Learning Python

Amazon.com
The authors of Learning Python show you enough essentials of the Python scripting language to enable you to begin solving problems right away, then reveal more powerful aspects of the language one at a time. This approach is sure to appeal to programmers and system administrators who have urgent problems and a preference for learning by semi-guided experimentation.

First off, Learning Python shows the relationships among Python scripts and their interpreter (in a mostly platform-neutral way). Then, the authors address the mechanics of the language itself, providing illustrations of how Python conceives of numbers, strings, and other objects as well as the operators you use to work with them. Dictionaries, lists, tuples, and other data structures specific to Python receive plenty of attention including complete examples.

Authors Mark Lutz and David Ascher build on that fundamental information in their discussions of functions and modules, which evolve into coverage of namespaces, classes, and the object-oriented aspects of Python programming. There's also information on creating graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for Python applications with Tkinter.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Python is a popular open source, object-oriented programming language used for both standalone programs and scripting applications. Portable, powerful, and a breeze to use, there's no quicker way to master the language than to learn from expert teachers. This new edition of Learning Python puts you in the hands of Mark Lutz and David Ascher, two notable Python experts and trainers whose friendly, well-structured prose has guided many programmers to proficiency in the language. Learning Python, Second Edition offers programmers a comprehensive learning tool for Python and object-oriented programming. Thoroughly updated for the numerous language changes since the release of the first edition in 1999, this book introduces the basic elements of the latest release of Python 2.3 and covers new features, such as list comprehensions, nested scopes, and iterators/generators.

Beyond language features, this edition of Learning Python also includes new context for less-experienced programmers, including fresh overviews of object-oriented programming and dynamic typing, new discussions of program launch and configuration options, new coverage of documentation sources, and more. There are also new use cases throughout to make the application of language features more concrete. Learning Python starts by giving programmers all the information they'll need to understand and construct programs in the Python language, including types, operators, statements, classes, functions, modules, and exceptions. The authors then present more advanced material, showing how Python performs common tasks by offering real applications and the libraries available for those applications. There are exercises throughout the book to test your new skills. Learning Python, Second Edition is a self-paced book that allows readers to focus on the core Python language in depth. As you work through the book, you'll gain a deep and complete understanding of the Python language that will help you to develop larger applications on your own. This book is for anyone who doesn't want to stop at just learning Python, but wants to master it as well.

SYNOPSIS

Learning Python is an introduction to the increasingly popular Python programming language. Python is an interpreted, interactive, object-oriented scripting language. Python is growing in popularity because: It is available on all important platforms: Windows NT, Windows 95, Windows 98, Linux, all major UNIX platforms, MacOS, and even the BeOS. It is open-source software, copyrighted but freely available for use, even in commercial applications. Its clean object-oriented interface makes it a valuable prototyping tool for C++ programmers. It works well with all popular windowing toolkits, including MFC, Tk, Mac, X11, and Motif.

Learning Python is written by Mark Lutz, author of Programming Python and Python Desktop Reference; and David Ascher, a vision scientist and Python user.

This book starts with a thorough introduction to the elements of Python: types, operators, statements, functions, modules, and exceptions. By reading the first part of the book, the reader will be able to understand and construct programs in the Python language. In the second part of the book, the authors present more advanced information, demonstrating how Python performs common tasks and presenting real applications and the libraries available for those applications.