Chapter 2: Intro to python
What is Python?
Python is a popular programming language. It was created by Guido van
Rossum, and released in 1991.
It is used for:
Web development (server-side),
Software development,
Mathematics,
Machine learning.
What can Python do?
Python can be used on a server to create web applications.
Python can connect to database systems. It can also read and modify
files.
Python can be used to handle big data and perform complex
mathematics.
Why Python?
Python works on different platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, etc.).
Python has a simple syntax similar to the English language.
Python has syntax that allows developers to write programs with few
lines.
Python runs on an interpreter system, meaning that code can be
executed fast as soon as it is written.
Python can be treated in a procedural way, an object-oriented way
or a functional way.
Python Syntax compared to other programming languages
1. Python was designed for readability, and has some similarities to the
English language with influence from mathematics.
2. Python uses new lines to complete a command, as opposed to other
programming languages which often use semicolons or parentheses.
3. Python relies on indentation, using whitespace, to define scope; such
as the scope of loops, functions and classes. Other programming
languages often use curly-brackets for this purpose.
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1. Python Indentation
Indentation refers to the spaces at the beginning of a code line. Where in
other programming languages the indentation in code is for readability
only, the indentation in Python is very important.
Python uses indentation to indicate a block of code.
if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")
if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!") #error
The number of spaces is up to programmer, the most common use is
four, but it has to be at least one.
if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")
if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")
if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")
print("Five is greater than two!") #Syntax Error
print() method
print("test") same as print(‘test’)
print(2024)
print(5+6)
print("a", "b", "c", sep="|")
print(10*"test\n")
print("a" + 5), print("a", 5) or print("a" + str(5))
input
name = input("Enter name: ")
print("hello" + name)
or
print("Enter name")
name = str(input())
print("hello" + name)
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2. Python Variables
In Python, variables are created when you assign a value to it:
x = 5
y = "Hello, World!"
Python has no command for declaring a variable. A variable is created the
moment you first assign a value to it.
x = 5
y = "Jo"
print(x, y)
x = 4 # x is of type int
x = "Jo" # x is now of type str
print(x)
Casting
If you want to specify the data type of a variable, this can be done with
casting.
x = str(3) # x will be '3'
y = int('3') # y will be 3
z = float('3') # z will be 3.0
Get the Type
You can get the data type of a variable with the type() function.
x = 5
y = "Jo"
print(type(x)) # int
print(type(y)) # str
String variables can be declared either by using single or double quotes:
x = "Jo"
# is the same as
x = 'Jo'
Variable names are case-sensitive.
a = 4
A = "Sally" # A will not overwrite a
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3. Variable Names
A variable can have a short name (like x and y) or a more descriptive name
(age, carname, total_volume). Rules for Python variables:
A variable name must start with a letter or the underscore character
A variable name cannot start with a number
A variable name can only contain alpha-numeric characters and
underscores (A-z, 0-9, and _ )
Variable names are case-sensitive (age, Age and AGE are three
different variables)
A variable name cannot be any of the Python keywords listed below.
Keyword Description
and A logical operator
as To create an alias
assert For debugging
break To break out of a loop
class To define a class
continue To continue to the next iteration of a loop
def To define a function
del To delete an object
elif Used in conditional statements, same as else if
else Used in conditional statements
except Used with exceptions, what to do when an exception
occurs
False Boolean value, result of comparison operations
finally Used with exceptions, a block of code that will be
executed no matter if there is an exception or not
for To create a for loop
from To import specific parts of a module
global To declare a global variable
if To make a conditional statement
import To import a module
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in To check if a value is present in a list, tuple, etc.
is To test if two variables are equal
lambda To create an anonymous function
None Represents a null value
nonlocal To declare a non-local variable
not A logical operator
or A logical operator
pass A null statement, a statement that will do nothing
raise To raise an exception
return To exit a function and return a value
True Boolean value, result of comparison operations
try To make a try...except statement
while To create a while loop
with Used to simplify exception handling
yield To end a function, returns a generator
Legal variable names:
myvar = "Jo"
my_var = "Jo"
_my_var = "Jo"
MYVAR = "Jo"
myvar2 = "Jo"
Illegal variable names:
2myvar = "Jo"
my-var = "Jo"
my var = "Jo"
Many Values to Multiple Variables
Python allows you to assign values to multiple variables in one line:
x, y, z = "Orange", "Banana", "Cherry"
print(x)
print(y)
print(z)
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One Value to Multiple Variables
And you can assign the same value to multiple variables in one line:
x = y = z = "Orange"
print(x, y, z, sep="+") #Orange+ Orange+ Orange
Unpack a Collection
If you have a collection of values in a list, tuple etc. Python allows you to
extract the values into variables. This is called unpacking.
fruits = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]
x, y, z = fruits
print(x)
print(y)
print(z)
Output Variables
The Python print() function is often used to output variables.
x = "Python is awesome"
print(x)
In the print() function, you output multiple variables, separated by a
comma:
x = 'Python'
y = 'is easy'
print(x, y) # add space between variables by default
print(x + y) # no space between variables
You can also use the + operator to output multiple variables having same
type. For numbers, the + character works as a mathematical operator:
x, y = 5, 10
print(x + y)
In the print() function, when you try to combine a string and a number
with the + operator, Python will give you an error:
x = 5
y = ”John”
print(x + y) #error
# or you can make both variables as same type
print(str(x) + ' ' + y)
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The best way to output multiple variables in the print() function is to
separate them with commas, which even support different data types:
x = 5
y = ”John”
print(x, y)
Global Variables
Variables that are created outside of a function (as in all of the examples
above) are known as global variables.
Global variables can be used by everyone, both inside of functions and
outside.
x = ”easy”
def display():
print(“Python is “ + x)
display()
display()
If you create a variable with the same name inside a function, this variable
will be local, and can only be used inside the function. The global variable
with the same name will remain as it was global and with the original value.
x = ”awesome”
def display():
x = ”fantastic”
print(“Python is “ + x)
display()
print(“Python is “ + x)
The global Keyword
Normally, when you create a variable inside a function, that variable is
local, and can only be used inside that function.
To create a global variable inside a function, you can use global keyword.
def display():
global x
x = ”fantastic”
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display()
print(“Python is “ + x)
Also, use global keyword if you want to change a global variable inside a
function.
x = ”awesome”
def display():
global x
x = ”fantastic”
display()
print(“Python is “ + x)
4. Comments
Python has commenting capability for the purpose of in-code
documentation. Comments can be used to explain Python code and to make
the code more readable. Comments can be used to prevent execution when
testing code.
Comments start with a #, and Python will render the rest of the line as a
comment:
# This is a comment.
print(“Hello, World!”)
print(“Hello, World!”) # This is a comment
# This is a comment written in
# more than just one line
print(“Hello, World!”)
“““
This is a comment written in
more than just one line
“““
print(“Hello, World!”)
