**This guide is currently under heavy development, and is mostly a skeleton at the moment.** If you'd like to help, `fork us on GitHub <https://github.com/kennethreitz/python-guide>`_!

This *opinionated* guide exists to provide both novice and expert Python developers a best-practice handbook to the installation, configuration, and usage of Python on a daily basis.

Guido van Rossum, the creator of Python, is often referred to as the BDFL — the Benevolent Dictator For Life.

The mission of the Python Software Foundation is 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.

PEPs are *Python Enhancement Proposals*. They describe changes to Python itself, or the standards around it.

Describes a design issue, general guidelines, or information to the community.

Gives guidelines for semantics and conventions associated with Python docstrings.

PEPs are peer-reviewed and accepted/rejected after much discussion. Anyone can write and submit a PEP for review.

Python Conferences

The major events for the Python community are developer conferences. The two most notable conferences are PyCon, which is held in the US, and its European sibling, EuroPython.

User Groups are where a bunch of Python developers meet to present or talk about Python topics of interest. A list of local user groups is maintained at the `Python Software Foundation Wiki <http://wiki.python.org/moin/LocalUserGroups>`_.

Read the Docs is a popular community project, providing a single location for all documentation of popular and even more exotic Python modules.

Learnpython.org is an easy non-intimidating way to get introduced to python. The website takes the same approach used on the popular `Try Ruby <http://tryruby.org/>`_ website, it has an interactive python interpreter built into the site that allows you to go through the lessons without having to install Python locally.

This is an excellent beginner programmer's guide to Python. It covers "hello world" from the console to the web.

Also known as *Python for Programmers with 3 Hours*, this guide gives experienced developers from other languages a crash course on Python.

Dive Into Python 3 is a good book for those ready to jump in to Python 3. It's a

good read if you are moving from Python 2 to 3 or if you already have some

Think Python attempts to give an introduction to basic concepts in computer science through the

use of the python language. The focus was to create a book with plenty of exercises, minimal jargon and

a section in each chapter devoted to the subject of debugging.

While exploring the various features available in the python language the author weaves in various design

patterns and best practices.

The book also includes several case studies which have the reader explore the topics discussed in the book

in greater detail by applying those topics to real-world examples. Case studies include assignments in GUI

and Markov Analysis.

Python Koans

Python Koans is a port of Edgecase's Ruby Koans. It uses a test-driven approach, q.v. TEST DRIVEN DESIGN SECTION

to provide an interactive

tutorial teaching basic python concepts. By fixing assertion statements that fail in a test script, this

provides sequential steps to learning python.

For those used to languages and figuring out puzzles on their own, this can be a fun, attractive option.

For those new to python and programming, having an additional resource or reference will be helpful.

Python in a Nutshell, written by Alex Martelli, covers most cross-platform python's usage,

from its syntax to built-in libraries to advanced topics such as writing C extensions.

Martin Fowler, who first wrote about `Continuous Integration <http://martinfowler.com/articles/continuousIntegration.html>`_ (short: CI) together with Kent Beck, describes the CI as follows:

Continuous Integration is a software development practice where members of a team integrate their work frequently, usually each person integrates at least daily - leading to multiple integrations per day. Each integration is verified by an automated build (including test) to detect integration errors as quickly as possible. Many teams find that this approach leads to significantly reduced integration problems and allows a team to develop cohesive software more rapidly.

`Jenkins CI <http://jenkins-ci.org>`_ is an extensible continuous integration engine. Use it.

`Buildbot <http://buildbot.net/buildbot/docs/current>`_ is a Python system to automate the compile/test cycle to validate code changes.

`tox <https://bitbucket.org/hpk42/tox>`_ is an automation tool providing packaging, testing and deployment of Python software right from the console or CI server.

It is a generic virtualenv management and test command line tool which provides the following features:

* Checking that packages install correctly with different Python versions and interpreters

* Running tests in each of the environments, configuring your test tool of choice

* Acting as a frontend to Continuous Integration servers, reducing boilerplate and merging CI and shell-based testing.