Welcome to the Treehouse Community

Want to collaborate on code errors? Have bugs you need feedback on? Looking for an extra set of eyes on your latest project? Get support with fellow developers, designers, and programmers of all backgrounds and skill levels here with the Treehouse Community! While you're at it, check out some resources Treehouse students have shared here.

Looking to learn something new?

Treehouse offers a seven day free trial for new students. Get access to thousands of hours of content and join thousands of Treehouse students and alumni in the community today.

Start your free trial

Python Introducing Lists Using Lists Split and Join

Posted by Tyler Wells
.a{fill-rule:evenodd;}techdegree
Tyler Wells
Python Development Techdegree Student 2,678 Points

Why concatenate strings instead of using special characters?

Hi everyone, why would we concatenate the strings (example code 1) instead of using special characters (example code 2)?

print("To: " + to_list)

print("To: {}".format(to_list))

Thanks for the help!

3 Answers

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,275 Points
Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,275 Points

Both methods create the same result, but the concatenation code is a bit more compact.

caits
caits
4,578 Points
caits
caits
4,578 Points

You could also do this:

print(f"To:  {to_list}")

That's the way I prefer. It's much easier to read and not as prone to errors as concatenation.

eestsaid
eestsaid
1,311 Points
eestsaid
eestsaid
1,311 Points

I've not seen this before - what does the 'f' represent?

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,275 Points
Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,275 Points

That's an "f-string" (formatted string literal), a relatively new Python feature added in version 3.6.

For more details, see the documentation on Formatted string literals.