401 Unauthorized on Python 3.3

[jaraco]

I tested the library on Python 3.4, and it seems to be working. I then deployed it on a system running Python 3.3 and I get 401 Unauthorized errors. Consider this test script:

import sys
short_ver = '{vi[0]}.{vi[1]}'.format(vi=sys.version_info)

sys.path.insert(0, './wordnik_py3-2.1.2-py{vi}.egg'.format(vi=short_ver))

import wordnik.WordApi
import wordnik.swagger

key = 'elided'
client = wordnik.swagger.ApiClient(key, 'http://api.wordnik.com/v4')
words = wordnik.WordApi.WordApi(client)
words.getDefinitions('dachshund', limit=1)

If I have the wordnik-py3 2.1.2 eggs for Python 3.3 and Python 3.4 in the current directory, I can then run the above script for each. On Python 3.4, it passes without error. On Python 3.3, I get this traceback:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File ".\test-wn.py", line 12, in <module>
    words.getDefinitions('dachshund', limit=1)
  File "./wordnik_py3-2.1.2-py3.3.egg\wordnik\WordApi.py", line 182, in getDefinitions
    postData, headerParams)
  File "./wordnik_py3-2.1.2-py3.3.egg\wordnik\swagger.py", line 73, in callAPI
    request = urllib.request.urlopen(requestParams)
  File "C:\Program Files\Python33\lib\urllib\request.py", line 156, in urlopen
    return opener.open(url, data, timeout)
  File "C:\Program Files\Python33\lib\urllib\request.py", line 475, in open
    response = meth(req, response)
  File "C:\Program Files\Python33\lib\urllib\request.py", line 587, in http_response
    'http', request, response, code, msg, hdrs)
  File "C:\Program Files\Python33\lib\urllib\request.py", line 513, in error
    return self._call_chain(*args)
  File "C:\Program Files\Python33\lib\urllib\request.py", line 447, in _call_chain
    result = func(*args)
  File "C:\Program Files\Python33\lib\urllib\request.py", line 595, in http_error_default
    raise HTTPError(req.full_url, code, msg, hdrs, fp)
urllib.error.HTTPError: HTTP Error 401: Unauthorized

I'm using the exact same script, so the difference appears to be in how WordNik assembles the HTTP request on Python 3.3, somehow triggering the 401.

[jaraco]

In case it wasn't clear, I'm supplying a valid API key in line 9.

[jaraco]

The issue lies with wordnik.swagger in the MethodRequest class. Only on Python 3.3, for any request where the method isn't specified, get_method returns the empty string. This was a defect I identified in Python 3.3 and which I patched for Python 3.4.

[jaraco]

In jaraco.net, I've developed a more robust MethodRequest that works on multiple Python versions, including 3.3:

class MethodRequest(urllib.request.Request):
    method = None

    def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
        """
        Construct a MethodRequest. Usage is the same as for
        `urllib.request.Request` except it also takes an optional `method`
        keyword argument. If supplied, `method` will be used instead of
        the default.
        """
        method = kwargs.pop('method', self.method)
        urllib.request.Request.__init__(self, *args, **kwargs)
        # write the method after __init__ as Python 3.3 overrides the value
        self.method = method

    def get_method(self):
        return getattr(self, 'method') or urllib.request.Request.get_method(self)

Consider using that technique in Wordnik.

[jaraco]

Even that implementation has problems in some cases on some Pythons. I've put together a backports library: backports.method_request which is tested on Python 2.6+. Consider using that library or copying that code into Wordnik3.

[jaraco]

At this point, I'd just recommend dropping support for Python 3.3 and earlier.