topic Re: String formatting ? for definition query in Python Questions

String formatting ? for definition query

Zeke — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:50:51 GMT

I'm trying to set up a definition query for a layer, but can't get the formatting correct. I've tried several variations of the code below w/o success, such as writing the query out in triple double quotes (which for some reason required an extra double quote) . Appreciate any help. This kind of thing was easier in the old days of VB & VBA.
Code:

    case_number = arcpy.GetParameterAsText(0)     fld = "Case_"                                                            # tried substituting this for "Case_" in the line below, for example.     query = '"%s"' + " = " + "'%s'" % ("Case_", case_number)  #1st %s is single, double, double single quotes; 2nd is double single single double      # query should look like "Case_" = 'A-BC-12-34' where case_number = A-BC-12-34,

Error:

<type 'exceptions.TypeError'>: not all arguments converted during string formatting

Re: String formatting ? for definition query

BruceNielsen — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:00:40 GMT

I think it should look something like this:

query = "\"Case_\" = '%s'" % case_number -or- query = "\"%s\" = '%s'" % (fld, case_number)

Re: String formatting ? for definition query

Zeke — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:09:36 GMT

Thanks Bruce, that works great. I thought I had tried the escape \, but guess not correctly. How would this work for a variable, fld in the code snippet? Even though I don't expect the field name to change, I don't like using hard coded values if I can avoid it.

Re: String formatting ? for definition query

BruceNielsen — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:12:37 GMT

I edited my previous post to show both methods. The way you were doing it originally should have looked like:

query = '"%s"' % fld + " = " + "'%s'" % case_number

Re: String formatting ? for definition query

Zeke — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 19:31:55 GMT

Thanks, appreciate it.