PYTHON TUTORIAL

What is Python?
Python is a popular programming language. It was created by Guido van Rossum, and
released in 1991.

It is used for:

• web development (server-side),

• software development,
• mathematics,
• system scripting.

What can Python do?

• 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.

Why Python?
• Python works on different platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, Raspberry Pi, etc).
• Python has a simple syntax similar to 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.

Good to know
• The most recent major version of Python is Python 3. However, Python 2, although
not being updated with anything other than security updates, is still quite popular.
• In this tutorial Python will be written in a text editor. It is possible to write Python in
an Integrated Development Environment (IDE), such as Thonny, Pycharm, Netbeans
 or Eclipse which are particularly useful when managing larger collections of Python
files.

Python Syntax compared to other programming languages

• Python was designed for readability, and has some similarities to the English
language with influence from mathematics.
• Python uses new lines to complete a command, as opposed to other programming
languages which often use semicolons or parentheses.
• Python relies on indentation, using whitespace, to define scope; such as the scope of
loops, functions and classes. Other programming languages often use curly-brackets
for this purpose.
Python Install
Many PCs and Macs will have python already installed.

To check if you have python installed on a Windows PC, search in the start bar for Python or
run the following on the Command Line (cmd.exe):

C:\Users\Your Name>python --version

To check if you have python installed on a Linux or Mac, then on linux open the command
line or on Mac open the Terminal and type:

python --version

If you find that you do not have Python installed on your computer, then you can download
it for free from the following website: https://www.python.org/

Python Quickstart
Python is an interpreted programming language, this means that as a developer you write
Python (.py) files in a text editor and then put those files into the python interpreter to be
executed.

The way to run a python file is like this on the command line:

C:\Users\Your Name>python helloworld.py

Where "helloworld.py" is the name of your python file.

Let's write our first Python file, called helloworld.py, which can be done in any text editor.

helloworld.py

print("Hello, World!")

Simple as that. Save your file. Open your command line, navigate to the directory where
you saved your file, and run:

C:\Users\Your Name>python helloworld.py

The output should read:

Hello, World!
The Python Command Line
To test a short amount of code in python sometimes it is quickest and easiest not to write
the code in a file. This is made possible because Python can be run as a command line itself.

Type the following on the Windows, Mac or Linux command line:

C:\Users\Your Name>python

Or, if the "python" command did not work, you can try "py":
C:\Users\Your Name>py

From there you can write any python, including our hello world example from earlier in the
tutorial:

C:\Users\Your Name>python
Python 3.6.4 (v3.6.4:d48eceb, Dec 19 2017, 06:04:45) [MSC v.1900 32 bit (Intel)] on
win32
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> print("Hello, World!")

Which will write "Hello, World!" in the command line:

C:\Users\Your Name>python
Python 3.6.4 (v3.6.4:d48eceb, Dec 19 2017, 06:04:45) [MSC v.1900 32 bit (Intel)] on
win32
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> print("Hello, World!")
Hello, World!

Whenever you are done in the python command line, you can simply type the following to
quit the python command line interface:

exit()
Execute Python Syntax
As we learned in the previous page, Python syntax can be executed by writing directly in
the Command Line:

>>> print("Hello, World!")

Hello, World!

Or by creating a python file on the server, using the .py file extension, and running it in the
Command Line:

C:\Users\Your Name>python myfile.py

Python Indentation
Indentation refers to the spaces at the beginning of a code line.

Where in other programming languages the indentation in code is for readability only, the
indentation in Python is very important.

Python uses indentation to indicate a block of code.

Example
if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")

Python will give you an error if you skip the indentation:

Example
Syntax Error:

if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")
Example
if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")
if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")

You have to use the same number of spaces in the same block of code, otherwise Python
will give you an error:

Syntax Error:

if 5 > 2:
print("Five is greater than two!")
print("Five is greater than two!")
Python Data Types
Built-in Data Types
In programming, data type is an important concept.

Variables can store data of different types, and different types can do different things.

Python has the following data types built-in by default, in these categories:

Text Type: str

Numeric Types: int, float, complex

Sequence Types: list, tuple, range

Mapping Type: dict

Set Types: set, frozenset

Boolean Type: bool

Binary Types: bytes, bytearray, memoryview

None Type: NoneType

Getting the Data Type

You can get the data type of any object by using the type() function:

Example
Print the data type of the variable x:

x = 5
print(type(x))
Setting the Data Type
In Python, the data type is set when you assign a value to a variable:
Python Numbers
There are three numeric types in Python:

• int
• float
• complex

Variables of numeric types are created when you assign a value to them:

Example
x = 1 # int
y = 2.8 # float
z = 1j # complex

To verify the type of any object in Python, use the type() function:

Example
print(type(x))
print(type(y))
print(type(z))
Int
Int, or integer, is a whole number, positive or negative, without decimals, of unlimited
length.

Example
Integers:

x = 1
y = 35656222554887711
z = -3255522

print(type(x))
print(type(y))
print(type(z))

Float
Float, or "floating point number" is a number, positive or negative, containing one or more
decimals.

Example
Floats:

x = 1.10
y = 1.0
z = -35.59

print(type(x))
print(type(y))
print(type(z))
Float can also be scientific numbers with an "e" to indicate the power of 10.

Example
Floats:

x = 35e3
y = 12E4
z = -87.7e100

print(type(x))
print(type(y))
print(type(z))

Complex
Complex numbers are written with a "j" as the imaginary part:

Example
Complex:

x = 3+5j
y = 5j
z = -5j

print(type(x))
print(type(y))
print(type(z))
Type Conversion
You can convert from one type to another with the int(), float(),
and complex() methods:

Example
Convert from one type to another:

x = 1 # int
y = 2.8 # float
z = 1j # complex

#convert from int to float:

a = float(x)

#convert from float to int:

b = int(y)

#convert from int to complex:

c = complex(x)

print(a)
print(b)
print(c)

print(type(a))
print(type(b))
print(type(c))
Note: You cannot convert complex numbers into another number type.

Random Number
Python does not have a random() function to make a random number, but Python has a
built-in module called random that can be used to make random numbers:

Example
Import the random module, and display a random number between 1 and 9:

import random

print(random.randrange(1, 10))
Python Casting

Specify a Variable Type

There may be times when you want to specify a type on to a variable. This can be done with
casting. Python is an object-orientated language, and as such it uses classes to define data
types, including its primitive types.

Casting in python is therefore done using constructor functions:

• int() - constructs an integer number from an integer literal, a float literal (by
removing all decimals), or a string literal (providing the string represents a whole
number)
• float() - constructs a float number from an integer literal, a float literal or a string
literal (providing the string represents a float or an integer)
• str() - constructs a string from a wide variety of data types, including strings,
integer literals and float literals

Example
Integers:

x = int(1) # x will be 1
y = int(2.8) # y will be 2
z = int("3") # z will be 3
Example
Floats:

x = float(1) # x will be 1.0

y = float(2.8) # y will be 2.8
z = float("3") # z will be 3.0
w = float("4.2") # w will be 4.2

Example
Strings:

x = str("s1") # x will be 's1'

y = str(2) # y will be '2'
z = str(3.0) # z will be '3.0'
Python If ... Else

Python Conditions and If statements

Python supports the usual logical conditions from mathematics:

• Equals: a == b
• Not Equals: a != b
• Less than: a < b
• Less than or equal to: a <= b
• Greater than: a > b
• Greater than or equal to: a >= b

These conditions can be used in several ways, most commonly in "if statements" and loops.

An "if statement" is written by using the if keyword.

Example
If statement:

a = 33
b = 200
if b > a:
print("b is greater than a")

In this example we use two variables, a and b, which are used as part of the if statement to
test whether b is greater than a. As a is 33, and b is 200, we know that 200 is greater than
33, and so we print to screen that "b is greater than a".
Indentation
Python relies on indentation (whitespace at the beginning of a line) to define scope in the
code. Other programming languages often use curly-brackets for this purpose.

Example
If statement, without indentation (will raise an error):

a = 33
b = 200
if b > a:
print("b is greater than a") # you will get an error

Elif
The elif keyword is pythons way of saying "if the previous conditions were not true, then
try this condition".

Example
a = 33
b = 33
if b > a:
print("b is greater than a")
elif a == b:
print("a and b are equal")
Else
The else keyword catches anything which isn't caught by the preceding conditions.

Example
a = 200
b = 33
if b > a:
print("b is greater than a")
elif a == b:
print("a and b are equal")
else:
print("a is greater than b")

Short Hand If
If you have only one statement to execute, you can put it on the same line as the if
statement.

Example
One line if statement:

if a > b: print("a is greater than b")

Short Hand If ... Else
If you have only one statement to execute, one for if, and one for else, you can put it all on
the same line:

Example
One line if else statement:

a = 2
b = 330
print("A") if a > b else print("B")

This technique is known as Ternary Operators, or Conditional Expressions.

You can also have multiple else statements on the same line:

Example
One line if else statement, with 3 conditions:

a = 330
b = 330
print("A") if a > b else print("=") if a == b else print("B")
And
The and keyword is a logical operator, and is used to combine conditional statements:

Example
Test if a is greater than b, AND if c is greater than a:

a = 200
b = 33
c = 500
if a > b and c > a:
print("Both conditions are True")

Or
The or keyword is a logical operator, and is used to combine conditional statements:

Example
Test if a is greater than b, OR if a is greater than c:

a = 200
b = 33
c = 500
if a > b or a > c:
print("At least one of the conditions is True")
Nested If
You can have if statements inside if statements, this is called nested if statements.

Example
x = 41

if x > 10:
print("Above ten,")
if x > 20:
print("and also above 20!")
else:
print("but not above 20.")

The pass Statement

if statements cannot be empty, but if you for some reason have an if statement with no
content, put in the pass statement to avoid getting an error.

Example
a = 33
b = 200

if b > a:
pass
BOOL FUCTION
Evaluate Values and Variables
The bool() function allows you to evaluate any value, and give you True or False in return,

Example
Evaluate a string and a number:

print(bool("Hello"))
print(bool(15))

Example
Evaluate two variables:

x = "Hello"
y = 15

print(bool(x))
print(bool(y))

Most Values are True

Almost any value is evaluated to True if it has some sort of content.
Any string is True, except empty strings.

Any number is True, except 0.

Any list, tuple, set, and dictionary are True, except empty ones.

Some Values are False

In fact, there are not many values that evaluate to False, except empty values, such
as (), [], {}, "", the number 0, and the value None. And of course the
value False evaluates to False.

Example
The following will return False:

bool(False)
bool(None)
bool(0)
bool("")
bool(())
bool([])
bool({})

One more value, or object in this case, evaluates to False, and that is if you have an object
that is made from a class with a __len__ function that returns 0 or False:

Example
class myclass():
def __len__(self):
return 0

myobj = myclass()
print(bool(myobj))
Functions can Return a Boolean
You can create functions that returns a Boolean Value:

Example
Print the answer of a function:

def myFunction() :
return True

print(myFunction())
Python While Loops
Python Loops
Python has two primitive loop commands:

• while loops
• for loops

• The while Loop

• With the while loop we can execute a set of statements as long as a condition is
true.

• Example
• Print i as long as i is less than 6:
• i = 1
while i < 6:
print(i)
i += 1

Note: remember to increment i, or else the loop will continue forever.

The while loop requires relevant variables to be ready, in this example we need to define an
indexing variable, i, which we set to 1.
The break Statement
With the break statement we can stop the loop even if the while condition is true:

Example
Exit the loop when i is 3:

i = 1
while i < 6:
print(i)
if i == 3:
break
i += 1

The continue Statement

With the continue statement we can stop the current iteration, and continue with the next:

Example
Continue to the next iteration if i is 3:

i = 0
while i < 6:
i += 1
if i == 3:
continue
print(i)
The else Statement
With the else statement we can run a block of code once when the condition no longer is
true:

Example
Print a message once the condition is false:

i = 1
while i < 6:
print(i)
i += 1
else:
print("i is no longer less than 6")
Python For Loops

Python Collections (Arrays)

There are four collection data types in the Python programming language:

• List is a collection which is ordered and changeable. Allows duplicate members.

• Tuple is a collection which is ordered and unchangeable. Allows duplicate members.
• Set is a collection which is unordered, unchangeable*, and unindexed. No duplicate
members.
 • Dictionary is a collection which is ordered** and changeable. No duplicate
members.

Python Lists
mylist = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]

List
Lists are used to store multiple items in a single variable.

Lists are one of 4 built-in data types in Python used to store collections of data, the other 3
are Tuple, Set, and Dictionary, all with different qualities and usage.

Lists are created using square brackets:

Example
Create a List:

thislist = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]

print(thislist)

List Items
List items are ordered, changeable, and allow duplicate values.

List items are indexed, the first item has index [0], the second item has index [1] etc.
Ordered
When we say that lists are ordered, it means that the items have a defined order, and that
order will not change.

If you add new items to a list, the new items will be placed at the end of the list.

Note: There are some list methods that will change the order, but in general: the order of
the items will not change.

Changeable
The list is changeable, meaning that we can change, add, and remove items in a list after it
has been created.

Allow Duplicates
Since lists are indexed, lists can have items with the same value:

Example
Lists allow duplicate values:

thislist = ["apple", "banana", "cherry", "apple", "cherry"]

print(thislist)

List Length
To determine how many items a list has, use the len() function:

Example
Print the number of items in the list:

thislist = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]

print(len(thislist))

List Items - Data Types

List items can be of any data type:

Example
String, int and boolean data types:

list1 = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]

list2 = [1, 5, 7, 9, 3]
list3 = [True, False, False]

A list can contain different data types:

Example
A list with strings, integers and boolean values:

list1 = ["abc", 34, True, 40, "male"]

type()
From Python's perspective, lists are defined as objects with the data type 'list':
<class 'list'>

Example
What is the data type of a list?

mylist = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]

print(type(mylist))

The list() Constructor

It is also possible to use the list() constructor when creating a new list.

Example
Using the list() constructor to make a List:

thislist = list(("apple", "banana", "cherry")) # note the double round-brackets

print(thislist)