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List Copy, Slice Entire List
This page was last reviewed on Oct 22, 2021.
Dot Net Perls
Copy list. A list references a region of memory. When assigned, the list reference itself is copied. In Python we can instead copy elements into a new list.
String List
Syntax notes. We sometimes need instead to copy all the elements of a list into a new list. The new list then can be independently modified.
Slice example. We use the slice syntax to copy a list. When the start and end numbers are omitted, we consider the slice to equal the entire list.
Slice
Tip This is the shortest syntax form. It requires only a list reference and 3 characters.
# A list: list1 = [10, 20, 30] # Copy list1 with slice syntax. list2 = list1[:] # Modify list2. list2[0] = 0 print(list1) print(list2)
[10, 20, 30] [0, 20, 30]
Extend. Next, we use the extend method to copy a list. We first need to allocate a new, empty list. Then we extend that empty list (list2) with the original list.
Note This approach requires two lines. It is also less efficient. Please see the benchmark section.
list1 = [10, 20, 30] # Create empty list, then extend it. list2 = [] list2.extend(list1) # The lists are separate. list2[0] = 0 print(list1) print(list2)
[10, 20, 30] [0, 20, 30]
Performance. Here we consider performance of list copying. The list contains five numbers. We use while-loops to repeatedly copy those five elements.
while
Version 1 This Python code tests the slice syntax. An entire list is copied with by using an unspecified start and end.
Version 2 This code uses the extend method (after creating an empty list). We repeat these operations ten million times.
Result Taking a slice to copy a list is faster. It required just 4.7 seconds, versus 5.3 for the extend method version.
import time list1 = [100, 200, 300, 400, 500] print(time.time()) # Version 1: slice i = 0 while < 10000000: list2 = list1[:] i += 1 print(time.time()) # Version 2: extend i = 0 while i < 10000000: list2 = [] list2.extend(list1) i += 1 print(time.time())
1395252155.968703 1395252160.704971 Slice = 4.736 s 1395252166.045275 Extend = 5.340 s
Summary. A full-list slice is a good way to copy a list. It requires the least amount of syntax. And it performs faster than the alternative approach that uses the extend method.
Dot Net Perls is a collection of tested code examples. Pages are continually updated to stay current, with code correctness a top priority.
Sam Allen is passionate about computer languages. In the past, his work has been recommended by Apple and Microsoft and he has studied computers at a selective university in the United States.
This page was last updated on Oct 22, 2021 (image).
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