If list index exists, do X

Question

In my program, user inputs number n, and then inputs n number of strings, which get stored in a list.

I need to code such that if a certain

Answer 1

If you want to iterate the inserted actors data:

for i in range(n):
    if len(nams[i]) > 3:
        do_something
    if len(nams[i]) > 4:
        do_something_else

Answer 2

len(nams) should be equal to n in your code. All indexes 0 <= i < n "exist".

Answer 3

ok, so I think it's actually possible (for the sake of argument):

>>> your_list = [5,6,7]
>>> 2 in zip(*enumerate(your_list))[0]
True
>>> 3 in zip(*enumerate(your_list))[0]
False

Answer 4

Do not let any space in front of your brackets.

Example:

n = input ()
         ^

Tip: You should add comments over and/or under your code. Not behind your code.

---

Have a nice day.

Answer 5

I need to code such that if a certain list index exists, then run a function.

This is the perfect use for a try block:

ar=[1,2,3]

try:
    t=ar[5]
except IndexError:
    print('sorry, no 5')   

# Note: this only is a valid test in this context 
# with absolute (ie, positive) index
# a relative index is only showing you that a value can be returned
# from that relative index from the end of the list...

However, by definition, all items in a Python list between 0 and len(the_list)-1 exist (i.e., there is no need for a try, except if you know 0 <= index < len(the_list)).

You can use enumerate if you want the indexes between 0 and the last element:

names=['barney','fred','dino']

for i, name in enumerate(names):
    print(i + ' ' + name)
    if i in (3,4):
        # do your thing with the index 'i' or value 'name' for each item...

If you are looking for some defined 'index' thought, I think you are asking the wrong question. Perhaps you should consider using a mapping container (such as a dict) versus a sequence container (such as a list). You could rewrite your code like this:

def do_something(name):
    print('some thing 1 done with ' + name)

def do_something_else(name):
    print('something 2 done with ' + name)        

def default(name):
    print('nothing done with ' + name)     

something_to_do={  
    3: do_something,        
    4: do_something_else
    }        

n = input ("Define number of actors: ")
count = 0
names = []

for count in range(n):
    print("Define name for actor {}:".format(count+1))
    name = raw_input ()
    names.append(name)

for name in names:
    try:
        something_to_do[len(name)](name)
    except KeyError:
        default(name)

Runs like this:

Define number of actors: 3
Define name for actor 1: bob
Define name for actor 2: tony
Define name for actor 3: alice
some thing 1 done with bob
something 2 done with tony
nothing done with alice

You can also use .get method rather than try/except for a shorter version:

>>> something_to_do.get(3, default)('bob')
some thing 1 done with bob
>>> something_to_do.get(22, default)('alice')
nothing done with alice

Answer 6

Oneliner:

do_X() if len(your_list) > your_index else do_something_else()  

Full example:

In [10]: def do_X(): 
    ...:     print(1) 
    ...:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

In [11]: def do_something_else(): 
    ...:     print(2) 
    ...:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

In [12]: your_index = 2                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

In [13]: your_list = [1,2,3]                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

In [14]: do_X() if len(your_list) > your_index else do_something_else()                                                                                                                                                                      
1

Just for info. Imho, try ... except IndexError is better solution.