Introduce a new builtin exception, UnboundLocalError, raised when ceval.c
tries to retrieve or delete a local name that isn't bound to a value.
Currently raises NameError, which makes this behavior a FAQ since the same
error is raised for "missing" global names too: when the user has a global
of the same name as the unbound local, NameError makes no sense to them.
Even in the absence of shadowing, knowing whether a bogus name is local or
global is a real aid to quick understanding.
Example:
D:\src\PCbuild>type local.py
x = 42
def f():
print x
x = 13
return x
f()
D:\src\PCbuild>python local.py
Traceback (innermost last):
File "local.py", line 8, in ?
f()
File "local.py", line 4, in f
print x
UnboundLocalError: x
D:\src\PCbuild>
Note that UnboundLocalError is a subclass of NameError, for compatibility
with existing class-exception code that may be trying to catch this as a
NameError. Unfortunately, I see no way to make this wholly compatible
with -X (see comments in bltinmodule.c): under -X, [UnboundLocalError
is an alias for NameError --GvR].
[The ceval.c patch differs slightly from the second version that Tim
submitted; I decided not to raise UnboundLocalError for DELETE_NAME,
only for DELETE_LOCAL. DELETE_NAME is only generated at the module
level, and since at that level a NameError is raised for referencing
an undefined name, it should also be raised for deleting one.]