Python resources

Tutorials and guides

If you would like to get a taste of Python get started with this tutorial (included in the official documentation) which is very straight forward and does not presume any previous knowledge of the language. However, it is recommended to have at least Python installed (see next section).

Anothe way to get started from zero is the Beginner’s Guide to Python.

Python on Windows

Although Python runs on Windows with no problems, sometimes it’s difficult to get started in this OS because of some small details that interfere with what whould be a smooth process on a *Nix system.

Syntax (e.g. path delimiters), permissions, end-of-line character, etc, can stop the user from doing what he should be doing, i.e. learning the language, instead of dealing with Windows annoyances (for more information on this topic, go to annoyances.org).

That’s why there is a special section on the Python documentation called Python on Windows FAQ. So, if you are having issues with Python stuff on a Windows OS, go read that FAQ.

Python(x,y)

Python(x,y) is a free Python distribution providing a ready-to-use scientific development software for numerical computations, data analysis and data visualization based on Python programming language, Qt graphical user interfaces (and development framework) and Spyder interactive development environment. Its purpose is to help scientific programmers used to interpreted languages (such as MATLAB or IDL) or compiled languages (C/C++ or Fortran) to switch to Python.

It is very popular for Windows, but there is a GNU/Linux version too.

Python installation

To have Python installed means you have installed a Python interpreter. In a UNIX-like system (e.g. GNU-Linux, Mac OS, etc) you probably won’t need to because it is often included in the base installation. On Microsoft Windows, however, it is not so you won’t have it unless it was a dependency for some software (e.g. GIMP). Curious about that? Go read Why is Python Installed on my Computer? FAQ

Online interpreters/shells

If you can’t or don’t want to install Python, you can resort to online interpreters made available by some generous or commercial efforts. Here are free alternatives:

  • The repl.it project is an attempt to create an online environment for interactively exploring programming languages. It provides a fully-featured terminal emulator and code editor, powered by interpreter engines for more than 15 languages. All our interpreters are written in (or compiled to) JavaScript, and run completely on the user’s device, regardless or whether it’s a desktop, laptop or phone.
  • PythonAnywhere is a Python development and hosting environment that displays in your web browser and runs on our servers. They’re already set up with everything you need. It’s easy to use, fast, and powerful. There’s even a useful free plan.
  • Try IPython from your browser! IPython is an enhanced interactive Python interpreter, offering tab completion, object introspection, and much more. It’s running on the right-hand side of this page, so you can try it out right now.
  • codepad is an online compiler/interpreter, and a simple collaboration tool.
  • Interactive server-side Python (2.5.2) shell for Google App Engine
  • Ideone is something more than a pastebin; it’s an online compiler and debugging tool which allows to compile and run code online in more than 40 programming languages.
  • http://mathcs.holycross.edu/~kwalsh/python/
  • http://people.csail.mit.edu/pgbovine/python/
  • http://www.trypython.org/ requires Microsoft Silverlight :(

Other

http://www.rackspace.com/knowledge_center/web-resources/top-50-resources-for-programming-web-applications-with-python
Python is a general purpose, object-oriented programming language that has achieved popularity because of its readability and clear syntax. Guido van Rossum created Python in late 1980s. It is a ‘high level’ scripting language used by most programmers for its simplicity of use. Python can be written once and run on any computer. It’s a ‘multi paradigm programming language’ compatible with many other programming languages such as .NET, CORBA, Java, Perl.

Dave Kuhlman’s page. Open Source software projects by Dave Kuhlman.

These projects are implemented in or for Python. These projects center around XML, parsing XML, etc. They provide tools for building data mapping and Web services. Keywords are: python, xml, editor, text processing, python training.
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