If 'first replace then split' suits your needs it quite easy to implement on containers:
>>> a = 'bacon-eggs_spam*ham!foo&bar'
>>> breakpoints = ['_', '*', '!', '&']
>>> for char in a:
... if char in breakpoints:
... a = a.replace(char, '-')
...
>>> a.split('-')
['bacon', 'eggs', 'spam', 'ham', 'foo', 'bar']
I'm not 'in'-sane. Indeed, I am so far 'out' of sane that you appear a tiny blip on the distant coast of sanity. Bucky Katt, Get Fuzzy
Da Bishop: There's a dead bishop on the landing. I don't know who keeps bringing them in here. ....but society is to blame.
Da Bishop: There's a dead bishop on the landing. I don't know who keeps bringing them in here. ....but society is to blame.