Working with files in Python is pretty easy. But there’s a common mistake that can sneak into your code. Not closing the file ...

So, for example, the key "Father" could have a value of "Bob." Or, more relevantly, a key of "Hits" (or any word) could have a value of 55. In the latter case, the word is given the value of 55.

Python, for all its power and popularity, has long lacked a form of flow control found in other languages—a way to take a value and match it elegantly against one of a number of possible conditions.