python standard input

Question

In Python, how can I get data from standard input? I want to be able to specify a text file as an input to the script from the command line.

Answer 1

You can use sys.stdin. It acts like a file object, so treat it as one when you use it:

#!/usr/bin/env python
import sys

print sys.stdin.read()

Running this by itself hangs the interpreter, but adding a pipe operator does what it should:

> echo "asd" | python test.py
> asd