difference between variables inside and outside of __init__()

Question

Is there any difference at all between these classes besides the name?

class WithClass ():
    def __init__(self):
        self.value = "Bob"
    def my_func(self):
        print(self.value)

class WithoutClass ():
    value = "Bob"

    def my_func(self):
        print(self.value)

Does it make any difference if I use or don't use the __init__ method for declaring the variable value?

My main worry is that I'll be using it one way, when that'll cause me further problems down the road.

Answer 1

Variable set outside __init__ belong to the class. They're shared by all instances.

Variables created inside __init__ (and all other method functions) and prefaced with self. belong to the object instance.