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<h1>Introduction</h1>
<p>You're knee deep in learning the <a href="http://www.python.org/">Python</a>
programming language. The syntax is starting to make sense. The first
few "<em>ahh-ha</em>!" moments hit you as you learning conditional
statements, <code>for</code> loops and classes while playing around with the open source
libraries that make Python such an amazing language.</p>
<p>Now you want to take your initial Python knowledge and make something real,
like an application that's available on the web that you can show off or
sell as a service to other people. That's where Full Stack Python comes in.
You've come to the right place to learn everything you need to
<a href="/web-development.html">create</a>, <a href="/deployment.html">deploy</a>
and <a href="/devops.html">operate</a> production Python web applications.</p>
<h1>Learning Programming</h1>
<p>Learning to program is about understanding how to translate thoughts into
source code that can be executed on computers to achieve one or more goals.</p>
<p>There are many steps in learning how to program, including</p>
<ol>
<li>setting up a <a href="/development-environments.html">development environment</a></li>
<li>selecting a programming language, such as Python</li>
<li>understanding the syntax and commands for the language</li>
<li>writing code in the language, often using
<a href="/application-dependencies.html">pre-existing code libraries</a> and
<a href="/web-frameworks.html">frameworks</a></li>
<li>executing the program</li>
<li>debugging errors and unexpected results</li>
<li><a href="/deployment.html">deploying</a> an application so it can run for intended
users</li>
</ol>
<h2>How should I learn programming?</h2>
<p>There are several schools of thought on how a person should start learning
to program. One school of thought is that a lower-level programming
language such as Assembly or C are the most appropriate languages to start
with because they force new developers to write their own data structures,
learn about pointers and generally work their way through the hard problems
in computer science.</p>
<p>There's certainly wisdom in this "low-level first" philosophy because it
forces a beginner to gain a strong foundation before moving on to higher
level topics such as web and mobile application development. This philosophy
is the one most commonly used in university computer science programs.</p>
<p>The atomic units of progress in the "low-level first" method of learning are </p>
<ol>
<li>aspects of programming language understood (type systems, syntax)</li>
<li>number of data structures coded and able to be used (stacks, queues)</li>
<li>algorithms in a developer's toolbelt (quicksort, binary search)</li>
</ol>
<p>Another school of thought is that new developers should bootstrap
themselves through working on projects in whatever programming language
interests them enough to keep working through the frustrations that will
undoubtably occur.</p>
<p>In this "project-based" line of thinking, the number of projects completed
that expand a programmer's abilities are the units of progress. Extra value
is placed on making the projects open source and working with experienced
mentors to learn what he or she can improve on in their programs. </p>
<h2>Should I learn Python first?</h2>
<p>Python is good choice in the project-based approach because of the extensive
availability of
<a href="/best-python-resources.html">free and low cost introductory resources</a>,
many of which provide example projects to build upon.</p>
<p>Note that this question of whether or not Python is a good first language
for an aspiring programmer is highly subjective and these approaches are
not mutually exclusive. Python is also widely taught in universities to
explain the fundamental concepts in computer science, which is in line
with the "low-level first" philosophy than the projects-first method.</p>
<p>In a nutshell, whether Python is the right first programming language to
learn is up to your own learning style and what feels right. If Ruby or Java
seem like they are easier to learn than Python, go for those languages.
Programming languages, and the ecosystems around them, are human-made
constructs. Find one that appears to match your personal style and give it a
try, knowing that whatever you choose you'll need to put in many long days and
nights to really get comfortable as a software developer.</p>
<h1>Why Use Python?</h1>
<p>Python's expansive library of open source data analysis tools,
<a href="/web-frameworks.html">web frameworks</a>,
and testing instruments make its ecosystem one of the largest out of any
programming community. </p>
<p>Python is an accessible language for new programmers because the community
provides many <a href="/best-python-resources.html">introductory resources</a>. The
language is also widely taught in universities and used for working with
beginner-friendly devices such as the
<a href="http://www.raspberrypi.org/">Raspberry Pi</a>.</p>
<div class="well see-also">If you're learning about why to use Python you should also take a look at <a href="/best-python-resources.html">the best Python resources</a> and read <a href="/what-full-stack-means.html">what "full stack" means</a>.</div>
<h2>Python's programming language popularity</h2>
<p>Several programming language popularity rankings exist. While it's
possible to criticize that these guides are not exact, every ranking shows
Python as a top programming language within the top ten, if not the top five
of all languages. </p>
<p>The IEEE ranked <a href="http://spectrum.ieee.org/computing/software/the-2016-top-programming-languages">Python as the #3 top programming language</a>
in 2016, while
<a href="http://redmonk.com/sogrady/2015/01/14/language-rankings-1-15/">RedMonk's January 2015 ranking</a> had Python at #4.</p>
<p>The
<a href="http://www.tiobe.com/index.php/content/paperinfo/tpci/index.html">TIOBE Index</a>,
a long-running language ranking, has Python steady at #8. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://pypl.github.io/PYPL.html">PopularitY of Programming Language</a>
(PYPL), based on leading indicators from Google Trends search keyword
analysis, shows Python at #3.</p>
<p><a href="http://githut.info/">GitHut</a>, a visualization of GitHub language popularity,
pegs Python at #3 overall as well.</p>
<p>These rankings provide a rough measure for language popularity. They are not
intended as a precise measurement tool to determine exactly how many
developers are using a language. However, the aggregate view shows that Python
remains a stable programming language with a growing ecosystem.</p>
<h2>Why does the choice of programming language matter?</h2>
<p>Programming languages have unique ecosystems, cultures and philosophies
built around them. You will find friction with a community and difficulty
in learning if your approach to programming varies from the philosophy of
the programming language you've selected.</p>
<p>Python's culture values
<a href="https://github.com/trending?l=python&since=monthly">open source software</a>,
community involvement with
<a href="http://www.pycon.org/">local, national and international events</a> and
teaching to new programmers. If those values are also important to you and/or
your organization then Python may be a good fit. </p>
<p>The philosophy for Python is so strongly held that it's even embedded in
the language as shown when the interpreter executes "import this" and
displays <a href="https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0020/">The Zen of Python</a>.</p>
<div class="highlight"><pre><span class="o">>>></span> <span class="kn">import</span> <span class="nn">this</span>
<span class="n">The</span> <span class="n">Zen</span> <span class="n">of</span> <span class="n">Python</span><span class="p">,</span> <span class="n">by</span> <span class="n">Tim</span> <span class="n">Peters</span>
<span class="n">Beautiful</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">better</span> <span class="n">than</span> <span class="n">ugly</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Explicit</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">better</span> <span class="n">than</span> <span class="n">implicit</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Simple</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">better</span> <span class="n">than</span> <span class="nb">complex</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Complex</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">better</span> <span class="n">than</span> <span class="n">complicated</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Flat</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">better</span> <span class="n">than</span> <span class="n">nested</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Sparse</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">better</span> <span class="n">than</span> <span class="n">dense</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Readability</span> <span class="n">counts</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Special</span> <span class="n">cases</span> <span class="n">aren</span><span class="s">'t special enough to break the rules.</span>
<span class="n">Although</span> <span class="n">practicality</span> <span class="n">beats</span> <span class="n">purity</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Errors</span> <span class="n">should</span> <span class="n">never</span> <span class="k">pass</span> <span class="n">silently</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Unless</span> <span class="n">explicitly</span> <span class="n">silenced</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">In</span> <span class="n">the</span> <span class="n">face</span> <span class="n">of</span> <span class="n">ambiguity</span><span class="p">,</span> <span class="n">refuse</span> <span class="n">the</span> <span class="n">temptation</span> <span class="n">to</span> <span class="n">guess</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">There</span> <span class="n">should</span> <span class="n">be</span> <span class="n">one</span><span class="o">--</span> <span class="ow">and</span> <span class="n">preferably</span> <span class="n">only</span> <span class="n">one</span> <span class="o">--</span><span class="n">obvious</span> <span class="n">way</span> <span class="n">to</span> <span class="n">do</span> <span class="n">it</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Although</span> <span class="n">that</span> <span class="n">way</span> <span class="n">may</span> <span class="ow">not</span> <span class="n">be</span> <span class="n">obvious</span> <span class="n">at</span> <span class="n">first</span> <span class="n">unless</span> <span class="n">you</span><span class="s">'re Dutch.</span>
<span class="n">Now</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">better</span> <span class="n">than</span> <span class="n">never</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Although</span> <span class="n">never</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">often</span> <span class="n">better</span> <span class="n">than</span> <span class="o">*</span><span class="n">right</span><span class="o">*</span> <span class="n">now</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">If</span> <span class="n">the</span> <span class="n">implementation</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">hard</span> <span class="n">to</span> <span class="n">explain</span><span class="p">,</span> <span class="n">it</span><span class="s">'s a bad idea.</span>
<span class="n">If</span> <span class="n">the</span> <span class="n">implementation</span> <span class="ow">is</span> <span class="n">easy</span> <span class="n">to</span> <span class="n">explain</span><span class="p">,</span> <span class="n">it</span> <span class="n">may</span> <span class="n">be</span> <span class="n">a</span> <span class="n">good</span> <span class="n">idea</span><span class="o">.</span>
<span class="n">Namespaces</span> <span class="n">are</span> <span class="n">one</span> <span class="n">honking</span> <span class="n">great</span> <span class="n">idea</span> <span class="o">--</span> <span class="n">let</span><span class="s">'s do more of those!</span>
</pre></div>
<h3>More perspectives on why to use Python</h3>
<ul>
<li>
<p>The Python documentation has a HOWTO section specifically for
<a href="https://docs.python.org/2/howto/advocacy.html">Python advocacy</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://nothingbutsnark.svbtle.com/how-to-argue-for-pythons-use">How to argue for Python’s use</a>
explains that choosing a programming language can be complicated but that
Python is a very good option for many use cases.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://lorenabarba.com/blog/why-i-push-for-python/">Why I Push for Python</a>
explains one professor's rationale for promoting Python to teach programming
to undergraduates.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>If you're wondering about the differences in Python's dynamically typed
system versus statically typed languages, be sure to
<a href="http://blogs.perl.org/users/ovid/2010/08/what-to-know-before-debating-type-systems.html">read this thorough explanation of the topic</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/@anthonypjshaw/why-i-swapped-c-net-for-python-as-my-default-language-and-platform-and-wont-be-going-back-e0063a25e491">Why I swapped C#.NET for Python as my default language and platform (and won’t be going back)</a>
provides a viewpoint from someone who is not a professional developer but
uses coding to hack out some projects. He found Microsoft's .NET ecosystem
lacking when it came to satisfying his needs and Python filled the gap for
him with its wide array of open source code libraries, package management
and ability to work well on platforms other than Windows.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h1>Python 2 or 3?</h1>
<p>The Python programming language is currently in the midst of a long-term
transition from version 2 to version 3. New programmers typically have many
questions about which version they should learn. It's confusing to hear
that Python 3, which was originally released in 2008, is still not the default
installation on many operating systems.</p>
<p>Here's the good news: you can't go wrong starting with either version. While
there are differences in unicode and syntax, for the most part if you
start with Python 2 and then learn Python 3 you won't be starting from
scratch. Likewise, you'll be able to read and write Python 2 code if you
started with Python 3.</p>
<p>My personal recommendation for new programmers as of right now is to use
Python 3. There are enough <a href="/best-python-resources.html">great resources</a>
out there that teach version 3 from the ground up. Python 3 is the future
and you will not regret starting with the "correct" version of the
programming language.</p>
<p>However, if you are interested in DevOps-type work with
<a href="/configuration-management.html">configuration management tools</a> such as
Ansible or Fabric, then you'll have to stick to Python 2 because they have
yet to upgrade to support Python 3. If you know there are libraries you must
use in a project, check the
<a href="https://python3wos.appspot.com/">Python Walls of Superpowers</a>. If you're
using Django, there is also a wall specifically for
<a href="http://djangowos.com/">Python 3 compatibility of popular Django packages</a>.</p>
<h3>Visualizations and Projects</h3>
<p>Since upgrading from Python 2 to 3 has been such a huge undertaking within
the community, many projects have sprung up to make the transition easier.</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://pythonhosted.org/six/">six</a> is a 2/3 compatibility library that
is a dependency for many popular Python projects to make it easier to
support both Python 2 and 3 at the same time.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://py3readiness.org/">Python 3 Readiness</a> is a visualization of
which most popular 360 libraries (by downloads) are ready to be
used with Python 3.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The <a href="https://pythonclock.org/">Python clock</a> counts down the time until
Python 2.x is no longer maintained. While in 2016 Python 2's retirement
may seem a long time away, it can take a lot of time and effort to migrate
existing application to the modified syntax in 3.x.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Porting to Python 3 resources</h3>
<p>Moving an existing codebase to Python 3 from 2 can be a daunting task,
These resources were created by fellow developers who've previously
gone through the process and have advice for making it less painful.</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="http://python3porting.com/">Python 3 Porting</a> is an entire book with
details for how to upgrade your existing projects and libraries to
Python 3.x.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://ptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com/imprint_downloads/informit/promotions/python/python2python3.pdf">Moving from Python 2 to Python 3</a>
is a PDF cheatsheet for porting your Python code.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The official
<a href="https://wiki.python.org/moin/PortingToPy3k/">porting code to Python 3</a>
page links to resources on porting Python code as well as underlying C
implementations. There is also a
<a href="https://wiki.python.org/moin/PortingToPy3k/BilingualQuickRef">quick reference for writting code with Python 2 and 3 compatibility</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://godjango.com/96-django-and-python-3-how-to-setup-pyenv-for-multiple-pythons/">Django and Python 3 How to Setup pyenv for Multiple Pythons</a>
is a screencast showing how to run both Python 2 and 3 for different
projects using pyenv.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Python 2 to 3 resources</h3>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://eev.ee/blog/2016/07/31/python-faq-why-should-i-use-python-3/">Why should I use Python 3?</a>
is a detailed FAQ on important topics such as unicode support, iteration
improvements and async upgrades provided by 3.x.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Want to know all of the advantages and what's changed in Python 3
compared to Python 2? There's
<a href="https://docs.python.org/3/whatsnew/index.html">an official guide to Python 3 changes</a>
you'll want to read.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://hynek.me/articles/python3-2016/">Python 3 in 2016</a> explains
that many newer Python developers have only used Python 3 and as that
cohort continues to grow it will have an outsized impact on further
adoption.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/pythonengineering/2016/03/08/python-3-is-winning/">Python 3 is winning</a>
presents data and graphs from PyPI to show that at the current rate,
by mid-2016 overall Python 3 library support will overtake Python 2
support.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www.snarky.ca/the-stages-of-the-python-3-transition">The stages of the Python 3 transition</a>
provides perspective from a core Python developer on how the transition from
Python 2 to 3 is going as of the end of 2015.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRtp9NgtXiA">Rules for Radicals: Changing the Culture of Python at Facebook</a>
is a fascinating look at how Facebook moved from primarily Python 2
up to Python 3 due to the efforts of a small passionate group of
developers within the company. Definitely worth watching to understand
how to shift a large organization with an established codebase.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://nothingbutsnark.svbtle.com/porting-to-python-3-is-like-eating-your-vegetables">Porting to Python 3 is like eating your vegetables</a>
explains that there are treats in Python 3 that are worth porting for and
has some tips on making the transition easier.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://blog.scrapinghub.com/2015/08/19/scrapy-on-the-road-to-python-3-support/">Scrapy on the road to Python 3 support</a>
explains from the perspective of a widely used Python project what their
plan is for supporting Python 3 and why it has taken so long to make it
happen.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>All major scientific Python libraries have
<a href="https://python3statement.github.io/">pledged to drop Python 2 support</a>
no later than 2020, when Python 2's maintenance life is over. The pledge
strongly encourages Python 3 adoption by publicly stating their
intentions. </p>
</li>
</ul>
<h1>Enterprise Python</h1>
<p>One of the misconceptions around Python and other dynamically-typed languages
is that they cannot be reliably used to build enterprise-grade software.
However, almost all commercial and government enterprises already use
Python in some capacity, either as glue code between disparate applications
or to build the applications themselves. </p>
<h2>What is enterprise software?</h2>
<p>Enterprise software is built for the requirements of an organization rather
than the needs of an individual. Software written for enterprises often
needs to integrate with legacy systems, such as existing databases and
non-web applications. There are often requirements to integrate with
authentication systems such as the
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightweight_Directory_Access_Protocol">Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)</a>
and
<a href="https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa746492%28v=vs.85%29.aspx">Active Directory (AD)</a>.</p>
<p>Organizations develop enterprise software with numerous custom requirements
to fit the specific needs of their operating model. Therefore the software
development process often becomes far more complicated due to disparate
factions within an organization vying for the software to handle their
needs at the expense of other factions.</p>
<p>The complexity due to the many stakeholders involved in the building of
enterprise software leads to large budgets and extreme scrutiny by
non-technical members of an organization. Typically those non-technical
people place irrational emphasis on the choice of programming language and
frameworks when otherwise they should not make technical design decisions.</p>
<h2>Why are there misconceptions about Python in enterprise environments?</h2>
<p>Traditionally large organizations building enterprise software have used
statically typed languages such as C++, .NET and Java. Throughout the 1980s
and 1990s large companies such as Microsoft, Sun Microsystems and Oracle
marketed these languages as "enterprise grade". The inherent snub to other
languages was that they were not appropriate for CIOs' difficult technical
environments. Languages other than Java, C++ and .NET were seen as risky and
therefore not worthy of investment.</p>
<p>In addition, "scripting languages" such as Python, Perl and Ruby were not
yet robust enough in the 1990s because their core standard libraries were
still being developed. Frameworks such as <a href="/django.html">Django</a>,
<a href="/flask.html">Flask</a> and Rails (for Ruby) did not yet exist. The Web was
just beginning and most enterprise applications were desktop apps built
for Windows. Python simply wasn't made for such environments.</p>
<h2>Why is Python now appropriate for building enterprise software?</h2>
<p>From the early 2000s through today the languages and ecosystems for many
dynamically typed languages have greatly improved and often surpassed some
aspects of other ecosystems. Python, Ruby and other previously derided
languages now have vast, well-maintained open source ecosystems backed by
both independent developers and large companies including Microsoft, IBM,
Google, Facebook, Dropbox, Twilio and many, many others.</p>
<p>Python's open source libraries, especially for
<a href="/web-frameworks.html">web development</a> and data analysis, are some of the
best maintained and fully featured pieces of code for any language.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, some of the traditional enterprise software development languages
such as Java have languished due to underinvestment by their major corporate
backers. When <a href="http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/press/018363">Oracle purchased Sun Microsystems in 2009</a>
there was a long lag time before Java was enhanced with new language features
in Java 7. Oracle also
<a href="http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/06/java-adware-mac/">bundles unwanted adware with the Java installation</a>,
whereas the Python community would never put up with such a situation because
the language is open source and does not have a single corporate controller.</p>
<p>Other ecosystems, such as the .NET platform by Microsoft have fared much
better. Microsoft continued to invest in moving the .NET platform along
throughout the early part of the new millennium.</p>
<p>However, Microsoft's enterprise products often have expensive licensing fees
for their application servers and associated software. In addition, Microsoft
is also a major backer of open source, <a href="http://www.hanselman.com/blog/OneOfMicrosoftsBestKeptSecretsPythonToolsForVisualStudioPTVS.aspx">especially Python</a>,
and their
<a href="https://www.visualstudio.com/en-us/features/python-vs.aspx">Python tools for Visual Studio</a>
provide a top-notch <a href="/development-environments.html">development environment</a>.</p>
<p>The end result is that enterprise software development has changed
dramatically over the past couple of decades. CIOs and technical executives
can no longer ignore the progress of Python and the great open source
community in the enterprise software development landscape if they want to
continue delivering business value to their business side customers.</p>
<h2>Open source enterprise Python projects</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://github.com/cfpb/collab">Collab</a> by the
U.S. government's
<a href="http://www.consumerfinance.gov/">Consumer Financial Protection Bureau</a>
(CFPB) agency is a corporate intranet and collaboration platform for large
organizations. The project is currently running and in-use by thousands of
CFPB employees.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://github.com/twitter/pants">Pants</a> is a build system for software
projects with many distinct parts and built with many different programming
languages as is often the case in large organizations.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Enterprise Python software development resources</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>There are a couple of solid demystifying articles in CIO magazine including
<a href="http://www.cio.com/article/2437137/developer/you-used-python-to-write-what-.html">this broad overview of Python in enterprises</a>
and this article on
<a href="http://www.cio.com/article/2431212/developer/dynamic-languages--not-just-for-scripting-any-more.html">why dynamic languages are gaining share for enterprise development</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>JavaWorld wrote an interesting article about
<a href="http://www.javaworld.com/article/2078655/scripting-jvm-languages/python-coming-to-the-enterprise--like-it-or-not.html">Python's inroads into enterprise software development</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>I gave a talk at DjangoCon 2014 on
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMtiCX38w20">How to Solve the Top 5 Headaches with Django in the Enterprise</a>
which covered both Python and Django in large organizations.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>This <a href="http://programmers.stackexchange.com/questions/141411/what-is-enterprise-software-exactly">StackExchange answer</a>
contains a solid explanation what differentiates enterprise software
from traditional software.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>There was a
<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Python/comments/3myppd/everyone_who_encounters_it_seems_to_love_python/">Python subreddit thread about Python in the enterprise</a>
that's worth a look for broader opinions on Python compared to Java and
.NET in enterprise environments.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h1>Python Community</h1>
<p>The Python programming language has a global community with millions of
software developers who interact online and offline in thousands of virtual
and physical locations.</p>
<h2>Who drives the Python community?</h2>
<p>There are tens of thousands of Python developers who help steer the
community with local, regional and global events. Most, if not all of them,
are members of the
<a href="https://www.python.org/psf/">Python Software Foundation (PSF)</a>. The PSF
is a 501(c)(3) non-profit with the mission to "promote, protect, and advance
the Python programming language, and to support and facilitate the
growth of a diverse and international community of Python programmers."</p>
<h2>Python community resources</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>The <a href="https://www.python.org/community/">community page on Python.org</a>
provides a starter page with links to community-run newsletters, resources
and conferences.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Clinton Dreisbach wrote two fantastic retrospectives for
<a href="http://www.dreisbach.us/blog/pycon-2015/">PyCon US 2015</a> (his first PyCon)
and
<a href="http://www.dreisbach.us/blog/pycon-2016/">PyCon US 2016</a>. There are
many other retrospectives for other
<a href="http://www.artima.com/weblogs/viewpost.jsp?thread=261930">community-led conferences such as EuroPython</a>.
These summaries can be a great way to get a slice of the experience
before purchasing a ticket and booking a trip.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>There are many large active online communities on
<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/python">Reddit</a>,
<a href="https://plus.google.com/communities/103393744324769547228">Google Plus</a>
<a href="https://freenode.net/">IRC channels</a> such as #python, #python-dev
and #distutils.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h1>Best Python Resources</h1>
<p>The Python community is amazing at sharing detailed resources and helping
beginners learn to program with the language. There are so many resources
out there though that it can be difficult to know how to find them. </p>
<p>This page aggregates the best general Python resources with descriptions of
what they provide to readers.</p>
<div class="well see-also">If you prefer to learn by watching videos check out the <a href="/best-python-videos.html">best Python videos</a>. You may also be interested in reading about <a href="/development-environments.html">development environments</a> to use for coding.</div>
<h2>New to programming</h2>
<p>If you're learning your first programming language these books were written
with you in mind. Developers learning Python as a second or later language
should skip down to the next section for "experienced developers".</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>To get an introduction to Python, Django and Flask at the same time,
consider purchasing the
<a href="https://realpython.com/?utm_source=fsp&utm_medium=promo&utm_campaign=bestresources">Real Python</a>
course by Fletcher, Michael and Jeremy.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>This <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvK0UzFNw1Q">short 5 minute video</a>
explains why it's better to think of projects you'd like to build and
problems you want to solve with programming. Start working on those projects
and problems rather than jumping into a specific language that's recommended
to you by a friend.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www.cs.hmc.edu/csforall/">CS for All</a> is an open book by professors
at Harvey Mudd College which teaches the fundamentals of computer science
using Python. It's an accessible read and perfect for programming beginners.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>If you've never programmed before check out the
<a href="http://learntocodewith.me/getting-started/">Getting Started</a> page on
<a href="http://learntocodewith.me/">Learn To Code with Me</a>
by <a href="https://twitter.com/lebdev">Laurence Bradford</a>. She's done an
incredible job of breaking down the steps beginners should take when
they're uncertain about where to begin.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://learnpythonthehardway.org/book/">Learn Python the Hard Way</a> is a
free book by Zed Shaw.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The <a href="https://www.twilio.com/blog/tag/python">Python projects tag</a> on the
Twilio blog is constantly updated with fun tutorials you can build to
learn Python, such as the
<a href="https://www.twilio.com/blog/2015/11/international-space-station-notifications-with-python-redis-queue-and-twilio-copilot.html">International Space Station Tracker with Flask and Redis-Queue</a>,
<a href="https://www.twilio.com/blog/2014/11/choose-your-own-adventure-presentations-with-reveal-js-python-and-websockets.html">Choose Your Own Adventures Presentations using Flask and WebSockets</a>
and <a href="https://www.twilio.com/blog/2015/11/getting-started-with-opencv-and-python-featuring-the-martian-2.html">Martianify Photos with OpenCV</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www.swaroopch.com/notes/python/">A Byte of Python</a> is a beginner's
tutorial for the Python language. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Code Academy has a <a href="http://www.codecademy.com/tracks/python">Python track</a>
for people completely new to programming.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://opentechschool.github.io/python-beginners/en/index.html">Introduction to Programming with Python</a>
goes over the basic syntax and control structures in Python. The free book
has numerous code examples to go along with each topic.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Google put together a great compilation of materials and subjects you
should read and learn from if you want to be a
<a href="https://www.google.com/about/careers/students/guide-to-technical-development.html">professional programmer</a>.
Those resources are useful not only for Python beginners but any developer
who wants to have a strong professional career in software.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The O'Reilly book
<a href="http://greenteapress.com/thinkpython/html/index.html">Think Python: How to Think Like a Computer Scientist</a>
is available in HTML form for free on the web.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://anandology.com/python-practice-book/index.html">Python Practice Book</a>
is a book of Python exercises to help you learn the basic language syntax.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Looking for ideas about what projects to use to learn to code? Check out
<a href="https://medium.com/learning-journalism-tech/five-mini-programming-projects-for-the-python-beginner-21492f6ce0f3">this list of 5 programming projects for Python beginners</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>There's a Udacity course by one of the creators of Reddit that shows how to
<a href="https://www.udacity.com/course/web-development--cs253">use Python to build a blog</a>.
It's a great introduction to web development concepts through coding.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>I wrote a quick blog post on
<a href="http://www.mattmakai.com/learning-python-for-non-developers.html">learning Python</a>
that non-technical folks trying to learn to program may find useful.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://pymbook.readthedocs.org/en/latest/">Python for you and me</a> is an
approachable book with sections for Python syntax and the major language
constructs. The book also contains a short guide at the end to get
programmers to write their first Flask web application.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Python for specific occupations</h2>
<p>Python is powerful for many professions. If you're seeking to use Python in a
specific field, one of these guides may be the most appropriate for you.</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~gawron/python_for_ss/">Python for Social Scientists</a>
contains a textbook, course outline and slides for a college course that taught
social scientists to use Python for their profession.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://pbpython.com/">Practical Business Python</a> is a blog that covers topics
such as how to automate generating large Excel spreadsheets or perform analysis
when your data is locked in Microsoft Office files.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://fbkarsdorp.github.io/python-course/">Python for the Humanities</a> is a
textbook and course on the basics of Python and text processing. Note if you've
never worked with Python before the material ramps up quickly after the first
chapter so you will likely want to combine it with some other introduction to
Python resources.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://python4astronomers.github.io/">Practical Python for Astronomers</a>
provides open source workshop materials for teaching students studying
astronomy to use Python for data analysis.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Experienced developers new to Python</h2>
<p>If you can already program in another language, these resources are better for
getting up to speed because they are more concise when explaining introductory
topics.</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="http://learnxinyminutes.com/docs/python/">Learn Python in y minutes</a>
provides a whirlwind tour of the Python language. The guide is especially
useful if you're coming in with previous software development experience
and want to quickly grasp how the language is structured.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Developers familiar with other languages often have difficulty adapting to
accepted Python code style. Make sure to read the
<a href="https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0008/">PEP8</a> code style guidelines
as well as
<a href="https://github.com/amontalenti/elements-of-python-style">The Elements of Python Style</a>
to know the Python community standards.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://districtdatalabs.silvrback.com/how-to-develop-quality-python-code">How to Develop Quality Python Code</a>
is a good read to begin learning about development environments,
application dependencies and project structure.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The <a href="https://pymotw.com/2/contents.html">Python module of the week</a>
chapters are a good way to get up to speed with the standard library.
Doug Hellmann is also now updating the list for changes brought about
from the upgrade to Python 3 from 2.x.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Kenneth Reitz's
<a href="http://docs.python-guide.org/en/latest/">The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Python</a>
contains a wealth of information both on the Python programming language and the community.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://composingprograms.com/">Composing Programs</a> shows how to build
compilers with Python 3, which is a good undertaking if you're looking
to learn both more about the Python language and how compiles work.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://jessenoller.com/good-to-great-python-reads/">Good to Great Python Reads</a>
is a collection of intermediate and advanced Python articles around the web
focused on nuances and details of the Python language itself.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Videos, screencasts and presentations</h2>
<p>Videos from conferences and meetups along with screencasts are listed on
the <a href="/best-python-videos.html">best Python videos</a> page.</p>
<h2>Curated Python packages lists</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://github.com/vinta/awesome-python">awesome-python</a> is an incredible
list of Python frameworks, libraries and software. I wish I had this
page when I was just getting started. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://easy-python.readthedocs.org/en/latest/">easy-python</a> is like
awesome-python although instead of just a Git repository this site is
in the Read the Docs format.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Podcasts</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www.talkpythontome.com/">Talk Python to Me</a> focuses on the
people and organizations coding on Python. Each episode features a
different guest interviewee to talk about his or her work.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://podcastinit.com/">Podcast.__init__</a> is another podcast on
"about Python and the people who make it great".</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Newsletters</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www.pythonweekly.com/">Python Weekly</a> is a free weekly roundup
of the latest Python articles, videos, projects and upcoming events.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://pycoders.com/">PyCoder's Weekly</a> is another great free weekly
email newsletter similar to Python Weekly. The best resources are generally
covered in both newsletters but they often cover different articles
and projects from around the web.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://importpython.com/newsletter/">Import Python</a> is a newer newsletter
than Python Weekly and PyCoder's Weekly. So far I've found this newsletter
often pulls from different sources than the other two. It's well worth
subscribing to all three so you don't miss anything.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The <a href="https://www.fullstackpython.com/email.html">Full Stack Python monthly newsletter</a>
is a monthly newsletter that focuses on a single topic each month. For
example, one month will aggregate great Flask resources, while another
month will provide WSGI server configurations.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h1>Best Python Videos</h1>
<p>If you prefer to learn Python programming by watching videos then this is the
resource for you. I've watched hundreds of live technical talks and combed
through videos to pick out the ones with great speakers who'll teach you the
most about the language and ecosystem. </p>
<p>This page links to the best free videos as well as other video lists so you
can do your own searching through the huge backlog of conference and meetup
talks from the past several years. </p>
<div class="well see-also">Be sure to read the <a href="/best-python-resources.html">best Python resources</a> for links to books and articles as well as <a href="/web-frameworks.html">web frameworks</a> to learn more about web development.</div>
<h2>Live Coding</h2>
<p>Learn by watching developers code. Follow my account on
<a href="https://www.twitch.tv/mattmakai">Twitch Creative</a> then enable
email alerts when I go live. On Wednesdays I code Python and Swift
applications, answering any chat questions along the way.
I also hold office hours on Fridays where you can drop in and ask
questions about your coding issues.</p>
<h2>Web development with Django, Flask and other frameworks</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/heddle317">Kate Heddleston</a> gave a talk at PyCon 2014
called
"<a href="http://pyvideo.org/video/2591/so-you-want-to-be-a-full-stack-developer-how-to">Full-stack Python Web Applications</a>"
with clear visuals for how numerous layers of the Python web
stack fit together. There are also <a href="https://speakerdeck.com/pycon2014/so-you-want-to-be-a-full-stack-developer-how-to-build-a-full-stack-python-web-application-by-kate-heddleston">slides available from the talk</a>
with all the diagrams.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>My <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6NaOKD40rY">EuroPython 2014 "Full Stack Python"</a>
talk goes over each topic from this guide and provides context for how the
pieces fit together.
The <a href="http://www.mattmakai.com/presentations/2014-full-stack-python-berlin.html">talk slides</a> are also available.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>All of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8uoeex94UhE3FDvjacSlHFffoNEoPzzm">EuroPython 2016's talks are available on a YouTube playlist</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Kate Heddleston and I gave a talk at DjangoCon 2014 called
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrFEKghISEI">Choose Your Own Django Deployment Adventure</a>
which walked through many of the scenarios you'd face when deploying your
first Django website.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The <a href="https://github.com/realpython/discover-flask">Discover Flask</a> series is
a detailed Flask tutorial on video with corresponding code examples on
GitHub.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://pyvideo.org/video/2630/designing-djangos-migrations">Designing Django's Migrations</a>
covers Django 1.7's new migrations from the main programmer
of South and now Django's built-in migrations, Andrew Godwin.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://godjango.com/">GoDjango</a> screencasts and tutorials are free short
videos for learning how to build Django applications.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The videos and slides from
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9T1dhIlL_8Va9DxvKRowBw">Django: Under the Hood 2015</a>
are from Django core committers and provide insight into the ORM,
internationalization, templates and other important
<a href="/web-frameworks.html">web framework</a> topics.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>DjangoCon US videos from
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE7tQUdRKcybbNiuhLcc3h6WzmZGVBMr3">2014</a>,
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheOpenBastion/videos">2013</a>,
<a href="http://pyvideo.org/events/djangocon-2012.html">2012</a>,
<a href="http://pyvideo.org/events/djangocon-2011.html">2011</a> are all available
free of charge.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>DjangoCon EU videos are also available from
<a href="https://vimeo.com/channels/952478/videos">2015</a>.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Core Python language videos</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Jessica McKellar's
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sL_syMmRkoU">Building and breaking a Python sandbox</a>
is a fascinating walk through the lower layers of the Python interpreter.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Brandon Rhodes'
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYlnfvKVDoM">All Your Ducks In A Row: Data Structures in the Std Lib and Beyond</a>
goes through how data structures are implemented, how to select a
data structure appropriate to your application and how the list and
dictionary can be used in many situations.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The talk <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdvpNaWwx24">Python Descriptors</a>
by Simeon Franklin explains the what and why of this core Python language
feature.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>David Beazley gives an amazing live coded performance to show
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCs5OvhV9S4">Python concurrency</a>
using threads, event loops and coroutines. David makes the live coding
look easy but a whole lot of work must've gone into that talk.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Screencasts and class recordings</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://developers.google.com/edu/python/">Google's Python Class</a> contains
lecture videos and exercises for learning Python.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>While there aren't always live streams online, it's worth checking out the
<a href="https://www.livecoding.tv/livestreams/python/">Python category on Livecoding.tv</a>
to see if anyone is streaming or has a recording of working on a Python
project. Even experienced developers can learn a whole lot from watching
other developer's work on their projects. I also stream a couple times per
week so if you
<a href="https://www.livecoding.tv/mattmakai/">follow me on my username</a> you'll
get an alert when I go online.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Video compilations</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="http://pyvideo.org/">PyVideo</a> organizes and indexes thousands of Python
videos from both major conferences and meetups.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://github.com/mattmakai/incredible-technical-speakers">Incredible Technical Speakers</a>
is a repository I put together that features software developer speakers
talking about programming language agnostic topics. The list is intended
to emphasize professional software developers who also have the ability to
engage an audience of peers with an exciting talk.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h1>Development Environments</h1>
<p>A development environment is a combination of a text editor and the Python
interpreter. The text editor allows you to write the code. The interpreter
provides a way to execute the code you've written. A text editor can be
as simple as Notepad on Windows or more complicated as a complete integrated
development environment (IDE) such as
<a href="https://www.jetbrains.com/pycharm/">PyCharm</a> which runs on any major
operating system.</p>
<h2>Why is a development environment necessary?</h2>
<p>Python code needs to be written, executed and tested to build
applications. The text editor provides a way to write the code. The
interpreter allows it to be executed. Testing to see if the code does what
you want can either be done manually or by unit and functional tests. </p>
<div class="well see-also">While you're learning about development environments be sure to check out information on <a href="/vim.html">Vim</a> and <a href="/emacs.html">Emacs</a>.</div>
<h2>A development environment example</h2>
<p>Here's what I (the author of Full Stack Python,
<a href="/about-author.html">Matt Makai</a>) use to develop most of my Python
applications. I have a Macbook Pro with Mac OS X as its base operating
system. <a href="/operating-systems.html">Ubuntu 14.04 LTS</a> is virtualized on top
with <a href="https://www.parallels.com/">Parallels</a>. My code is written in
<a href="http://www.vim.org/">vim</a> and executed with the
<a href="https://www.python.org/download/releases/2.7.8/">Python 2.7.x</a> interpreter
via the command line. I use <a href="https://virtualenv.pypa.io/en/latest/">virtualenv</a> to create separate Python interpreters
with their own isolated
<a href="/application-dependencies.html">application dependencies</a> and
<a href="http://virtualenvwrapper.readthedocs.org/en/latest/">virtualenvwrapper</a>
to quickly switch between the interpreters created by virtualenv.</p>
<p>That's a common set up but you can certainly write great code with a much
less expensive set up or a cloud-based development environment.</p>
<h2>Open source text editors</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www.vim.org/">vim</a> is my editor of choice and installed by default
on most *nix systems.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/">emacs</a> is another editor often used
on *nix.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://atom.io/">Atom</a> is an open source editor built by the
<a href="https://github.com">GitHub</a> team.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Proprietary (closed source) editors</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="http://www.sublimetext.com/">Sublime Text</a> versions 2 and 3 (currently
in beta) are popular text editors that can be extended with code completion,
linting, syntax highlighting and other features using plugins. If you
are considering using Sublime Text for Python development, check out this
<a href="https://dbader.org/blog/sublime-text-for-python-development-2016-review">2016 in review - likes and dislikes about Sublime Text</a>
post that summarizes many of the positives and negatives of using the
editor.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://komodoide.com/">Komodo</a> is a cross-platform text editor and IDE
for major languages including Python, Ruby, JavaScript, Go and more.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Python-specific IDEs</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://www.jetbrains.com/pycharm/">PyCharm</a> is a Python-specific IDE
built on <a href="https://www.jetbrains.com/">JetBrains</a>' platform. There are
free editions for students and open source projects.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://wingware.com/">Wing IDE</a> is a paid development environment with
integrated debugging and code completion.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://pydev.org/">PyDev</a> is a Python IDE plug in for
<a href="https://www.eclipse.org/">Eclipse</a>.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Hosted development environments</h2>
<p>Several cloud-based development environments have popped up over the past
several years. These hosted environments can work well when you are learning
or stuck on a machine with a web browser but otherwise no administrative
privileges to install your own software. Most of these have free tiers for
getting started and then require payment as you scale up your application.</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><a href="https://www.nitrous.io/">Nitrous.io</a> provides a cloud IDE as well as
hosting services that assist with scaling the application as traffic
ramps up.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://c9.io/">Cloud9</a> began as an independent company and is now owned
by Amazon as part of Amazon Web Services.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://www.terminal.com/">Terminal</a> is another cloud environment that
emphasizes their hosted database services in addition to the IDE.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Development environment resources</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>If you're considering the cloud-based development environment route, check
out this
<a href="http://readwrite.com/2014/08/14/cloud9-koding-nitrousio-integrated-development-environment-ide-coding">great article comparing Cloud9, Koding and Nitrous.io</a>
by Lauren Orsini. She also explains more about what a cloud IDE is and is
not.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Real Python has an awesome, detailed post on
<a href="https://realpython.com/blog/python/setting-up-sublime-text-3-for-full-stack-python-development/">setting up your Sublime Text 3 environment</a>
as a full-fledged IDE.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The <a href="http://docs.python-guide.org/en/latest/dev/env/">Hitchhiker's Guide to Python</a>
has a page dedicated to development environments.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://pedrokroger.net/choosing-best-python-ide/">Choosing the best Python IDE</a>
is a review of six IDEs. PyCharm, Wing IDE and PyDev stand out above the
other three in this review.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="http://nafiulis.me/pycharm-the-good-parts-i.html">PyCharm: The Good Parts</a>
shows you how to be more efficient and productive with that IDE if it's
your choice for writing Python code.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>JetBrains' <a href="http://blog.jetbrains.com/pycharm/">PyCharm Blog</a> is required
reading if you're using the IDE or considering trying it. One of the
core developers also has an interview on the
<a href="http://talkpython.fm/episodes/show/36/python-ides-with-the-pycharm-teama">Talk Python to Me podcast</a>
that's worth listening to.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><a href="https://opensourcehacker.com/2015/05/02/pycharm-vs-sublime-text/">PyCharm vs Sublime Text</a>
has a comparison of several features between the two editors.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h1>Vim</h1>
<p>Vim, short for Vi IMproved, is a configurable text editor often used as
a Python development environment. Vim proponents commonly cite the numerous
plugins, Vimscript and logical command language as major Vim strengths.</p>
<h2>Why is Vim a good Python development environment?</h2>
<p>Vim's philosophy is that developers are more productive when they avoid
taking their hands off the keyboard. Code should flow naturally from the
developer's thoughts through the keyboard and onto the screen. Using a mouse
or other peripheral is a detriment to the rate at which a developer's
thoughts become code.</p>
<p>Vim has a logical, structured command language. When a beginner is learning
the editor she may feel like it is impossible to understand all the key
commands. However, the commands stack together in a logical way so that over