[python] python: How do I know what type of exception occurred?

Here's how I'm handling my exceptions. The idea is to do try solving the issue if that's easy, and later add a more desirable solution if possible. Don't solve the issue in the code that generates the exception, or that code loses track of the original algorithm, which should be written to-the-point. However, pass what data is needed to solve the issue, and return a lambda just in case you can't solve the problem outside of the code that generates it.

path = 'app.p'

def load():
    if os.path.exists(path):
        try:
            with open(path, 'rb') as file:
                data = file.read()
                inst = pickle.load(data)
        except Exception as e:
            inst = solve(e, 'load app data', easy=lambda: App(), path=path)()
    else:
        inst = App()
    inst.loadWidgets()

# e.g. A solver could search for app data if desc='load app data'
def solve(e, during, easy, **kwargs):
    class_name = e.__class__.__name__
    print(class_name + ': ' + str(e))
    print('\t during: ' + during)
    return easy

For now, since I don't want to think tangentially to my app's purpose, I haven't added any complicated solutions. But in the future, when I know more about possible solutions (since the app is designed more), I could add in a dictionary of solutions indexed by during.

In the example shown, one solution might be to look for app data stored somewhere else, say if the 'app.p' file got deleted by mistake.

For now, since writing the exception handler is not a smart idea (we don't know the best ways to solve it yet, because the app design will evolve), we simply return the easy fix which is to act like we're running the app for the first time (in this case).