How Can I Schedule Recurring Functions in Python Efficiently?

Scheduling Recurring Functions in Python

In Python, you may want to execute a function repeatedly at specific intervals. This can be achieved using various approaches.

One simple method is using a while loop with time.sleep() to pause execution before re-running the function. However, this approach is not preferred because it does not leverage Python's event loop efficiently.

Using the sched Module

A more effective solution is to utilize the sched module, which provides a general-purpose event scheduler. It allows you to schedule tasks to run at future times.

The following code demonstrates how to use the sched module:

import sched, time

def do_something(scheduler):
    # schedule the next call first
    scheduler.enter(60, 1, do_something, (scheduler,))
    print("Doing stuff...")

my_scheduler = sched.scheduler(time.time, time.sleep)
my_scheduler.enter(60, 1, do_something, (my_scheduler,))
my_scheduler.run()

This code creates a scheduler, schedules a function do_something to be executed in 60 seconds, and repeatedly executes it thereafter.

Using Event Loop Libraries

If your application already uses an event loop library such as asyncio, trio, or tkinter, you can schedule tasks using its methods. For instance, in asyncio, you can use the create_task() method to schedule a function to run in the event loop.

By leveraging event loops, you ensure that your program remains responsive while scheduled tasks are executing. This approach is more efficient and recommended for most applications.

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