docstring for data_objects.get

Author: d-w-moore

irods/manager/data_object_manager.py

@@ -267,10 +267,30 @@ def get(self,
         replica_sort_function = None,
         **options):
         """
-        Get a reference to the data object at the specified `path'.
-
-        Only download the object if the local_path is a string (specifying
-        a path in the local filesystem to use as a destination file).
+        Create an iRODSDataObject instance that in effect represents the data object at the specified path.
+        If local_path is not None, use it as a local filename to which the content of the data object will be
+        downloaded.
+
+        Args:
+            path: an absolute logical path where the data object may be found.
+            local_path: a filename within the local filesystem, the target of a download ("GET") if one is
+                requested.  Directory components in the path must already exist.
+            num_threads: in the case of a parallel data transfer (for large files), specifies how many transfer
+                control threads should be used.
+            updatables: a tuple or list in which each element is a tqdm-like progress bar object, or the equivalent:
+                an instance on which func.update(n) can be called with n being the number of bytes successfully
+                copied in the the data transfer increment just completed.  If not a tuple or list, this argument
+                is interpreted as a single updatable.
+            replica_sort_function: a sort key function dictating the order of replica query results in 'self.replicas'
+            **options: keyword arguments to be passed onto the _download function;  A combination of possible options
+                to be relayed to the iRODS data object open() call.
+
+        Returns:
+            an iRODSDataObject representing the object at the given path.
+
+        Raises:
+            DataObjectDoesNotExist: if the specified path does not exist, or exists as a collection rather than a data
+                object.
         """
         parent = self.sess.collections.get(irods_dirname(path))