Reorder and return the whole of nested dictionary

Question

I am trying to retain the whole contents of a nested dictionary but only with its contents reordered..

This is an example of my nested dictionaries (pardon the long example..) -

{
    "pages": {
        "rotatingTest": {
            "elements": {
                "apvfafwkbnjn2bjt": {
                    "name": "animRot_tilt40_v001", 
                    "data": {
                        "description": "tilt testing", 
                        "project": "TEST", 
                        "created": "26/11/18 16:32", 
                    }, 
                    "type": "AnimWidget", 
                    "uid": "apvfafwkbnjn2bjt"
                }, 
                "p0pkje1hjcc9jukq": {
                    "name": "poseRot_positionD_v003", 
                    "data": {
                        "description": "posing test for positionD", 
                        "created": "10/01/18 14:16", 
                        "project": "TEST", 
                    }, 
                    "type": "PosedWidget", 
                    "uid": "p0pkje1hjcc9jukq"
                }, 
                "k1gzzc5uy1ynqtnj": {
                    "name": "animRot_positionH_v001", 
                    "data": {
                        "description": "rotational posing test for positionH", 
                        "created": "13/06/18 14:19", 
                        "project": "TEST", 
                    }, 
                    "type": "AnimWidget", 
                    "uid": "k1gzzc5uy1ynqtnj"
                }
            }
        }, 
        "panningTest": {
            "elements": {
                "7lyuri8g8u5ctwsa": {
                    "name": "posePan_positionZ_v001", 
                    "data": {
                        "description": "panning test for posZ", 
                        "created": "04/10/18 12:43", 
                        "project": "TEST", 
                    }, 
                    "type": "PosedWidget", 
                    "uid": "7lyuri8g8u5ctwsa"
                }
            }
        }, 
        "zoomingTest": {
            "elements": {
                "prtn0i6ehudhz475": {
                    "name": "posZoom_positionH_v010", 
                    "data": {
                        "description": "zoom test", 
                        "created": "11/10/18 12:42", 
                        "project": "TEST", 
                    }, 
                    "type": "PosedWidget", 
                    "uid": "prtn0i6ehudhz475"
                }
            }
        }
    }, 
    "page_order": [
        "rotatingTest", 
        "zoomingTest", 
        "panningTest"
    ]
}

and this is my code:

for k1, v1 in test_dict.get('pages', {}).items():
    return (sorted(v1.get('elements').items(), key=lambda (k2,v2): v2['data']['created']))

In the code, keys such as the page_order, pages etc are missing... Or if there is/ are any commands where it will enables me to retain the 'whole' of the dictionary?

Appreciate in advance for any advice.

Lists have order, dictionaries typically do not. You can make it so, but it usually doesn't help you get things done. Consider modifying your schema to treat `elements` like a list, with each list item being what is now the sub-dictionary, and you'll be able to order the list in a way that persists. — erik258, Dec 10 '18 at 23:08

ic3b3rg · Accepted Answer · 2018-12-11T21:56:21.103

1

If you're using Python 3.7, a dict will preserve insert order. Otherwise, you need to use an OrderedDict.Additionally, you need to convert the date string to a date to get the correct sort order:

from datetime import datetime

def sortedPage(d):
    return {k: {'elements': dict(sorted(list(v['elements'].items()), key=lambda tuple: datetime.strptime(tuple[1]['data']['created'], '%d/%m/%y %H:%M')))} for k,v in d.items()}

output = {k: sortedPage(v) if k == 'pages' else v for k,v in input.items()}

edited Dec 11 '18 at 21:56

answered Dec 10 '18 at 23:45

ic3b3rg

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thank you for you code. Wondering if it is really necessary to change the items within elements into a list? Can it not be stick back to as a dict? – yan Dec 11 '18 at 19:04
Yes, actually you can. If you're using 3.7, dicts retain insertion order (I just learned this). If you're using 3.6 or less, you need to use an `OrderedDict`: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/39980323/are-dictionaries-ordered-in-python-3-6/39980744 – ic3b3rg Dec 11 '18 at 19:09
Okay I will test it out. By the way, I just realized that the unique id values key are being omitted out if using your code. – yan Dec 11 '18 at 21:30
I am trying to understand the code. So is the tuple consists of the 'values' of the 'elements' keys? – yan Dec 11 '18 at 23:00
Let us [continue this discussion in chat](https://chat.stackoverflow.com/rooms/185095/discussion-between-yan-and-ic3b3rg). – yan Dec 11 '18 at 23:13

Reorder and return the whole of nested dictionary

1 Answers1