title: Python: regex vs find(), strip()
body: <p>I am learning Python, and need to format "From" fields received from IMAP. I tried it using <code>str.find()</code> and <code>str.strip()</code>, and also using regex. With find(), etc. my function runs quite a bit faster than with re (I timed it). So, when <em>is</em> it better to use re? Does anybody have any good links/articles related to that? Python documentation obviously doesn't mention that...</p>