@Marvin Please explain the differences, pros, and cons of using .map or .submit

Let's dive into the great Prefect debate of

.map

vs

.submit

, shall we? ###

.submit

When you use

.submit()

, you're asking Prefect to send a particular task to a task runner. It's a bit like handing your laundry to a robot and expecting it back all fresh and clean. The task runner then creates a

PrefectFuture

, which allows you to access the state and result of the task. This future ensures that the downstream tasks won't start until the upstream tasks are fully completed and their results are available. This behavior is crucial for maintaining the correct sequence and flow of data across tasks. For a closer look, you can visit the task runners documentation. ### Pros of

.submit

- Provides precise control over task execution. - Allows handling dependencies explicitly with futures. - Suitable for scenarios requiring task results prior to subsequent operations. ### Cons of

.submit

- Can introduce more complexity in managing individual task executions. - May involve more boilerplate code to handle futures when compared to

.map

. ###

.map

The

.map()

function is ideal for when you have a single task that needs to be executed multiple times, for instance, iterating over a list of files to process them. It's akin to having an entire fleet of laundry robots—efficient, parallel, and hands-free. While I couldn't retrieve specific technical details from the Prefect 3.x docs regarding

.map

, it's commonly understood that

.map()

is used for simpler, bulk parallel operations without the need for explicit handling of task results between tasks. ### Pros of

.map

- Easy to parallelize operations over lists or iterable objects. - Less boilerplate compared to

.submit

. - More intuitive for simple batch processing. ### Cons of

.map

- Less control over individual task execution and dependencies. - Not ideal for scenarios requiring detailed handling of task outputs before proceeding. If your requirements fit the Prefect 2.x or ControlFlow environment particularly, feel free to ask for more context-specific advice! Meanwhile, enjoy treating yourself to the robotic laundry of task management with Prefect.

I am using Prefect 2.x! Does that change your answer?