Shortly after I started writing, a friend asked me if there really was a need of another Learning Python book.
An excellent question that we could also express in another form: What has this book to offer? What makes this book different from the average introductory book on Python?
I think there are two main differences and many good reasons why you would want to read it.
Firstly, we start with introducing some important programming concepts. We build a solid foundation by covering the critical aspects of this wonderful language.
The pace gradually increases, along with the difficulty of the subjects presented. By the end of Chapter 7, Testing, Profiling, and Dealing with Exceptions, we will cover all the fundamentals.
From Chapter 8, The Edges – GUIs and Scripts, onward, the book takes a steep turn, which brings us to difference number two.
To consolidate the knowledge acquired, there is nothing like working on a small project. So, in the second part of the book, each chapter delivers a project on a different subject. We explore scripting, graphical interfaces, data science, and web programming.
Each project is small enough to fit within a chapter and yet big enough to be relevant. Each chapter is interesting, conveys a message, and teaches something valuable.
After a short section on debugging, the book ends with a complete example that wraps things up. I tried to craft it so that you will be able to expand it in several ways.
So, this is definitely not the usual Learning Python book. Its approach is much more "hands-on" and practical.
I wanted to empower you to help you become a true Python ninja. But I also did my best to entertain you and foster your logical thinking and creativity along the way.
Now, have I answered the question?
Chapter 1, Introduction and First Steps – Take a Deep Breath, introduces you to fundamental programming concepts. It guides you to getting Python up and running on your computer and introduces you to some of its constructs.
Chapter 2, Built-in Data Types, introduces you to Python built-in data types. Python has a very rich set of native data types and this chapter will give you a description and a short example for each of them.
Chapter 3, Iterating and Making Decisions, teaches you how to control the flow of your code by inspecting conditions, applying logic, and performing loops.
Chapter 4, Functions, the Building Blocks of Code, teaches you how to write functions. Functions are the keys to reusing code, to reducing debugging time, and in general, to writing better code.
Chapter 5, Saving Time and Memory, introduces you to the functional aspects of Python programming. This chapter teaches you how to write comprehensions and generators, which are powerful tools that you can use to speed up your code and save memory.
Chapter 6, Advanced Concepts – OOP, Decorators, and Iterators, teaches you the basics of object-oriented programming with Python. It shows you the key concepts and all the potentials of this paradigm. It also shows you one of the most beloved characteristics of Python: decorators. Finally, it also covers the concept of iterators.
Chapter 7, Testing, Profiling, and Dealing with Exceptions, teaches you how to make your code more robust, fast, and stable using techniques such as testing and profiling. It also formally defines the concept of exceptions.
Chapter 8, The Edges – GUIs and Scripts, guides you through an example from two different points of view. They are at the extremities of a spectrum: one implementation is a script and the other one a proper graphical user interface application.
Chapter 9, Data Science, introduces a few key concepts and a very special tool, the Jupyter Notebook.
Chapter 10, Web Development Done Right, introduces the fundamentals of web development and delivers a project using the Django web framework. The example will be based on regular expressions.
Chapter 11, Debugging and Troubleshooting, shows you the main methods to debug your code and some examples on how to apply them.
Chapter 12, Summing Up – A Complete Example, presents a Django website that acts as an interface to an underlying slim API written with the Falcon web framework. This chapter takes all the concepts covered in the book to the next level and suggests where to go to dig deeper and take the next steps.
You are encouraged to follow the examples in this book. In order to do so, you will need a computer, an Internet connection, and a browser. The book is written in Python 3.4, but it should also work with any Python 3.* version. I have written instructions on how to install Python on the three main operating systems used today: Windows, Mac, and Linux. I have also explained how to install all the extra libraries used in the various examples and provided suggestions if the reader finds any issues during the installation of any of them. No particular editor is required to type the code; however, I suggest that those who are interested in following the examples should consider adopting a proper coding environment. I have given suggestions on this matter in the first chapter.
Python is the most popular introductory teaching language in the top computer science universities in the US, so if you are new to software development or if you have little experience and would like to start off on the right foot, then this language and this book are what you need. Its amazing design and portability will help you become productive regardless of the environment you choose to work with.
If you have already worked with Python or any other language, this book can still be useful to you both as a reference to Python's fundamentals and to provide a wide range of considerations and suggestions collected over two decades of experience.
In this book, you will find a number of text styles that distinguish between different kinds of information. Here are some examples of these styles and an explanation of their meaning.
Code words in text, database table names, folder names, filenames, file extensions, pathnames, dummy URLs, user input, and Twitter handles are shown as follows: "Open up a Python console, and type import this."
A block of code is set as follows:
# we define a function, called local
def local():
m = 7
print(m)
m = 5
print(m)When we wish to draw your attention to a particular part of a code block, the relevant lines or items are set in bold:
# we define a function, called local
def local():
m = 7
print(m)
m = 5
print(m)Any command-line input or output is written as follows:
>>> from math import factorial >>> factorial(5) 120
New terms and important words are shown in bold. Words that you see on the screen, for example, in menus or dialog boxes, appear in the text like this: "To open the console on Windows, go to the Start menu, choose Run, and type cmd."
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