What is Python?
Python is a popular programming language. It was created by Guido van
Rossum, and released in 1991.
It is used for:
web development (server-side),
software development,
mathematics,
system scripting.
What can Python do?
Python can be used on a server to create web applications.
Python can be used alongside software to create workflows.
Python can connect to database systems. It can also read and modify
files.
Python can be used to handle big data and perform complex
mathematics.
Python can be used for rapid prototyping, or for production-ready
software development.
Why Python?
Python works on different platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, Raspberry
Pi, etc).
Python has a simple syntax similar to the English language.
Python has syntax that allows developers to write programs with fewer
lines than some other programming languages.
Python runs on an interpreter system, meaning that code can be
executed as soon as it is written. This means that prototyping can be
very quick.
Python can be treated in a procedural way, an object-oriented way or a
functional way.
Good to know
The most recent major version of Python is Python 3, which we shall be
using in this tutorial.
In this tutorial Python will be written in a text editor. It is possible to
write Python in an Integrated Development Environment, such as
Thonny, Pycharm, Netbeans or Eclipse which are particularly useful
when managing larger collections of Python files.
Python Syntax compared to other programming
languages
Python was designed for readability, and has some similarities to the
English language with influence from mathematics.
Python uses new lines to complete a command, as opposed to other
programming languages which often use semicolons or parentheses.
Python relies on indentation, using whitespace, to define scope; such
as the scope of loops, functions and classes. Other programming
languages often use curly-brackets for this purpose.
Example
print("Hello, World!")
Python Install
However, if you want to run Python on your own computer, follow the instructions below.
Many Windows PCs and Mac computers already have Python pre-installed.
To check if Python is installed on Windows, search in the start bar for Python or run the
following on the Command Line ([Link]):
C:\Users\Your Name>python --version
To check if you have python installed on a Linux or Mac, then on linux open the command
line or on Mac open the Terminal and type:
python --version
If Python is not installed on your computer, you can download it for free from the official
website: [Link]
Python Quickstart
Python is an interpreted programming language, this means that as a developer you write
Python (.py) files in a text editor and then put those files into the python interpreter to be
executed.
Let's write our first Python file, called [Link], which can be done in any text editor:
[Link]:
print("Hello, World!")
Simple as that. Save your file. Open your command line, navigate to the directory where you
saved your file, and run:
C:\Users\Your Name>python [Link]
The output should be:
Hello, World!
Congratulations, you have written and executed your first Python program.
Python Version
To check the Python version of the editor, you can find it by importing the sys module:
Example
Check the Python version of the editor:
import sys
print([Link])
The Python Command Line
To test a short amount of code in python sometimes it is quickest and easiest not to write
the code in a file. This is made possible because Python can be run as a command line itself.
Type the following on the Windows, Mac or Linux command line:
C:\Users\Your Name>python
Or, if the "python" command did not work, you can try "py":
C:\Users\Your Name>py
From there you can write any python code, including our hello world example from earlier in
the tutorial:
C:\Users\Your Name>python
Python 3.6.4 (v3.6.4:d48eceb, Dec 19 2017, 06:04:45) [MSC v.1900 32 bit (Intel)]
on win32
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> print("Hello, World!")
Which will write "Hello, World!" in the command line:
C:\Users\Your Name>python
Python 3.6.4 (v3.6.4:d48eceb, Dec 19 2017, 06:04:45) [MSC v.1900 32 bit (Intel)]
on win32
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> print("Hello, World!")
Hello, World!
Whenever you are done in the python command line, you can simply type the following to
quit the python command line interface:
exit()