Explicitly check if column.verbose_name is not None (fixes #280)

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -1,5 +1,8 @@
 # Change log
 
+## unreleased
+- Explicitly check if `column.verbose_name` is not None to support empty column headers (fixes #280)
+
 ## v1.0.6
 - Support for custom text value in LinkColumn (#277 by [@toudi](https://github.com/toudi))
 - Refactor LinkColumn.render_link() to not escape twice #279

django_tables2/columns/base.py

@@ -1,15 +1,16 @@
 # coding: utf-8
 from __future__ import absolute_import, unicode_literals
+
+import warnings
 from collections import OrderedDict
 from itertools import islice
-import warnings
 
-from django.db.models.fields import FieldDoesNotExist
-from django import VERSION as django_version
 import six
-
+from django import VERSION as django_version
+from django.db.models.fields import FieldDoesNotExist
 from django_tables2.templatetags.django_tables2 import title
 from django_tables2.utils import A, AttributeDict, OrderBy, OrderByTuple
+
 from ..utils import python_2_unicode_compatible
 
 
@@ -453,7 +454,7 @@ def verbose_name(self):
         person.upper should stop at person]).
         """
         # Favor an explicit defined verbose_name
-        if self.column.verbose_name:
+        if self.column.verbose_name is not None:
             return self.column.verbose_name
 
         # This is our reasonable fallback, should the next section not result

tests/columns/test_general.py

@@ -2,11 +2,12 @@
 # pylint: disable=R0912,E0102
 from __future__ import unicode_literals
 
+import django_tables2 as tables
+from django.utils.safestring import SafeData, mark_safe
 from django.utils.translation import ugettext_lazy
-from django.utils.safestring import mark_safe, SafeData
+
 import pytest
 
-import django_tables2 as tables
 from ..app.models import Person
 from ..utils import parse, warns
 
@@ -52,6 +53,14 @@ class PersonTable(tables.Table):
     assert isinstance(table.columns["safe"].header, SafeData)
 
 
+def test_should_support_empty_string_as_explicit_verbose_name():
+    class SimpleTable(tables.Table):
+        acronym = tables.Column(verbose_name="")
+
+    table = SimpleTable([])
+    assert table.columns["acronym"].header == ""
+
+
 @pytest.mark.django_db
 def test_handle_verbose_name_of_many2onerel():