What is Python?
The Python is more powerful language which offer great tools for data crunching and preparation, as well as for complex scientific data analysis and modelling. Python is a popular programming language. It was created by Guido van Rossum, and released in 1991. It is basically used for:
- web application development (server-side),
- software development,
- mathematics,
- system scripting.
Python Interpreter:
- The python is an interpreted language and hence it is very popular among other languages.
- The Python interpreter is usually installed as /usr/local/bin/python3.9 on those machines where it is available;
- Putting /usr/local/bin in your Unix shell’s search path makes it possible to start it by typing the command:
python3.9 - On Windows machines the python3.9 command will be available where you have installed Python. If you have the py.exe launcher installed, you can use the py command also.
- The interpreter is also used for Argument Passing and Interactive Mode of operations.
Python Installation
- We can install Python on our Windows server or local machine in just a few easy steps as mentioned below.
- Select Version of Python to Install. The installation procedure involves downloading the official Python .exe installer and running it on your system. The version you need depends on what you want to do in Python. But I recommend you to download both the latest version of Python 2 and 3.
- Download Python Executable Installer. Open your web browser and navigate to the Downloads for Windows section of the official
- Python website. Search for your desired version of Python. Select a link to download either the Windows x86-64 executable installer or Windows x86 executable installer.
- Run Executable Installer.
- The next dialog will prompt you to select whether to Disable path length limit. Choosing this option will allow Python to bypass the 260-character MAX_PATH limit.
- Verify Python Was Installed on Your system or not.
Python Installation For Windows
To install the Python on windows we need to have the same installation process as we have discussed above but after that we need to verify that whether the python has properly install or not in the system. To verify the installation we need to do the following.
- Navigate to the directory in which Python was installed on the system. In our case, it is
- C:\Users\Username\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python37 since we have installed the latest version.
- Double-click python.exe.
- The output should be similar
- Now we need to check and verify that whether the Pip is installed or not. The Pip is a powerful package management system for Python software packages. But If you opted to install an older version of Python, it is possible that it did not come with Pip preinstalled.
To verify whether Pip was installed:
- Open the Start menu and type “cmd.”
- Select the Command Prompt application.
- Enter pip -V in the console. If Pip was installed successfully, you should see the following output:
Python Installation For Linux:
- First, install development packages required to build Python.
- On Debian we need to do the following:
- $ sudo apt update
- $ sudo apt install build-essential zlib1g-dev \
- libncurses5-dev libgdbm-dev libnss3-dev \
- libssl-dev libreadline-dev libffi-dev curl
- On Fedora we need to do the following.
- $ sudo dnfgroupinstall development
- Download the stable latest release of Python. Here Visit the official Python website and download the latest version of Python. After the download is complete, you have a .tar.xz archive file (a “tarball”) containing the source code of Python.
- Extract the tarball
- Configure the script. Once the Python tarball has been extracted, navigate to the configure script and execute it in your Linux terminal with:$ cd Python-3.*
./configure command. - Start the build process using the command $ sudo make altinstall
- Verify the installation with the help of command python –version
Python Installation For Mac
- It should be noted that the Mac OS X comes with Python 2.7 out of the box.If you are going to use Python 2, then You do not need to install or configure anything else to use Python 2. But if you are using the python 3 then you need to do the following.
- The Homebrew version of Python 2 is already installed, and the Homebrew version of Python 3 as well.
- $ python command will launch the Homebrew-installed Python 3 interpreter.
- $ python2 Command will launch the Homebrew-installed Python 2 interpreter (if any).
- $ python3Command will launch the Homebrew-installed Python 3 interpreter.
- If the Homebrew version of Python 2 is installed then pip2 will point to Python 2. If the Homebrew version of Python 3 is installed then pip will point to Python 3.
- The rest of the guide will assume that python references Python 3.
$ python –version
Python 3.7.1 # Success!
Python IDE:
- A code editor is a tool that is used to write and edit code.
- They are usually lightweight and can be great for learning.
- An IDE (Integrated Development Environment) understand your code much better than a text editor.
- It usually provides features such as build automation, code linting, testing and debugging. This can significantly speed up your work.
- The downside is that IDEs can be complicated to use.
Some of the best IDEs are listed as below.
- Online Compiler from Programiz.
- IDLE
- Sublime Text 3
- Atom
- Thonny
- PyCharm
- Visual Studio Code
- Vim
- Spyder
PyCharm
- The PyCharm is an IDE for professional developers because it comes with many latest features.
- It is Developed and created by JetBrains, which is a company well known for creating great software development tools.
There are two versions of PyCharm are available in the internet:
- Community –It is a free open-source version, lightweight, good for Python and scientific development. It is well recommended for beginners also.
- Professional –It is a paid version which is mostly used by the expert developers in the corporates. It is associated with the full-featured IDE with support for Web development as well.
- The PyCharm provides all major features that a good IDE.
- It should provide: code completion, code inspections, error-highlighting and fixes, debugging, version control system and code refactoring.
- All these features come out of the box.
So it is suggested that, PyCharm is considered as best IDE for Python development.
Jupyter Notebook
- The Jupytext offers one way of accessing your notebook from the IDE.
- But it is not the only way. The other IDEs like Spyder also has a long history of offering an interactive mode on scripts with double percent cell markers.
- Hydrogen is a plugin for the Atom editor that lets you run these scripts interactively.
- Here the Searching among notebooks is super easy so it is very widely used and they are just text files.
- Here the Drafting a new notebook is so comfortable.
- It provides you the benefit from the advanced capabilities of the IDE: syntax checks, completion, reformat, documentation tips.
- Jupytext solves the issue of version control.
Why Learn Python?
- As the Python is already a proven language in the data science industry and it is widely accepted by most of the industry, so it is now taken the lead as the toolkit for scientific data analysis and modelling.
- These are open-sourced libraries, offering alternate ways of deriving the same output.
- As the technology now a days gets more and more competitive, data scientists and engineers are continually striving for ways to
- process information, extract insights and model, by processing massive datasets.
- Python is the only platform where we can be able to explore the various, so you need to be well versed in the various Python libraries that support your data science tasks and the benefits they offer to make your outputs more robust and speedier.
In addition, with the above Using the python, we can be able to do the following which is highly recommended.
- Python can be used on a server to create web applications.
- Python can be used alongside software to create workflows.
- 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.
- Python can be used for rapid prototyping, or for production-ready software development.
- Python works on different platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, Raspberry Pi, etc).
- Python has a simple syntax like the English language.
- Python has syntax that allows developers to write programs with fewer lines than some other programming languages.
- Python runs on an interpreter system, meaning that code can be executed as soon as it is written. This means that prototyping can be very quick.
- Python can be treated in a procedural way, an object-oriented way, or a functional way.
Python Applications:
Ass we have already discussed that the Python is the only platform where we can be able to explore the various prospect, so you need to be well versed in the various Python libraries that support your data science tasks and the benefits they offer to make your outputs more robust and speedier. It has many applications areas out of which I am going to discussed few listed below.
- Web Development.
- Game Development.
- Scientific and Numeric Applications Development.
- Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning based application development.
- Software Development based application development.
- Enterprise-level/Business based application development.
- Education programs and training courses.
- Language Development.
Scope @ NareshIT:
- At NareshIT’s Python application Development program you will be able to get the extensive hands-on training in front-end, middleware, and back-end technology.
- It skilled you along with phase-end and capstone projects based on real business scenarios.
- Here you learn the concepts from leading industry experts with content structured to ensure industrial relevance.
- An end-to-end application with exciting features
- Earn an industry-recognized course completion certificate.
