python ast module fails in pydev, succeeds in cmdline python

Question

This is weird. I run this program in PyDev ``` import ast import sys if __name__ == '__main__': print sys.version src = ''' print 3*4+5**2 ''' print dir(ast) n = ast.parse(src) print n ``` and it outputs: ``` 2.7.5 |Anaconda 1.6.0 (64-bit)| (default, May 31 2013, 10:45:37) [MSC v.1500 64 bit (AMD64)] ['__builtins__', '__doc__', '__file__', '__name__', '__package__', '__path__'] Traceback (most recent call last): File ["C:esearch\ast\ast	est1.py", line 16, in <module> n = ast.parse(src) AttributeError: 'module' object has no attribute 'parse' ``` but when I run it in cmdline it prints this: ``` C:esearch\ast\ast>python test1.py 2.7.5 |Anaconda 1.6.0 (64-bit)| (default, May 31 2013, 10:45:37) [MSC v.1500 64 bit (AMD64)] ['AST', 'Add', 'And', 'Assert', 'Assign', 'Attribute', 'AugAssign', 'AugLoad', ' AugStore', 'BinOp', 'BitAnd', 'BitOr', 'BitXor', 'BoolOp', 'Break', 'Call', 'Cla ssDef', 'Compare', 'Continue', 'Del', 'Delete', 'Dict', 'DictComp', 'Div', 'Elli psis', 'Eq', 'ExceptHan…

Accepted Answer

It seems the `ast` you have imported in PyDev is not the ast module in the standard library, but a package.

I guess:

There is a `__init__.py` file in the same directory as your test1.py. You selected "Add project directory to the PYTHONPATH" during the project creation.

These two combined, results in that error. The ast module in the standard library is shadowed by this `ast` package.

In cmdline python, this `ast` package is not in the search path, thus the ast module is imported.

If you change test1.py to

```
import ast

if __name__ == '__main__':
    print ast.__file__
```

I guess the output in PyDev would be

```
C:\research\ast\ast\__init__.pyc
```

python ast module fails in pydev, succeeds in cmdline python

Solution

Problem