Python 3

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Introduction to Python

davidbpython.com

Introduction; Installations and Setup

class goals

learn Python Fundamentals from the ground up
learn practical skills that model what Python programmers do every day
get to know our new partner, the Python Interpreter
think like a coder: learn specific strategies for debugging

- hello and welcome! this is Python Programming - course is practically focused - all examples build towards practical skills - learn to think like a coder - important to pay close attention to how we solve problems - in fact, our main goal in this class is getting to know the Interpreter

about python

Python's popularity is due to its elegance and simplicity.

first released in 1991 by Guido van Rossum
most popular language in use today
designed to be readable, simple, and even beautiful
emphasis on explicitness, consistency and practicality
it is an elegant language -- usually only one way to do something

Guido points out that we spend much more time reading code than writing it

the zen of python

This is the manifesto of the Python language.

The Zen of Python, by Tim Peters Beautiful is better than ugly. Explicit is better than implicit. Simple is better than complex. Complex is better than complicated. Flat is better than nested. Sparse is better than dense. Readability counts. Special cases aren't special enough to break the rules. Although practicality beats purity. Errors should never pass silently. Unless explicitly silenced. In the face of ambiguity, refuse the temptation to guess. There should be one-- and preferably only one --obvious way to do it. Although that way may not be obvious at first unless you're Dutch. Now is better than never. Although never is often better than *right* now. If the implementation is hard to explain, it's a bad idea. If the implementation is easy to explain, it may be a good idea. Namespaces are one honking great idea -- let's do more of those!

about me: David Blaikie

I am dedicated to student success.

software developer, release engineer, teacher
worked in the IT industry since 1998
worked at Google, AppNexus and DoubleClick (advertising tech)
taught at New York University School of Profesional Studies since 2000
taught at NASA, U.S. Navy, Cisco, Inuit, Salesforce, and many others

about you: welcome!

Prior exposure to Python is helpful, but not required.

You do not have to know anything about Python or programming, but some personal qualities will be very helpful. These are "soft skills" that will benefit you greatly as you proceed:

being observant: considering carefully what you are seeing -- error messages and program output
curiosity: wondering why things work the way they do
patience: considering what you are seeing before trying your program again
thoughtfulness: realizing that you are discovering a system of logic that follows specific rules. Our most important work will be in discovering how Python responds in different situations
wisdom: seeing mistakes as a learning opportunity, and not something only to be avoided
taking ownership: an "owner" wants the language to work for themselves, not just to pass a test

thinking like a coder means keeping certain understandings in mind throughout this course and especially at the start, I will emphasize these skills

three technical requirements to write and run programs

If you already have an editor and Python installed, you do not need to add the editor or Python.

editor: VS Code (or you may use another editor if you are familiar with it)
python: miniconda Python distribution from Anaconda
class files: download from your course website, unzip

Please keep in mind that if you are already able to write and run Python programs, you only need to add the class files.

configuring VS Code

I personally feel that suggestions and popups are more of a distraction than a help.

VS Code, like most IDEs, tries to be helpful wherever it can
it may make suggestions about your code while you type
these suggestions may relate to your code's logic, style, or other aspects
VS Code and the IntelliSense plugin can be configured to be quieter
it is up to you how to set up your workspace and your IDE

To suppress some suggestions in VS Code: 1. go to your Settings (on Windows, File > Settings; on Mac, Code > Settings) 2. in the search blank, type 'suggestions' (no quotes) 3. check the 'Suppress Suggestions' box 4. set all three 'Quick Suggestions' to Value 'off' 5. you may also want to increase your font: search for 'Font' and set it to a higher number

the course materials

The zip file contains all files needed for our course exercises.

1. Please look for the file called python_data.zip in your course files. 2. Unzip the folder so that it has the following structure:

python_data/
├── 01/
│   ├── 1.1.py
│   ├── 1.2.py
│   ├── ..etc
│   ├── solutions/
├── 02
│   ├── 2.1.py
│   ├── 2.2.py
│   ├── ..etc
│   ├── solutions/
├── 03
├── 04
├── ..etc
├── 13
└── dir1

3. Place this folder in a location where you can find it 4. Later in this session we'll open and explore the folder.

[pr]