Beginner's Guide to Python

New to programming? Python is free and easy to learn if you know where to start! This guide will help you to get started quickly.

New to Python?

Read BeginnersGuide/Overview for a short explanation of what Python is.

Getting Python

Next, install the Python 3 interpreter on your computer. This is the program that reads Python programs and carries out their instructions; you need it before you can do any Python programming. Mac and Linux distributions may include an outdated version of Python (Python 2), but you should install an updated one (Python 3). See BeginnersGuide/Download for instructions to download the correct version of Python.

There are also Python interpreter and IDE bundles available, such as Thonny. Other options can be found at IntegratedDevelopmentEnvironments.

At some stage, you'll want to edit and save your program code. Take a look at HowToEditPythonCode for some advice and recommendations.

Some sites offer in-browser coding for those who want to learn Python:

• Codecademy

• Coding Bootcamps

• DataCamp

• Dataquest for Python for data science.

• HackInScience free and open source platform.

• High School Technology Services for general Python

Print a cheat sheet of the most important Python features and post it to your office wall until you know the basics well.

Once you have read a tutorial, you can browse through Python's online documentation. It includes a tutorial that might come in handy, a Library Reference that lists all of the modules that come standard with Python, and the Language Reference for a complete (if rather dry) explanation of Python's syntax.

When you are ready to write your first program, you will need a text editor or an IDE. If you don't want to use Thonny or something more advanced, then you can use IDLE, which is bundled with Python and supports extensions.