...
etc..
currently I build the blocks as such:
blocks = []
blocks.append[()]
blocks.append[()]
blocks.append[()]
blocks.append[()]
I know that must look ridiculous. I just cannot see in my head what that just made, which is part of my problem. I assign to a block from a different list of dictionary items. Here is a brief overview of how a single block is created...
hold = {}
hold['file']=file
hold['count']=count
hold['mass']=mass_lbs
mg1.append(hold)
##this append can happen several times to mg1
blocks[i].append(mg1[j])
##where i is an index for the block I want to append to, and j is the list index corresponding to whichever dictionary item of mg1 I want to grab.
The reason I want these four main indices in blocks is so that I have shorter code with just the one list instead of block1 block2 block3 block4, which would just make the code way longer than it is now.

Answer 1

Okay, going off of what was discussed in the comments, you're looking for a simple way to create a structure that is a list of four items where each item is a list of dictionaries, and all the dictionaries in one of those lists have the same keys but not necessarily the same values. However, if you know exactly what keys each dictionary will have and that never changes, then it might be worth it to consider making them classes that wrap dictionaries and have each of the four lists be a list of objects. This would be easier to keep in your head, and a bit more Pythonic in my opinion. You also gain the advantage of ensuring that the keys in the dictionary are static, plus you can define helper methods. And by emulating the methods of a container type, you can still use dictionary syntax.
class BlockA:
def __init__(self):
self.dictionary = {'file':None, 'count':None, 'mass':None }
def __len__(self):
return len(self.dictionary)
def __getitem__(self, key):
return self.dictionary[key]
def __setitem__(self, key, value):
if key in self.dictionary:
self.dictionary[key] = value
else:
raise KeyError
def __repr__(self):
return str(self.dictionary)
block1 = BlockA()
block1['file'] = "test"
block2 = BlockA()
block2['file'] = "other test"
Now, you've got a guarantee that all instances of your first block object will have the same keys and no additional keys. You can make similar classes for your other blocks, or some general class, or some mix of the two using inheritance. Now to make your data structure:
blocks = [ [block1, block2], [], [], [] ]
print(blocks) # Or "print blocks" if you're not using Python 3.x
blocks[0][0]['file'] = "some new file"
print(blocks)
It might also be worthwhile to have a class for this blocks container, with specific methods for adding blocks of each type and accessing blocks of each type. That way you wouldn't trip yourself up with accidentally adding the wrong kind of block to one of the four lists or similar issues. But depending on how much you'll be using this structure, that could be overkill.