Do/Undo using command pattern in Python

Question

I have read that using command pattern is one of the most popular ways to accomplish do/undo functionality. In fact, I have seen that it\'s possible to stack a bunch of acti

Answer 1

How I'd go about this

class Command(object):
    def execute(self, canvas):
         raise NotImplementedError

class DrawLineCommand(Command):
    def __init__(self, point1, point2):
        self._point1 = point1
        self._point2 = point2

    def execute(self, canvas):
        canvas.draw_line(self._point1, self._point2)

 class DrawCircleCommand(Command):
     def __init__(self, point, radius):
        self._point = point
        self._radius = radius

     def execute(self, canvas):
        canvas.draw_circle(self._point, self._radius)

class UndoHistory(object):
    def __init__(self, canvas):
        self._commands = []
        self.canvas = canvas

    def command(self, command):
        self._commands.append(command)
        command.execute(self.canvas)

    def undo(self):
        self._commands.pop() # throw away last command
        self.canvas.clear()
        for command self._commands:
            command.execute(self.canvas)

Some thoughts:

1. Trying to undo an action can be hard. For example, how would you undraw a line? You'd need to recover what used to be under that line. A simpler approach is often to revert to a clean slate and then reapply all the commands.
2. Each command should be contained in a single object. It should store all of the data neccesary for the command.
3. In python you don't need to define the Command class. I do it to provide documentation for what methods I expect Command objects to implement.
4. You may eventually get speed issues reapplying all the command for an undo. Optimization is left as an excersize for the reader.