I am trying to limit the number of characters that can be input in a list of Entry widgets. I tried using the following:
def character_limit(entry_text):
if len(entry_text.get()) > 0:
entry_text.set(entry_text.get()[:10])
player_names = []
for i in range(num_players):
player_names.append(tk.StringVar())
player_names[i].trace("w", lambda *args: character_limit(player_names[i]))
player_name_entry = tk.Entry(top, textvariable=player_names[i])
player_name_entry.grid(row=i, column=0)
But this only limits the last Entry widget. How can I fix this?
The looping problem is a very commonly seen problem and to fix it, you have to store the current value of the iteration within the lambda itself:
def character_limit(*args, entry_text):
# if len(entry_text.get()) > 0: Can remove this line as it seems to not really be doing anything
entry_text.set(entry_text.get()[:10])
for i in range(num_players):
...
player_names[i].trace("w", lambda *args, i=i: character_limit(entry_text=player_names[i]))
The reason you use *args is because, trace passes 3 arguments to the function itself, that we don't need mostly.
But a more better method to do this will be to use validation for the entry widgets as this will prevent you needing to create a StringVar and trace its activity unnecessarily:
def character_limit(inp):
if len(inp) > 10:
return False
return True
player_names = []
vcmd = (root.register(character_limit), '%P')
for i in range(num_players):
player_name_entry = Entry(root, validate='key', validatecommand=vcmd)
player_name_entry.grid(row=i, column=0)
player_names.append(player_name_entry)
Read:
tkinter creating buttons in for loop passing command arguments
Interactively validating Entry widget content in tkinter
The problem is not related to the widget. Variable i is not local to the lambda functions, so the last value of i is used for every function.
To create local variables change your lambda into:
player_names[i].trace("w", lambda *args, n=i: character_limit(player_names[n]))
For a good description see https://docs.python.org/3/faq/programming.html#why-do-lambdas-defined-in-a-loop-with-different-values-all-return-the-same-result
What is the recommended technique for interactively validating content in a tkinter Entry widget?
I've read the posts about using validate=True and validatecommand=command, and it appears that these features are limited by the fact that they get cleared if the validatecommand command updates the Entry widget's value.
Given this behavior, should we bind on the KeyPress, Cut, and Paste events and monitor/update our Entry widget's value through these events? (And other related events that I might have missed?)
Or should we forget interactive validation altogether and only validate on FocusOut events?
The correct answer is, use the validatecommand attribute of the widget. Unfortunately this feature is severely under-documented in the Tkinter world, though it is quite sufficiently documented in the Tk world. Even though it's not documented well, it has everything you need to do validation without resorting to bindings or tracing variables, or modifying the widget from within the validation procedure.
The trick is to know that you can have Tkinter pass in special values to your validate command. These values give you all the information you need to know to decide on whether the data is valid or not: the value prior to the edit, the value after the edit if the edit is valid, and several other bits of information. To use these, though, you need to do a little voodoo to get this information passed to your validate command.
Note: it's important that the validation command returns either True or False. Anything else will cause the validation to be turned off for the widget.
Here's an example that only allows lowercase. It also prints the values of all of the special values for illustrative purposes. They aren't all necessary; you rarely need more than one or two.
import tkinter as tk # python 3.x
# import Tkinter as tk # python 2.x
class Example(tk.Frame):
def __init__(self, parent):
tk.Frame.__init__(self, parent)
# valid percent substitutions (from the Tk entry man page)
# note: you only have to register the ones you need; this
# example registers them all for illustrative purposes
#
# %d = Type of action (1=insert, 0=delete, -1 for others)
# %i = index of char string to be inserted/deleted, or -1
# %P = value of the entry if the edit is allowed
# %s = value of entry prior to editing
# %S = the text string being inserted or deleted, if any
# %v = the type of validation that is currently set
# %V = the type of validation that triggered the callback
# (key, focusin, focusout, forced)
# %W = the tk name of the widget
vcmd = (self.register(self.onValidate),
'%d', '%i', '%P', '%s', '%S', '%v', '%V', '%W')
self.entry = tk.Entry(self, validate="key", validatecommand=vcmd)
self.text = tk.Text(self, height=10, width=40)
self.entry.pack(side="top", fill="x")
self.text.pack(side="bottom", fill="both", expand=True)
def onValidate(self, d, i, P, s, S, v, V, W):
self.text.delete("1.0", "end")
self.text.insert("end","OnValidate:\n")
self.text.insert("end","d='%s'\n" % d)
self.text.insert("end","i='%s'\n" % i)
self.text.insert("end","P='%s'\n" % P)
self.text.insert("end","s='%s'\n" % s)
self.text.insert("end","S='%s'\n" % S)
self.text.insert("end","v='%s'\n" % v)
self.text.insert("end","V='%s'\n" % V)
self.text.insert("end","W='%s'\n" % W)
# Disallow anything but lowercase letters
if S == S.lower():
return True
else:
self.bell()
return False
if __name__ == "__main__":
root = tk.Tk()
Example(root).pack(fill="both", expand=True)
root.mainloop()
For more information about what happens under the hood when you call the register method, see Why is calling register() required for tkinter input validation?
For the canonical documentation see the Validation section of the Tcl/Tk Entry man page
After studying and experimenting with Bryan's code, I produced a minimal version of input validation. The following code will put up an Entry box and only accept numeric digits.
from tkinter import *
root = Tk()
def testVal(inStr,acttyp):
if acttyp == '1': #insert
if not inStr.isdigit():
return False
return True
entry = Entry(root, validate="key")
entry['validatecommand'] = (entry.register(testVal),'%P','%d')
entry.pack()
root.mainloop()
Perhaps I should add that I am still learning Python and I will gladly accept any and all comments/suggestions.
Use a Tkinter.StringVar to track the value of the Entry widget. You can validate the value of the StringVar by setting a trace on it.
Here's a short working program that accepts only valid floats in the Entry widget.
try:
from tkinter import *
except ImportError:
from Tkinter import * # Python 2
root = Tk()
sv = StringVar()
def validate_float(var):
new_value = var.get()
try:
new_value == '' or float(new_value)
validate_float.old_value = new_value
except:
var.set(validate_float.old_value)
validate_float.old_value = '' # Define function attribute.
# trace wants a callback with nearly useless parameters, fixing with lambda.
sv.trace('w', lambda nm, idx, mode, var=sv: validate_float(var))
ent = Entry(root, textvariable=sv)
ent.pack()
ent.focus_set()
root.mainloop()
Bryan's answer is correct, however no one mentioned the 'invalidcommand' attribute of the tkinter widget.
A good explanation is here:
http://infohost.nmt.edu/tcc/help/pubs/tkinter/web/entry-validation.html
Text copy/pasted in case of broken link
The Entry widget also supports an invalidcommand option that specifies a callback function that is called whenever the validatecommand returns False. This command may modify the text in the widget by using the .set() method on the widget's associated textvariable. Setting up this option works the same as setting up the validatecommand. You must use the .register() method to wrap your Python function; this method returns the name of the wrapped function as a string. Then you will pass as the value of the invalidcommand option either that string, or as the first element of a tuple containing substitution codes.
Note:
There is only one thing that I cannot figure out how to do: If you add validation to an entry, and the user selects a portion of the text and types a new value, there is no way to capture the original value and reset the entry. Here's an example
Entry is designed to only accept integers by implementing 'validatecommand'
User enters 1234567
User selects '345' and presses 'j'. This is registered as two actions: deletion of '345', and insertion of 'j'. Tkinter ignores the deletion and acts only on the insertion of 'j'. 'validatecommand' returns False, and the values passed to the 'invalidcommand' function are as follows: %d=1, %i=2, %P=12j67, %s=1267, %S=j
If the code does not implement an 'invalidcommand' function, the 'validatecommand' function will reject the 'j' and the result will be 1267. If the code does implement an 'invalidcommand' function, there is no way to recover the original 1234567.
Define a function returning a boolean that indicates whether the input is valid.Register it as a Tcl callback, and pass the callback name to the widget as a validatecommand.
For example:
import tkinter as tk
def validator(P):
"""Validates the input.
Args:
P (int): the value the text would have after the change.
Returns:
bool: True if the input is digit-only or empty, and False otherwise.
"""
return P.isdigit() or P == ""
root = tk.Tk()
entry = tk.Entry(root)
entry.configure(
validate="key",
validatecommand=(
root.register(validator),
"%P",
),
)
entry.grid()
root.mainloop()
Reference.
While studying Bryan Oakley's answer, something told me that a far more general solution could be developed. The following example introduces a mode enumeration, a type dictionary, and a setup function for validation purposes. See line 48 for example usage and a demonstration of its simplicity.
#! /usr/bin/env python3
# https://stackoverflow.com/questions/4140437
import enum
import inspect
import tkinter
from tkinter.constants import *
Mode = enum.Enum('Mode', 'none key focus focusin focusout all')
CAST = dict(d=int, i=int, P=str, s=str, S=str,
v=Mode.__getitem__, V=Mode.__getitem__, W=str)
def on_validate(widget, mode, validator):
# http://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl/TkCmd/ttk_entry.htm#M39
if mode not in Mode:
raise ValueError('mode not recognized')
parameters = inspect.signature(validator).parameters
if not set(parameters).issubset(CAST):
raise ValueError('validator arguments not recognized')
casts = tuple(map(CAST.__getitem__, parameters))
widget.configure(validate=mode.name, validatecommand=[widget.register(
lambda *args: bool(validator(*(cast(arg) for cast, arg in zip(
casts, args)))))]+['%' + parameter for parameter in parameters])
class Example(tkinter.Frame):
#classmethod
def main(cls):
tkinter.NoDefaultRoot()
root = tkinter.Tk()
root.title('Validation Example')
cls(root).grid(sticky=NSEW)
root.grid_rowconfigure(0, weight=1)
root.grid_columnconfigure(0, weight=1)
root.mainloop()
def __init__(self, master, **kw):
super().__init__(master, **kw)
self.entry = tkinter.Entry(self)
self.text = tkinter.Text(self, height=15, width=50,
wrap=WORD, state=DISABLED)
self.entry.grid(row=0, column=0, sticky=NSEW)
self.text.grid(row=1, column=0, sticky=NSEW)
self.grid_rowconfigure(1, weight=1)
self.grid_columnconfigure(0, weight=1)
on_validate(self.entry, Mode.key, self.validator)
def validator(self, d, i, P, s, S, v, V, W):
self.text['state'] = NORMAL
self.text.delete(1.0, END)
self.text.insert(END, 'd = {!r}\ni = {!r}\nP = {!r}\ns = {!r}\n'
'S = {!r}\nv = {!r}\nV = {!r}\nW = {!r}'
.format(d, i, P, s, S, v, V, W))
self.text['state'] = DISABLED
return not S.isupper()
if __name__ == '__main__':
Example.main()
import tkinter
tk=tkinter.Tk()
def only_numeric_input(e):
#this is allowing all numeric input
if e.isdigit():
return True
#this will allow backspace to work
elif e=="":
return True
else:
return False
#this will make the entry widget on root window
e1=tkinter.Entry(tk)
#arranging entry widget on screen
e1.grid(row=0,column=0)
c=tk.register(only_numeric_input)
e1.configure(validate="key",validatecommand=(c,'%P'))
tk.mainloop()
#very usefull for making app like calci
Here's an improved version of #Steven Rumbalski's answer of validating the Entry widgets value by tracing changes to a StringVar — which I have already debugged and improved to some degree by editing it in place.
The version below puts everything into a StringVar subclass to encapsulates what's going on better and, more importantly allow multiple independent instances of it to exist at the same time without interfering with each other — a potential problem with his implementation because it utilizes function attributes instead of instance attributes, which are essentially the same thing as global variables and can lead to problems in such a scenario.
try:
from tkinter import *
except ImportError:
from Tkinter import * # Python 2
class ValidateFloatVar(StringVar):
"""StringVar subclass that only allows valid float values to be put in it."""
def __init__(self, master=None, value=None, name=None):
StringVar.__init__(self, master, value, name)
self._old_value = self.get()
self.trace('w', self._validate)
def _validate(self, *_):
new_value = self.get()
try:
new_value == '' or float(new_value)
self._old_value = new_value
except ValueError:
StringVar.set(self, self._old_value)
root = Tk()
ent = Entry(root, textvariable=ValidateFloatVar(value=42.0))
ent.pack()
ent.focus_set()
ent.icursor(END)
root.mainloop()
This code can help if you want to set both just digits and max characters.
from tkinter import *
root = Tk()
def validate(P):
if len(P) == 0 or len(P) <= 10 and P.isdigit(): # 10 characters
return True
else:
return False
ent = Entry(root, validate="key", validatecommand=(root.register(validate), '%P'))
ent.pack()
root.mainloop()
Responding to orionrobert's problem of dealing with simple validation upon substitutions of text through selection, instead of separate deletions or insertions:
A substitution of selected text is processed as a deletion followed by an insertion. This may lead to problems, for example, when the deletion should move the cursor to the left, while a substitution should move the cursor to the right. Fortunately, these two processes are executed immediately after one another.
Hence, we can differentiate between a deletion by itself and a deletion directly followed by an insertion due to a substitution because the latter has does not change the idle flag between deletion and insertion.
This is exploited using a substitutionFlag and a Widget.after_idle().
after_idle() executes the lambda-function at the end of the event queue:
class ValidatedEntry(Entry):
def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
super().__init__(*args, **kwargs)
self.tclValidate = (self.register(self.validate), '%d', '%i', '%P', '%s', '%S', '%v', '%V', '%W')
# attach the registered validation function to this spinbox
self.config(validate = "all", validatecommand = self.tclValidate)
def validate(self, type, index, result, prior, indelText, currentValidationMode, reason, widgetName):
if typeOfAction == "0":
# set a flag that can be checked by the insertion validation for being part of the substitution
self.substitutionFlag = True
# store desired data
self.priorBeforeDeletion = prior
self.indexBeforeDeletion = index
# reset the flag after idle
self.after_idle(lambda: setattr(self, "substitutionFlag", False))
# normal deletion validation
pass
elif typeOfAction == "1":
# if this is a substitution, everything is shifted left by a deletion, so undo this by using the previous prior
if self.substitutionFlag:
# restore desired data to what it was during validation of the deletion
prior = self.priorBeforeDeletion
index = self.indexBeforeDeletion
# optional (often not required) additional behavior upon substitution
pass
else:
# normal insertion validation
pass
return True
Of course, after a substitution, while validating the deletion part, one still won’t know whether an insert will follow.
Luckily however, with:
.set(),
.icursor(),
.index(SEL_FIRST),
.index(SEL_LAST),
.index(INSERT),
we can achieve most desired behavior retrospectively (since the combination of our new substitutionFlag with an insertion is a new unique and final event.
I have a list named chosenTestHolder (imported from the my_config file) that consists of several objects each with the attribute 'sentence'.
When pressing the button 'Press' for the first time, the attribute 'sentence' of the first object in the chosenTestHolder should be displayed in the text widget. The next time the button 'Press' is pressed the attribute 'sentence' of the second object in chosenTestHolder should be displayed and so on.
I am using lambda event for binding the 'Press' button and tries to use a new sentences as its first arguments after each pressing of the 'Press' button. However, it keeps showing the first sentence.
When searching Stackoverflow I have seen in
Using lambda function to change value of an attribute that you can't use assignments in lambda expressions but by reading that I still have not figured out how to solve my problem.
Grateful for help! Code is below!
main.py
from tkinter import font
import tkinter as tk
import tkinter.ttk as ttk
import my_config
import Testlist as tl
class TestWidgetTest:
def __init__(self):
ram = tk.Frame(root)
ram.grid(in_=root,row=0, column=0)
self.myText = tk.Text(ram, height = 5)
self.myText.grid(row=0,column=1)
my_config.counter = 0
self.myButton = tk.Button(ram, text = 'Press')
self.myButton.grid(row =1, column =0, columnspan =2)
indata =[my_config.chosenTestHolder[my_config.counter] , self.myText]
self.myButton.bind('<ButtonRelease-1>',lambda event, arg=indata : self.TagConfigure(event, arg))
def TagConfigure(self, event, arg):
arg[1].delete('1.0',tk.END)
arg[1].insert('1.0',arg[0].sentence)
my_config.counter += 1
root = tk.Tk()
TestWidgetTest()
root.mainloop()
my_config.py
import Testlist as tl
testListHolder = [ ['Fabian was very tired'],
['Thomas light the fire'],
['Anna eat a red apple ']]
chosenTestHolder = []
count = 0
while count <(len(testListHolder)):
chosenTestHolder.append(tl.Testlist(testListHolder[count][0]))
count += 1
counter = 0
Testlist.py
class Testlist:
def __init__(self, sentence):
self.sentence = sentence
Your issue is the assignment of indata.
You do only assign in init.
To get your code working you need to re-configure your sentecte...
indata =[my_config.chosenTestHolder[my_config.counter] , self.myText]
self.myButton.bind('<ButtonRelease-1>',lambda event, arg=indata : self.TagConfigure(event, arg))
I would advise to keep track of the current sentence as an instance variable.
class Test_widget(tk.Frame):
def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
tk.Frame.__init__(self, args, kwargs)
self.sentences=["a", "b", "c", "d"] # the data
self.show = tk.StringVar() # the current displayed data
self.show.set("NULL")
self.counter=0 # the indexer
tk.Label(self, textvariable=self.show).grid(row=0)
tk.Button(self, command=self.click).grid(row=1)
def click(self, event):
self.show.set("%s"%self.sentences[self.counter]) # use the indexer to access the data
self.counter = self.counter + 1 # modify the indexer
if self.counter = len(self.sentences): # make sure you dont run in index-err
self.counter = 0
As you see, there is no need at all for the lambdas.
Edit
As to your questions:
The change in your original code was not intended.
I do not see a use case where you can use a lambda for its use inside your code.
At least none where a lambda is necessary.
Please remember to use lambda only and exclusively if there are
no ( == NULL ) other options.
Using inheritance (thats what the mechanism is called), you can inherit functions, "default" behaviour from other classes. It is a common mechanism in programming and not exclusive to python.
It is used like any normal object except you have to call the constructor of the base class (what I do using tk.Frame.__init__(self, args, kwargs) inside the init method. For more information on inheritance please refer to the uncounted manuals and tutorials available for that topic (google is your friend now that you know what the mechanism is called).
Two separate issues have come up with my code
First, I can't get the fourth row of my grid to appear, although the fifth appears to be displaying just fine.
Secondly, my passVal function keeps giving me the error:
passVal() takes 1 positional argument but 2 were given
I've tried rearranging things and converting it to a string and nothing seems to work.
I figure there's a chance it's one thing causing the same issue since they're both centered around the same button but I'm not sure.
import tkinter
class AccountCreation:
def __init__(self):
self.main = tkinter.Tk()
self.main.title("Account Creation")
self.topleftLabel = tkinter.Label(text=" ")
self.topleftLabel.grid(row=1,column=1)
self.botrightLabel = tkinter.Label(text=" ")
self.botrightLabel.grid(row=5,column=5)
self.promptLabel = tkinter.Label(text="Create a password with at least nine (9)\n characters that contains at least one digit, \n one uppercase, and one lowercase letter.\n\n")
self.promptLabel.grid(row=2,column=2,columnspan=2)
self.passLabel = tkinter.Label(text="Password:")
self.passLabel.grid(row=3,column=2)
self.passEntry = tkinter.Entry(width = 18, justify='right')
self.passEntry.grid(row=3,column=3)
self.enterButton = tkinter.Button(text="Enter", \
command=self.passVal(self.passEntry.get()))
self.enterButton.grid(row=4,column=2)
self.cancelButton = tkinter.Button(text="Cancel", \
command=self.cancel)
self.cancelButton.grid(row=4,column=3)
tkinter.mainloop()
def passVal(pw):
if len(pw) < 9:
print ("no")
def cancel(self):
self.main.destroy()
my_gui = AccountCreation()
Aside from the indention issues you are having, all methods in a class you need to pass self as the first argument unless you are using special tags that can make it a stand alone function.
Change:
def passVal(pw):
To:
def passVal(self, pw):
You will also need to change the command on you Enter button to use lambda in order to prevent python from calling the passVal method on start up.
Change:
command=self.passVal(self.passEntry.get())
To:
command=lambda: self.passVal(self.passEntry.get())
You don't really need to use a lambda here or even pass the argument of self.passEntry.get(). You can get the value of the entry field in the passVal() method by use self.passEntry.get() instead of pw.
If you change this:
command=lambda: self.passVal(self.passEntry.get())
To this:
command=self.passVal
And this:
def passVal(self, pw):
if len(pw) < 9:
print ("no")
To this:
def passVal(self):
if len(self.passEntry.get()) < 9:
print ("no")
You program will work fine and you can avoid using a lambda in your command.
Note: You do not need to use labels as spacers. You can simple use padx and pady in your grid placement.
Take a look at the below code:
import tkinter
class AccountCreation:
def __init__(self):
self.main = tkinter.Tk()
self.main.title("Account Creation")
self.promptLabel = tkinter.Label(text="Create a password with at least nine (9)\n characters that contains at least one digit, \n one uppercase, and one lowercase letter.\n\n")
self.promptLabel.grid(row=2,column=2,columnspan=2,pady=(10,10))
self.passLabel = tkinter.Label(text="Password:")
self.passLabel.grid(row=3,column=2)
self.passEntry = tkinter.Entry(width = 18, justify='right')
self.passEntry.grid(row=3,column=3)
self.enterButton = tkinter.Button(text="Enter", \
command=self.passVal(self.passEntry.get()))
self.enterButton.grid(row=4,column=2)
self.cancelButton = tkinter.Button(text="Cancel", \
command=self.cancel)
self.cancelButton.grid(row=4,column=3,pady=(10,10))
tkinter.mainloop()
def passVal(self, pw):
if len(pw) < 9:
print ("no")
def cancel(self):
self.main.destroy()
my_gui = AccountCreation()
Notice that simple using pady=(10,10) we have put space at the top and bottom of the widget.
I'm working on a GUI for a project in school. All the buttons that I have in my GUI are bound with functions that I have created. These functions call for already predefined functions. For some of the predefined functions, I need one or two arguments and I have solved that with entries. I type in the arguments in the right entries that are connected to the specific button and when I press the button, the function will run with the corresponding arguments.
The thing I want to do is to in some way when I press a button, the function should be saved to a list instead of being executed right away. And when I push the "run" button(a new button that I will create) everything in my list will be executed. I have been thinking about using a list box but I don't know exactly how they work or if its even possible to run a list box that contains a number of functions. Does someone have any ideas or solutions for me? Can I use the list box for this or is there something else that is better to use?
class App:
def __init__(self, master):
frame = Frame(master)
frame.pack()
self.entry1 = IntVar()
self.entry2 = IntVar()
def do_something():
value1 = self.entry1.get()
value2 = self.entry2.get()
self.listbox.insert(END, "predefined_function(value1, value2)")
def run_listbox_contents():
pass
self.button = Button(frame, text="Move", command=lambda: do_something())
self.button.pack(side=TOP)
self.entry1.set("value1")
self.entry = Entry(frame, textvariable=self.entry1)
self.entry.pack(side=TOP)
self.entry2.set("value2")
self.entry = Entry(frame, textvariable=self.entry2)
self.entry.pack(side=TOP)
self.listbox = Listbox(master)
self.listbox.pack(side=TOP)
root = Tk()
app = App(root)
root.title("Mindstorms GUI")
root.geometry("800x1200")
root.mainloop()
root.destroy()
Just use a standard list.
something like this
def hest(txt):
print "hest: " +txt
def horse(txt):
print "horse: " + txt
funcList = []
funcList.append(hest)
funcList.append(horse)
for x in funcList:
x("Wow")
This outputs
hest: Wow
horse: Wow
Was this what you wanted?
If I were you, I wouldn't want to save functions to a list. I would suggest another solution for you.
I suppose you have heard of the principle of MVC (Model-View-Controller). In your case, the list box is a part of view, and the process that saves functions and then calls them at once is a part of controller. Separate them.
You might want to save and display any string in the list box to let the users know that the corresponding functions have been enlisted and ready to run. For example, save a string "Function1 aug1 aug2 aug3" or "Funtion2 aug1 aug2" or whatever you like as a handle of the corresponding function.
And for the controller part, write a function (let's say conductor()). It reads the handle strings from the list, parses them and calls the corresponding functions. Where you want to run the enlisted functions, there you just call conductor().
Update:
Due to your comment I understand that you are pretty new to program. Let me show you how to write a simplest parser with your given variable names.
def run_listbox():
to_do_list = #get the list of strings
for handle_string in to_do_list:
#Let's say you got
#handle_string = "Predfined_function1 value1 value2"
#by here
handle = handle_string.split(" ")
#Split the string by space, so you got
#handle = ["Predfined_function1", "value1", "value2"]
#by here
if handle[0] == "Predfined_function1":
Predfined_function1(handle[1], handle[2]) #Call Predfined_function1(value1, value2)
elif handle[0] == "Predfined_function2":
Predfined_function2(handle[1], handle[2])
#elif ...
#...
#elif ...
#...
#elif ...
#...
This is not a perfect parser, but I hope it could let you know what does a parser look like.