Improving Code Quality with Python Type Hints

Type hints, introduced in Python 3.5, allow you to add static type information to your code. While Python remains a dynamically typed language (meaning types are not enforced at runtime), type hints are incredibly useful for static analysis tools, IDEs, and improving code clarity.

Why Use Type Hints?

Catch Errors Early: Tools like Mypy can catch type-related bugs before you even run your code.
Better Autocompletion: Your IDE can provide more accurate suggestions.
Improved Readability: It makes your code self-documenting.

Basic Type Hinting

name: str = "Alice"
age: int = 30
is_active: bool = True

def greet(name: str) -> str:
    return f"Hello, {name}"

Complex Types

For more complex types like lists, dictionaries, and tuples, you need to import them from the `typing` module.

from typing import List, Dict, Tuple, Optional

# A list of integers
ids: List[int] = [1, 2, 3]

# A dictionary with string keys and integer values
scores: Dict[str, int] = {"Alice": 95, "Bob": 88}

# A value that can be a string or None
username: Optional[str] = None

To check your code for type errors, you can install and run Mypy: `pip install mypy` and then `mypy your_script.py`.

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