Interact with the Directory Structure
To find files and interact with them on a system, you need to work with the directory structure. This means working with the structure using Python-specific calls so that your code works on every platform [more…]
Use Named Arguments in Format Strings
Format strings are incredibly flexible in Python. You can use them to perform all sorts of output tricks by using the correct formatting features. In addition, format strings offer a number of ways to [more…]
Combining Functions and Repetitive Tasks
After you have understood the basic pieces of a language, it's time to start putting them together in interesting ways. For example, you can create a function that can perform tasks repetitively. The goal [more…]
10 Major Uses of Python
Many organizations are using Python these days to perform major tasks. You don't necessarily hear about them because organizations are usually reserved about giving out their trade secrets. However, Python [more…]
8 Common Python Programming Errors
Every developer on the planet makes mistakes. However, knowing about common mistakes will save you time and effort later. The following list tells you about the most common errors that developers experience [more…]
Commonly Used Operators with Python
It's important to know which operators Python supports, and remembering them all is not always easy. The following table provides a quick summary of commonly used operators with Python. [more…]
Python Operator Precedence
When you create simple statements that contain just one operator, the order of determining the output of that operator is also simple. However, when you start working with multiple operators, you need [more…]
Beginning Programming with Python For Dummies Cheat Sheet
Python is an incredibly flexible programming language that has significant third-party support and is used in a broad range of applications. The applications you build will run on any platform that Python [more…]
How to Handle More Specific to Less Specific Exceptions in Python
One strategy for handling exceptions in Python is to provide specific except clauses for all known exceptions and generic except clauses to handle unknown exceptions. Check out the [more…]
10 Libraries Python Programmers Need to Know About
Python provides you with considerable power when it comes to creating average applications. However, most applications require some sort of special processing to make them work. That’s where libraries [more…]
10 Interesting Tools for Python Programming
Python, like most other programming languages, has strong third-party support in the form of various tools. A tool is any utility that enhances the natural capabilities of Python when building an application [more…]
10 Ways to Make a Living with Python
Python excels at certain kinds of tasks, which means that it also lends itself to certain types of programming. The kind of programming you can perform determines the job you get and the way in which you [more…]
10 Amazing Python Programming Resources
You probably have a great start to your Python programming experience, but you’ll want additional resources at some point. Here are ten amazing programming resources that you can use to make your development [more…]
How to Install Python on a Windows System
The Python installation process on a Windows system follows the same procedure that you use for other application types. The main difference is in finding the file you downloaded so that you can begin [more…]
How to Install Python on a Mac
Your Mac system likely already has Python installed on it. However, this installation is normally a few years old — or whatever the age of your system happens to be. You won’t be testing the limits of [more…]
How to Install Python on a Linux System
Some versions of Linux come with Python installed. For example, if you have a Red Hat Package Manager (RPM)-based distribution (such as SUSE, Red Hat, Yellow Dog, Fedora Core, and CentOS), you likely already [more…]
How to Start IDLE in Python
You find IDLE in the Python 3.3 folder on your system as IDLE (Python GUI). When you click or double-click this entry (depending on your platform), you see the IDLE editor. The two lines of text contain [more…]
How to Create Your First Python Application
It’s time to create your first Python application. Your initial Python Shell window won’t work for creating an application, so you can begin by creating a new Edit window for the application. You’ll type [more…]
How to Use Indentation in Python Programming
As you work through examples of Python programming, you see that certain lines are indented. In fact, you will also see a fair amount of white space (such as extra lines between lines of code). Python [more…]
Controlling How Python Views Data
You may find yourself needing to control how Python views data. All data on your computer is stored as 0s and 1s. The computer doesn’t understand the concept of letters, Boolean values, dates, times, or [more…]
How to Define a Function in Python
Creating a function doesn’t require much work. Python tends to make things fast and easy for you. The following steps show you the process of creating a function that you can later access: [more…]
How to Return Information from Functions in Python
Functions can display data directly in Python or they can return the data to the caller so that the caller can do something more with it. In some cases, a function displays data directly as well as returns [more…]
How to Get User Input for Your Python Application
Very few applications exist in their own world — that is, apart from the user. This applies to Python applications as well. In fact, most applications interact with users in a major way because computers [more…]
How to Use the if Statement in a Python Application
It is possible to use the if statement in a number of ways in a Python application. However, you immediately need to know about three common ways to use it: [more…]
How to Use the if...else Statement in a Python Application
Even entering data of the wrong type produces an error message in Python, but entering the correct type of data outside the range tells the user nothing. In this example, you discover the means for correcting [more…]
