Saved variables after ending script

[adrimg89]

Hi,

I’m quite surprised by this issue. I had never noticed it until now, and I’m not sure whether it has happened before or if it’s a new problem.

I’ve noticed that Cadwork retains variables after a script ends, even after closing all IDLE prompt windows.

Is this normal behavior?

I think this can be quite dangerous. For example, when you get selected IDs, you might not have selected any items — but if your variable already contained elements from a previous script execution, printing the variable will still show those old values.

How can I avoid this?

Thank you very much in advance.

[adrimg89]

I'll show you an example:

import cadwork
import element_controller as ec

ids=ec.get_active_identifiable_element_ids()

print(len(ids))

When I run the script (I select two elements)...

2

Now, I add a line in my script...

import cadwork
import element_controller as ec


print('if the variable saves any value... -->',len(ids))

ids=ec.get_active_identifiable_element_ids()

print(len(ids))

And I don't select any element, and I run the script...
The prompt shows:

if the variable saves any value... --> 2
0

[Brunner246]

Hi @adrimg89

The memory when using the Python API is not released immediately after the script has run.
This may be somewhat confusing in your example, but it is not unknown.

Counter question: in which scenario do you access variables that are not known at the time of access? 🤓
Any IDE will report errors in this case.
Like:

[adrimg89]

Good afternoon. Sorry for the late response. I thought this behavior wasn’t normal, but based on your reply, it surprisingly seems to be.
When you make the creation of a variable in a program contingent on a certain condition, it might result in a confusing value.
In any case, I’ll try to avoid these types of situations.