Python 2.7 While Loop Issue

Question

I am trying to write a code for a text based chat-bot as my first full scale project and I am having a weird problem with while loops that I can't figure out. My primary loop is dependent on text input, what is supposed to happen is when the user types "bye" the program ends. The only problem is when I run it, no matter what I say to it, it just prints out the same response over and over until I hit cntrl.+c or close the window. Here is the code: import datetime

print("Hi I am ChatBot V 0.0.1. I am here to converse. ")

user_name=raw_input("What is your name?")

print("Hello " + user_name + "!")

user_input=raw_input().lower().replace(" ","").replace("?","")

is_user_finished=0

while (is_user_finished == 0):

if user_input == "hi" or "hello":
    print("Hello. How are you?")

elif user_input == "whatisyourname":
    print("I do not have a name at the moment. What do you think I should be named?")
    user_input=raw_input().lower().replace(" ","").replace("?","")
    print("Good choice! I like that name!")

elif "where" and "you" in user_input:
    print("I was typed up by some kid in California")



else:
    print("I do not currently understand what you said. Sorry.")

if user_input == "bye":
    print("Good bye. It was nice talking to you!")
    is_user_finished = 1

Answer 1

What happens is that the line

if user_input == "hi" or "hello":

don't do what you think. Instead, you should do

if user_input == "hi" or user_input == "hello":

or even, in a more compact way:

if user_input in ["hi","hello"]:

Something similar happens with the line

elif "where" and "you" in user_input:

which should be

elif "where" in user_input and "you" in user_input:

Answer 2

syntax issue.

the correct form should be : if A == B or A == C, instead of A == B or C, which is incorrect.

Answer 3

You should change the line

if user_input == "hi" or "hello": to if user_input == "hi" or user_input == "hello":

and

"where" and "you" in user_input: to "where" in user_input and "you" in user_input: ,
because "hello" and "where" is always True .

Besides you should put user_input=raw_input().lower().replace(" ","").replace("?","") into the while loop.

Answer 4

Provided you have proper indentation, which if the loop keeps running I assume you do, the problem, besides the things pointed out above about proper use of compound if statements is you need to add a "break" to the "bye" case.

if user_input == "bye":
    print("Good bye. It was nice talking to you!")
    is_user_finished = 1
    break