Unique uses for unbound methods?

Question

SO has lots of posts on unbound vs. bound methods.

• Class method differences in Python: bound, unbound and static

• python bound and unbound method object

• using unbound methods in another python class

I understand the definition. Do unbound methods have any utility unique to this category? If so, could someone provide an example? I am not asking for a best application, simply a unique application.

Answer 1

The most obvious use case that comes to mind is for a control system. Imagine you have many players in a game where they can send you various commands across the network.. you might want to create a dict like:

player_commands = {
  'move'  : Player.move
  'attack': Player.attack
  ...
}

Then you can read the string and call the appropriate method with any Player object

player_commands[cmd](theplayer)

And it saves you having to have a big if/else chain like

if cmd == 'move':
      theplayer.move()
   elif cmd == 'attack':
      ...

Also since it's a dictionary you can update/edit it dynamically.