This page provides basic walkthroughs and tutorials for the programing language Python.

We do not cover all aspects of programming in Python. We provide some starting points and expect you find more. We recommend [Wentworth2012] as your main teaching material. The more advanced book [Pilgrim2009] may perhaps be more interesting for experienced programmers

If you are using Linux, Python is most likely already installed. Otherwise, install it using your SW manager (like Synaptic). Python is also quite likely to be already installed in Mac OS X. Try running terminal and write which python. In the case of MS Windows, it will not be installed. You will have to install it.

In a terminal window (Linux or OSX) you can check:

[182] python3.2
Python 3.2.2 (default, Mar 15 2012, 17:46:27) 
[GCC 4.5.3] on linux2
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> 

We will use the 3.2.x version. Python 3 is not fully compatible with Python 2.x. There is a code converter which makes the possible transition easier. Many important libraries have been already ported to Python 3.

For Python, there are many freely available online documents and books. Use them, google them, find your own. We expect that experienced programmers will find their way. For beginners we have few recommendations:

• Python for Software Design, How to think like a computer scientist [Downey2009]. Non-traditional and interesting book, easy to read. Helpful especially for someone with no or very little previous programming experience. Updated (to Python3) version is [Wentworth2012].

• *Dive Into Python, [Pilgrim2009] is rather for advanced programmers.

• Python Style Guide. How to name modules, variables, classes and functions, how to write comments and so on.

• Python Debugger is nice introduction into Python debugging for beginners.

• An Introduction to Tkinter overview of the Tkinter - library for GUI and graphical output. We will not use it but you may want to play.

• Google's Python Class

• MS Windows quick guide for setting up your IDE (DrPython or IDLE) under MS Windows.
• Work with files quick introduction to working with File Systems in Python.
• FAQ Problems which, according to our experience are quite common. We continuously update the list.