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How to Remove Duplicate Adjacent Spaces in Python
This Python function collapses any sequence of two or more adjacent spaces into a single space, preserving all other characters.
def remove_duplicate_adjacent_spaces(text):
"""Replace sequences of 2+ spaces with a single space."""
result = []
prev_was_space = False
for char in text:
if char == " ":
if not prev_was_space:
result.append(char)
prev_was_space = True
else:
…Find Duplicate Elements in a Python List
Identifies and returns duplicate elements from a Python list using sets for efficient membership tests.
def find_duplicates(lst):
seen = set()
duplicates = set()
for item in lst:
if item in seen:
duplicates.add(item)
else:
seen.add(item)
return list(duplicates)
if __name__ == "__main__":
sample = [1, 2, 3, 2, 4, 1, 5, 3]
print(find_duplicates(sample))How to Get the Union of Two Lists Without Duplicates in Python
Merge two lists and remove duplicate values using a set, then convert back to a list.
def union_without_duplicates(list1, list2):
return list(set(list1 + list2))
if __name__ == "__main__":
list_a = [1, 2, 3, 4]
list_b = [3, 4, 5, 6]
result = union_without_duplicates(list_a, list_b)
print(f"Union of {list_a} and {list_b}: {result}")Intersection of Two Lists Preserving Order in Python
This code returns the common elements between two lists while preserving the order they appear in the first list, filtering out duplicates.
def intersection_preserving_order(list1, list2):
"""
Return the intersection of two lists while preserving the order
of elements as they appear in list1.
"""
set2 = set(list2)
result = []
seen = set()
for item in list1:
if item in set2 and item not in seen:
resu…How to Merge Dicts from Two JSON Files Like a Pro
This helper reads two JSON files that contain dicts, merges them with the second file overriding duplicate keys, and saves the result to a new file.
import json
from pathlib import Path
def merge_json_files(file1: str, file2: str, output: str = "merged.json") -> dict:
"""Merge two JSON files containing dicts, with file2 overriding file1."""
data1 = json.loads(Path(file1).read_text())
data2 = json.loads(Path(file2).read_text())
merged = {**data1,…Check Invertible Mapping for Duplicate Values in Python
Detect duplicate values among (key, value) pairs to ensure the mapping is invertible, using a dictionary for O(1) lookups.
def invertible_after_dedup(pairs):
"""
Check whether a set of (key, value) pairs is invertible,
i.e., no duplicate values exist for different keys.
"""
seen = {}
for key, value in pairs:
if value in seen and seen[value] != key:
return False, f"Duplicate value '{value}' for k…How to Count Elements and Find Duplicates in a Python List
Count occurrences of each element in a list, extract unique values, and identify duplicates using Python dictionaries and sets.
def analyze_counts(data):
"""Count elements, return unique values, and find duplicates."""
# Count occurrences using a dictionary
counts = {}
for item in data:
counts[item] = counts.get(item, 0) + 1
# Alternative compact approach with set
unique_items = set(data)
# Fi…How to Invert a Dictionary in Python Safely
Swap dictionary keys and values while detecting duplicate values to prevent silent data loss.
def invert_dict_safely(d):
inverted = {}
for key, value in d.items():
if value not in inverted:
inverted[value] = key
else:
raise ValueError(f"Duplicate value '{value}' would cause data loss")
return inverted
if __name__ == "__main__":
sample = {"a": 1, "b": 2,…How to Parse Query String to Dict with Duplicate Keys in Python
Convert a URL query string into a Python dictionary, merging duplicate keys into lists while keeping single values as scalars.
from urllib.parse import parse_qs
def parse_query_to_dict(query_string):
parsed = parse_qs(query_string, keep_blank_values=True)
return {key: values if len(values) > 1 else values[0] for key, values in parsed.items()}
if __name__ == "__main__":
query = "name=John&name=Jane&age=30&city=&city=Paris&empty…How to Copy Class Instances in Python: Shallow vs Deep Copy
Use copy.copy and copy.deepcopy to clone class instances, showing how nested objects are shared or duplicated.
import copy
class Config:
def __init__(self):
self.settings = {"theme": "dark", "language": "en"}
if __name__ == "__main__":
original = Config()
shallow_copy = copy.copy(original)
deep_copy = copy.deepcopy(original)
shallow_copy.settings["theme"] = "light"
deep_copy.settings["them…Find Common Elements in List of Lists in Python
Return elements that appear in every sublist of a nested list, preserving duplicates with Counter intersection.
from collections import Counter
def common_elements(list_of_lists):
"""Return elements present in every sublist."""
if not list_of_lists:
return []
counts = Counter(list_of_lists[0])
for sublist in list_of_lists[1:]:
counts &= Counter(sublist)
return list(counts.elements())
if _…Find Elements in One Python List but Not Another
Return a new list containing only the elements from list A that are not present in list B, preserving duplicates and order.
def difference_elements(a, b):
"""Return elements present in list a but not in list b."""
set_b = set(b)
return [item for item in a if item not in set_b]
if __name__ == "__main__":
a = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 3, 2]
b = [2, 4, 6]
result = difference_elements(a, b)
print(f"A: {a}")
print(f"B: {b…Find First Duplicate Index in Python
Return the index of the first element that appears more than once in a list, using a dictionary for O(n) time.
def find_first_duplicate(arr):
seen = {}
for index, value in enumerate(arr):
if value in seen:
return index
seen[value] = index
return -1
if __name__ == "__main__":
test_array = [3, 5, 2, 8, 5, 1, 2]
result = find_first_duplicate(test_array)
print(f"Array: {test_arr…How to Remove Duplicates in Python Preserving Order
Removes duplicate items from a list while keeping the first occurrence order intact using a set for fast membership checks.
def remove_duplicates_preserving_order(items):
seen = set()
result = []
for item in items:
if item not in seen:
seen.add(item)
result.append(item)
return result
if __name__ == "__main__":
sample = [3, 1, 2, 1, 3, 4, 2, 5]
unique_items = remove_duplicates_preserv…Simplify a File Path in Python with a Stack
Uses a stack to normalize an absolute Unix path by handling '.', '..', and duplicate slashes.
from pathlib import PurePosixPath
def simplify_path(path: str) -> str:
tokens = path.split('/')
stack = []
for token in tokens:
if not token or token == '.':
continue
if token == '..':
if stack:
stack.pop()
else:
stack.append…Python Generator to Filter Duplicates with a Seen Set
A lazily-evaluated generator function that yields only the first occurrence of each item, using a set to track seen values.
def unique_generator(items):
seen = set()
for item in items:
if item not in seen:
seen.add(item)
yield item
if __name__ == "__main__":
data = [1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 5, 5]
result = list(unique_generator(data))
print(result)How to Hash Duplicate Photos and Delete Copies in Python
This script hashes image files in a directory using SHA-256 and deletes duplicate copies while keeping the first occurrence, ideal for cleaning up photo libraries.
from pathlib import Path
import hashlib
def file_hash(path, chunk_size=8192):
hasher = hashlib.sha256()
with open(path, "rb") as f:
for chunk in iter(lambda: f.read(chunk_size), b""):
hasher.update(chunk)
return hasher.hexdigest()
def delete_duplicate_photos(directory):
directory …Generate a Deterministic Hash for Deduplication in Python
Create a stable SHA-256 fingerprint from nested data and file contents to deduplicate records in a data pipeline.
import hashlib
import json
from pathlib import Path
def natural_key_hash(data, salt=""):
"""
Generate a deterministic fingerprint from raw data (dict/list/str).
Uses JSON canonical-ish serialization with sorted keys and SHA-256.
"""
canonical = json.dumps(data, sort_keys=True, separators=(",", ":"…How to Deduplicate Events with At-Least-Once Delivery in Python
Implements an exactly-once processing pattern for at-least-once event delivery by tracking seen event IDs in a set, skipping duplicates.
seen_ids = set()
def process_event(event_id: str, payload: dict) -> dict:
"""Process an event exactly once, ignoring duplicates."""
if event_id in seen_ids:
return {"status": "duplicate", "event_id": event_id}
seen_ids.add(event_id)
return {"status": "processed", "event_id": event_id, **payloa…Implement Exactly-Once Transaction Log in Python
A mock transaction log that deduplicates transaction IDs so each is recorded only once, with a dataclass for records and simple in-memory storage.
from dataclasses import dataclass
from typing import Dict, Optional
@dataclass
class TxnRecord:
txn_id: str
status: str
class ExactlyOnceTxnLog:
def __init__(self) -> None:
self._log: Dict[str, TxnRecord] = {}
self._processed_ids: set = set()
def record(self, txn_id: str, status: s…Count Unique Contributors from Git Shortlog in Python
Parses git shortlog -sn output to count the number of unique contributors, handling duplicate entries and variable whitespace.
import subprocess
from collections import Counter
# Mock shortlog output as a list of lines (simulating git shortlog -sn output)
MOCK_SHORTLOG = """ 120 Alice Johnson
88 Bob Smith
45 Alice Johnson
30 Carol Williams
25 Bob Smith
10 Dave Brown
"""
def count_contributors_from_shortlog(text):
"…How to Mock CloudFront Invalidation Paths in Python
Build a sorted, deduplicated list of CloudFront invalidation paths from a set of file paths, adding implicit index.html entries.
import argparse
def build_invalidation_paths(files, include_index=True):
"""
Create CloudFront invalidation paths from a list of files.
Converts file names to root-relative paths and optionally adds /index.html.
"""
paths = []
for f in files:
f = f.strip()
if not f:
…Idempotent Consumer: Store Processed IDs in Python
Implement an idempotent consumer that persists processed message IDs to a JSON file, skipping duplicates on restart.
import json
from pathlib import Path
class IdempotentStore:
def __init__(self, storage_path: str = "processed_ids.json"):
self.storage_path = Path(storage_path)
self.processed_ids = self._load()
def _load(self) -> set:
if self.storage_path.exists():
with self.storage_path…Exactly Once Idempotent Consumer Store in Python
A mock key-value store that guarantees exactly-once processing by rejecting duplicate message keys in a message or event stream.
from collections import defaultdict
class ExactlyOnceStore:
def __init__(self):
self.processed = defaultdict(set)
self.data = {}
def consume(self, key, value):
if key in self.data:
return False
self.data[key] = value
return True
def get_processed_count…Browse by section
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