Where to store data?

[mcmxl22]

I am writing a program that will need to access a list of 100+ names that will be frequently edited. I am wondering what the best option is for storing this data. I am leaning toward a spread sheet type file like .xls and .csv, or just putting it all in a dict or list in memory. I just want some opinions on what would be a good approach.

[micseydel]

What are your requirements? Just storing and editing 100+ names? You won't need disk for that, unless you need the data to persist in the event of the machine being turned off.

If that is the case, and the dictionary is simple, you can dump it to JSON and read it back without any special processing. csv/tsv might work as well, but you can probably find a JSON representation that would be a better fit for the data.

[buran]

Depends on the project/use, but generally I would go for sqlite, next option - json/csv. Using json or csv file would require writing all the info into the file every time you change something, while using sqlite allows to update the info in db only for whatever changes have been made. If going for json/csv - I would read everything in the memory on script start and use the names from there, only saving back to file when there are changes.

[wavic]

You can just pickle a list of objects like simple names. Pickle is a standard Python module which dumps Python objects on the disk as a binary file. It's easier for Python. But in that way other programs won't use the data. JSON is a good choice if that is required

[Ofnuts]

I am writing a program that will need to access a list of 100+ names that will be frequently edited. I am wondering what the best option is for storing this data. I am leaning toward a spread sheet type file like .xls and .csv, or just putting it all in a dict or list in memory. I just want some opinions on what would be a good approach.

100+ names (but less than 1000): just use a flat file, especially if humans will edit it.