title: Python 2.x return values for cmp
body: <p>Quoted from the <a href="http://docs.python.org/library/functions.html#cmp" rel="noreferrer">docs</a>:</p>
  <blockquote>
  <p><code>cmp(x, y)</code></p>
  <p>Compare the two objects x and y and return an integer according to the outcome. The return value is negative if <code>x &lt; y</code>, zero if <code>x == y</code> and strictly positive if <code>x &gt; y</code>.</p>
  </blockquote>
  <p>I was under the assumption that the return values are always <code>-1</code>, <code>0</code>, and <code>1</code> but the docs don't explicitly say that, only mentioning zero and positive/negative return value.</p>
  <p>Are there any situations when the return value of <code>cmp(x,y)</code> is not <code>-1</code>, <code>0</code>, or <code>1</code>?</p>