Get Python class by name

gistfile1.py

def get_class(name):
    # Reflection: try to get the exception class

    # Try to split the name on dots,
    # in case it contains a module path
    parts = name.split('.')

    if len(parts) == 1:
        # If it didn't have a module path,
        # try loading the class from built-ins
        try:
            m = __import__('builtins')
        except ImportError:
            m = __import__('__builtin__')

        m = getattr(m, parts[0])

    else:
        # If it did have a module path,
        # load the module and then get the class
        module = ".".join(parts[:-1])
        m = __import__(module)

        for comp in parts[1:]:
            m = getattr(m, comp)            

    return m

Thanks, that was a great tip for my task.