List of Path via add_class_arguments

[michael-hoss]

Hi and thanks for your great project 👋

The docs tell me how to specify a list of paths using parser.add_argument.

Does this also work with parser.add_class_arguments? I have a config class in which I'd like to specify my_paths: list[Path_r].

Been wondering e.g. where to tell the interface that enable_path=True.

While the docs mention how to get the path list from a file or from stdin, how would I proceed if I want to specify a comma-separated list in the CLI after --my_paths?

Thanks in advance for you help!

Edit: Just figured out things work like a charm as soon as I actually use the CLI syntax [/path/a,/path/b] 🙌

[mauvilsa]

Thank you for reporting!

While the docs mention how to get the path list from a file or from stdin, how would I proceed if I want to specify a comma-separated list in the CLI after --my_paths?

Edit: Just figured out things work like a charm as soon as I actually use the CLI syntax [/path/a,/path/b] 🙌

All strings from command line and configs are loaded by default using pyyaml. That is why [/path/a,/path/b] works correctly. If the loader is changed to json, then the value would have to be ["/path/a","/path/b"].

You are welcome to create a pull request improving that part of the docs.

The docs tell me how to specify a list of paths using parser.add_argument.

Does this also work with parser.add_class_arguments? I have a config class in which I'd like to specify my_paths: list[Path_r].

Hm, it seems there is currently no way to load from a file paths.lst. But providing a JSON array like [/path/a,/path/b] should work out-of-the-box. For the paths.lst I guess it could make sense for this to work with parser.add_class_arguments(..., sub_configs=True). And maybe rename the add_argument parameter from enable_path to sub_configs for consistency. Though, it wouldn't be obvious that a file listing paths is a sub-config. Could be explained in the docs. Also, it could make sense to be able to change the sub_configs default value using set_parsing_settings. Not sure what would be the best way to do it. Right now just thinking out loud.

[michael-hoss]

Thanks for the elaborate reply! My issue is already solved, so I am not deeply invested in this topic anymore.

However, I did open a docs PR (#804) with what I would find helpful if I faced the same task again. Feel free to adapt it such that it fits well into the overall documentation!

[mauvilsa]

Thank you for the pull request. I have merged it. But also did further improvements to that section. I will keep this issue open for a place to discuss what I described in my first message.

[michael-hoss]

Sounds great, thank you!

[mauvilsa]

With #816 now parser.add_class_arguments(..., sub_configs=True) enables loading a list of paths from a file. Also in the output of --help the options that the argument accepts are shown.

I am still thinking on renaming the add_argument parameter from enable_path to sub_configs, but I haven't done that yet.