return None in constructor call?

mjc4y@banyan.cs.virginia.edu
Fri, 19 Nov 93 15:05:29 EST

In Python 0.9.9, there is support for the new __init__ constructor
call. Unfortunately, this function is mandated to return None. This
prevents constructios of the following form:

#########
# this is broken. __init__ returns None

foo = Some_Class(10).some_operation(40)

Is there some reason the The Some_Class __init__ routine isn't allowed
to return 'self' in some form?

Followup question: What implications (if any) would this have for the
reference counting mechanism if __init__ returned self, but (in the
above example) there was no assignment to foo?

Thanks,
Matt