TypeError when awaiting synchronous _create_user method

[L235]

Description

I'm encountering a TypeError in the pydle library when running my IRC bot. The error occurs because the _create_user method, which is synchronous, is being called with await in asynchronous methods like _sync_user and _rename_user. This leads to an exception since you cannot await a non-coroutine function.

Error Details

Here is the traceback of the error:

TypeError: object NoneType can't be used in 'await' expression

This occurs when the bot receives certain IRC messages and attempts to handle user synchronization.

Code Snippets

From client.py:

def _create_user(self, nickname):
    # Servers are NOT users.
    if not nickname or '.' in nickname:
        return

    self.users[nickname] = {
        'nickname': nickname,
        'username': None,
        'realname': None,
        'hostname': None
    }

async def _sync_user(self, nick, metadata):
    # Create user in database.
    if nick not in self.users:
        await self._create_user(nick)  # <-- This causes the TypeError
        if nick not in self.users:
            return
    self.users[nick].update(metadata)

async def _rename_user(self, user, new):
    if user in self.users:
        self.users[new] = self.users[user]
        self.users[new]['nickname'] = new
        del self.users[user]
    else:
        await self._create_user(new)  # <-- This causes the TypeError
        if new not in self.users:
            return

    for ch in self.channels.values():
        # Rename user in channel list.
        if user in ch['users']:
            ch['users'].discard(user)
            ch['users'].add(new)

In the code above, _create_user is defined as a synchronous function using def, but it's being called with await in the asynchronous methods _sync_user and _rename_user. This mismatch leads to the TypeError.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Install pydle in a Python 3.9 environment.
2. Run an IRC bot that connects to a server and handles user joins and messages.
3. When the bot receives certain messages that trigger _sync_user or _rename_user, the error occurs.

Proposed Solutions

Option 1: Remove await from Calls to _create_user

Since _create_user is synchronous, it should not be awaited. Updating the methods as follows resolves the issue:

async def _sync_user(self, nick, metadata):
    if nick not in self.users:
        self._create_user(nick)  # Removed 'await'
        if nick not in self.users:
            return
    self.users[nick].update(metadata)

async def _rename_user(self, user, new):
    if user in self.users:
        self.users[new] = self.users[user]
        self.users[new]['nickname'] = new
        del self.users[user]
    else:
        self._create_user(new)  # Removed 'await'
        if new not in self.users:
            return

    for ch in self.channels.values():
        if user in ch['users']:
            ch['users'].discard(user)
            ch['users'].add(new)

Option 2: Make _create_user Asynchronous

Alternatively, if there is a need for _create_user to be asynchronous (e.g., future asynchronous operations), it can be defined as an async function:

async def _create_user(self, nickname):
    if not nickname or '.' in nickname:
        return

    self.users[nickname] = {
        'nickname': nickname,
        'username': None,
        'realname': None,
        'hostname': None
    }

However, this requires reviewing all calls to _create_user to ensure they are awaited appropriately.

Additional Information

• Python Version: 3.9
• Pydle Version: (Please specify the version you're using)
• Environment: Running in a miniconda3 environment

Request

Could the maintainers consider adjusting the method definitions or the calls to _create_user to ensure consistency between synchronous and asynchronous functions? This would prevent the TypeError and improve compatibility with asynchronous code.

(Issue largely written using OpenAI's o1-preview model.)