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Introduction to Python




Python is a programming language. In other words, it’s a language you use to write programs. A program is a set of instructions that tells a computer how to do something.

Python is a general-purpose, interpreted, object-oriented programming language. Python was created by Guido van Rossum in the Netherlands in 1990 and was named after the popular British comedy troupe Monty Python’s Flying Circus. Van Rossum developed Python as a hobby, and Python has become a popular programming language widely used in industry and academia due to its simple, concise, and intuitive syntax and extensive library.

Python is a general-purpose programming language. That means you can use Python to write code for any programming task. Python is now used in the Google search engine, in mission-critical projects at NASA, and in transaction processing at the New York Stock Exchange.

Python is interpreted, which means that Python code is translated and executed by an interpreter, one statement at a time, as described earlier in the chapter.

Python is an object-oriented programming (OOP) language. Data in Python are objects created from classes. A class is essentially a type or category that defines objects of the same kind with properties and methods for manipulating objects. Object-oriented programming is a powerful tool for developing reusable software.

Features of Python

  • Python is a high level language. It is a free and open source language.
  • It is an interpreted language, as Python programs are executed by an interpreter.
  • Python programs are easy to understand as they have a clearly defined syntax and relatively simple structure.
  • Python is case-sensitive. For example, NUMBER and number are not Same in Python.
  • Python is portable and platform independent, means it can run on various operating systems and hardware platforms.
  • Python has a rich library of predefined functions.
  • Python is also helpful in web development. Many popular web services and applications are built using Python.
  • Python uses indentation for blocks and nested blocks.

Python Interpreter:

Names of some Python interpreters are:

  • PyCharm
  • Python IDLE
  • The Python Bundle
  • pyGUI
  • Sublime Text etc.