# TIP 142: Search Path Variable to Lookup Command Names in Namespaces
Author: Ulrich Schoebel <[email protected]>
Tcl-Version: 8.5
State: Withdrawn
Type: Project
Vote: Pending
Created: 23-Jul-2003
Post-History:
Keywords: namespace, command lookup, search path
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# Abstract
This TIP adds a Tcl variable to define the search path for command
name lookup across namespaces.
# Rationale
Command names \(as well as variable names\) are currently looked up
first in the current namspace, then, if not found, in the global
namespace.
It is often very useful to hide the commands defined in a subnamespace
from being visible from upper namespaces by _info commands
namespace::\*_. On the other hand, programmers want to use these
commands without having to type a qualified name.
* Example:
namespace eval ns1 {
proc p1 {} {
puts "[p2]"
}
}
namespace eval ns1::ns2 {
proc p2 {} {
return hello
}
}
Evaluation of _ns1::p1_ would currently lead to an error, because
_p2_ could not be found. Even worse, if a procedure _p2_ exists
in the global namespace, the wrong procedure would be evaluated.
# Proposal
Add a variable _tcl\_namespacePath_ or, to avoid confusion with
variables containing file system paths, _tcl\_namespaceSearch_, that
contains a list of namespaces to be searched in that order.
The default value would be _[list [namespace current] ::]_.
In the above example _tcl\_namespacePath_ would be set to _[list
[namespace current] [namespace current]::ns2]_. _p2_ would be
found and not unintentionally be substituted by _::p2_.
# Alternative
For ease of implementation and, maybe, for programmers convenience it
might be useful to always prepend the contents of this variable with
_[namespace current]_. The programmer expects a certain
"automatism" for this component of the search path.
Then the default value would be _::_.
# Implementation
To be done when this TIP is accepted.
# Notice of Withdrawal
This TIP was Withdrawn by the TIP Editor following discussion on the
tcl-core mailing list. The following is a summary of reasons for
withdrawal:
> Insufficiently subtle. 52 will break any code that assumes the
current behaviour \(and you can bet someone will have that
assumption\) and 142 doesn't let two namespaces have different
search paths \(unless the variable is always interpreted locally,
which just creates bizarre variable name magic.\)
# Copyright
This document is placed in the public domain.