[PYTHON] return sorted dictionary

Coding
1

Hey guys,

I am stuck with trying to recreate the lights structure inside maya.
My dictionary returns wildly random mixed lights.

I tried implementing the Ordered dict function but not sure how to use it on the code.
https://docs.python.org/2/library/collections.html#collections.OrderedDict

here my code:


			allObjects['LGT'] = {"type": "transform", "parent": None}
			

			for i in range (0, x):

				transform, shape = self.getTransformAndShape(allTransforms[i])
				lgt = transform.split('|')[-1:][0]
	

							
				if self.isLight(shape):
					parents = mc.listRelatives(transform, parent=True)
					parent = None
					if parents:
						parent = parents[0]
					if parent == "lgt":
						parent = None
					
					allObjects[lgt] = {"type": "light", "parent": parent}

					
				elif self.isLightSource(shape):
					
					parents = mc.listRelatives(transform, parent=True)
					parent = None
					if parents:
						parent = parents[0]
					if parent == "lgt":
						parent = None

					allObjects[lgt] = {"type": "meshLight", "parent": parent}

					
					
					
				elif self.isEnvironmentLight(shape):
					
					parents = mc.listRelatives(transform, parent=True)

					parent = None
					if parents:
						parent = parents[0]
					if parent == "lgt":
						parent = None
					allObjects[lgt] = {"type": "environmentLight", "parent": parent}

					

				elif self.hasLightsChildren(transform):

					if transform == "lgt":
						pass
					
					
					parents = mc.listRelatives(transform, parent=True)
					
					parent = None
					if parents:
						parent = parents[0]
					if parent == "lgt":
						parent = None
					
					
					allObjects[lgt] = {"type": "transform", "parent": parent}


                   return allObjects

CODE BREAKDOWN
the output is:

@

				if self.isLight(shape):
					parents = mc.listRelatives(transform, parent=True)
					parent = None
					if parents:
						parent = parents[0]
					if parent == "lgt":
						parent = None
					
					allObjects[lgt] = {"type": "light", "parent": parent}

:

allObjects returns: {u’TEST_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY16’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY15’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY14’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY11’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY10’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’TEST_KEY1’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’TEST_KEY2’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY_switchtest’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’LOC_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’LOC_lights’}, u’TEST_lights’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’TEST’}, u’ALL’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LGT’}, u’ALL_KEY8’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY3’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY2’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY1’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY7’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY6’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY5’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY4’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_lights’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’ALL’}, u’TEST’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LGT’}, ‘LGT’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: None}}

parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: ALL_lights
parent returns: TEST_lights
parent returns: TEST_lights
parent returns: TEST_lights
parent returns: LOC_lights
parent returns: LOC_lights

lgt returns: ALL_KEY
lgt returns: ALL_KEY1
lgt returns: ALL_KEY2
lgt returns: ALL_KEY3
lgt returns: ALL_KEY4
lgt returns: ALL_KEY5
lgt returns: ALL_KEY6
lgt returns: ALL_KEY_switchtest
lgt returns: ALL_KEY7
lgt returns: ALL_KEY8
lgt returns: ALL_KEY14
lgt returns: ALL_KEY15
lgt returns: ALL_KEY16
lgt returns: ALL_KEY10
lgt returns: ALL_KEY11
lgt returns: TEST_KEY
lgt returns: TEST_KEY1
lgt returns: TEST_KEY2
lgt returns: LOC_KEY
lgt returns: LOC_KEY1

  • the sort order of lgt is still correct here, and that’s how it needs to appear in the groups when parented here further down.

@

	elif self.hasLightsChildren(transform):

					if transform == "lgt":
						pass
					
					
					parents = mc.listRelatives(transform, parent=True)
					
					parent = None
					if parents:
						parent = parents[0]
					if parent == "lgt":
						parent = None
					
					print 'allObjects returns: %s' %allObjects
					#print 'parent returns: %s' %parent					
					allObjects[lgt] = {"type": "transform", "parent": parent}

:

allObjects returns: {u’TEST_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’LOC_lights’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LOC’}, u’ALL_KEY16’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY15’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY14’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY11’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY10’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’TEST_KEY1’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’TEST_KEY2’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY_switchtest’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’LOC_KEY1’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’LOC_lights’}, u’LOC_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’LOC_lights’}, u’TEST_lights’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’TEST’}, u’ALL’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LGT’}, u’ALL_KEY8’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY3’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY2’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY1’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY7’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY6’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY5’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY4’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_lights’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’ALL’}, u’TEST’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LGT’}, ‘LGT’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: None}}

parent returns: ALL
parent returns: LGT
parent returns: TEST
parent returns: LGT
parent returns: LOC
parent returns: LGT

lgt returns: ALL_lights
lgt returns: ALL
lgt returns: TEST_lights
lgt returns: TEST
lgt returns: LOC_lights
lgt returns: LOC

for the purpose of simplicity I only attached the returns of the transforms and groups.

now the final output is:

allObjects output is: {u’TEST_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’LOC’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LGT’}, u’LOC_lights’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LOC’}, u’ALL_KEY16’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY15’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY14’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY11’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY10’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’TEST_KEY1’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’TEST_KEY2’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’TEST_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY_switchtest’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’LOC_KEY1’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’LOC_lights’}, u’LOC_KEY’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’LOC_lights’}, u’TEST_lights’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’TEST’}, u’ALL’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LGT’}, u’ALL_KEY8’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY3’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY2’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY1’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY7’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY6’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY5’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_KEY4’: {‘type’: ‘light’, ‘parent’: u’ALL_lights’}, u’ALL_lights’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’ALL’}, u’TEST’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: u’LGT’}, ‘LGT’: {‘type’: ‘transform’, ‘parent’: None}}

as we see, the sort order is complete random.
How can I append to the dictionary while maintaining the order how he loops?

thanks a lot for help, I tried all kind of variations with the OrderedDict module but I don’t know how to write the code to get it ordered. I’m pretty much a dictionary noob and trying for a few weeks now to get familiar with it.

big big thank you for your time.
Bastian

2

OrderedDict preserves the the order in which items were added, so you’d need to presort the items into a list of key-value pairs in before converting to an OederedDict:


z = ("z", 1)
x= ("x", 2)
y = ("y", 3)
items = [z,x,y]
items.sort()
print OrderedDict(items)
# OrderedDict([('x',2), ('y',3), ('z':1)])

items added to the OrderedDict with square brackets will retain the order in which they were added:


test = OrderedDict()
test['z'] = 1
test['a'] = 2
print test
# OrderedDict([('z':1), ('a':2)])

In many cases OrderedDicts are not recessary. In your case can’t you just maintain a separate list for each type? So the dictionary would look like


light_types = {
    'TEST_Light': ['TEST_KEY1', 'TEST_KEY2', ....],
    'ALL_Lights': ['ALL_KEY4', 'ALL_KEY3',....],
   ... etc
}

You can sort the lists easily, and if you care about the order of getting things out of the dictionary you can just put that order into a list:


light_keys = ['ALL_lights', 'TEST_'lights', ...]
for lk in light_keys:
     print lk
     for light in light_types[lk]:
          print "/t", light