LebGeeks

Hello1245

Member

What do you think about Python?

Hello,next year I'm gonna start majoring in CS. I'm 17 now and started to learn Python. I made this code for Lebgeek Registration. Do you think I'm gonna be a good Programmer? Should I continue with Python or should I start with C or Java?. I've heard that Python is easy and fast, plus Nasa uses it. What do you think?

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Last edited by Hello1245 (June 17 2016)

Johnaudi

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Hello and welcome, you're not allowed to share the code for registration, only geeks should be able to solve it.

Where are you majoring?

Last edited by Johnaudi (June 17 2016)

EzikMezik

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

imo Python is a good language to start with, you don't have to worry about data types, pointers, return types etc, and you can just focus on developing your algorithmic skills, which you will need a lot more than just knowing syntax. I suggest you begin to familiarize yourself with some of the most common algorithms like how to find max/min in an array, testing for palindromes, reversing strings, insertion sort, bubble sort, selection sort, linear search, binary search and the list goes on and on.
At the end of day, languages are not the important part, it's just the way you think as a programmer, if you do it right, you can apply it to any language.

NuclearVision

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Yes indeed, python is a great start for familiarizing with syntax, programming concepts(loops, conditionals, etc), You could, everytime, use it for big projects, seen the amount of external libraries that were/are being built, so helpful and straight to the point, but you'll still need to work on optimising your code, for the best output/efficiency.
Good luck.

LebMike

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Python is definitely something worth having in your knowledge arsenal. Keep in mind, that once you understand basic programming logic, and have learned 2-3 languages, it's far easier to bounce around.

Why I use Python regularly:
Great duct tape language, you can do almost anything with it. There is massive support and libraries for just about anything you can imagine.

Examples include:
Great database libraries that are well documented. SQLite, Postgres, MySQL, all easily handled.

Math libraries such as Numpy, SciPy, etc.

One of the top languages used for machine learning. Others include Apache Spark and R. Options, imo, decrease significantly outside of these.

People tend to say that R is better suited for statistics, however Python has caught up in my opinion. Arguments can be made that some things are still easier in R. Numpy is awesome.

Great language for use in financial analysis, image analysis, malware analysis etc, systems administration.

Multithreading and multiprocessing support.

Python, is well, pythonic. It strives to be easy to read. I find that things like Ruby (or maybe it's Ruby developers) tend, to strive for cleverness. Cleverness in programming is annoying. Especially when you are learning a project. Readability matters.

Excellent online communities for asking questions and learning.

Great at string manipulation. Lots of programming is just taking one piece of data, transforming it, and putting it somewhere else.

Web libraries such as BeautifulSoup and frameworks for building websites such as Flask.

Easy to build scalable software via things like celery. Search for celeryproject.

For the most part, any scripted language is a good place to start as you don't have to worry too much about garbage collection.

If you are pursuing a software development future you'll likely have to learn Java as well. It's use in enterprises is massive. I'm also a big advocate of using things like PyCharm. They have a free community edition. The paid edition is worth it if you need to do lots of database work. Some people make the argument that an IDE will keep you from learning things, but I just don't buy that.

Imo don't bother starting with Python2.x. There are a significant number of projects that still use it but it's not worth starting with. The biggest annoyance for me with Python2 is it's lack of solid unicode support. Python3 does not have this issue.

Last edited by LebMike (November 25 2016)

Vayl

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

...I'm also a big advocate of using things like PyCharm. They have a free community edition. The paid edition is worth it if you need to do lots of database work. Some people make the argument that an IDE will keep you from learning things, but I just don't buy that.

+ it keeps an eye on being PEP8 compliant!

Bonus video for any Python fans: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wf-BqAjZb8M

Last edited by Vayl (November 25 2016)

vlatkozelka

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Python is definitely something worth having in your knowledge arsenal. Keep in mind, that once you understand basic programming logic, and have learned 2-3 languages, it's far easier to bounce around.

Exactly, every language has it's pros/cons. You need to dig deep into the basics of programming as a whole, instead of just using libraries here and there and call yourself a developer.

Once you've mastered the basics, you can really just read documentation and work your way around any language.

Of course, that still means that you will be much fluent and comfortable with languages you regularly use. But being versatile is very rewarding.

As for python , well after coding in Java and C family languages for so long. I just can't digest it :/
Sorry python fans

firaskoussa

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Python is strong and reliable. It's mostly used for scripting and utilities, and personally, I use it for automation most. For example like calling out API's then parsing the response back to do a certain task.

It is not 'hard' but overall, all programming languages need practice, and yes practice is the key. Being confident with the language will allow you to do many things and open alot of opportunities for doing projects and even job offers haha!

redd

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

I'm not even a capital-P Programmer and I love Python. Even if you end up saying CS or programming isn't for you, and instead do something else remotely technical, knowing Python will be a great tool to have.

ahb21

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Wait, people actually wrote code to register?
I just computed it mathematically on a calculator.
Far less steps then finding an algorithm and then debugging if you have something wrong.

q.

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Wait, people actually wrote code to register?
I just computed it mathematically on a calculator.
Far less steps then finding an algorithm and then debugging if you have something wrong.

It's way faster to write code for it. It's like 5 lines of code.

rolf

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Do you think I'm gonna be a good Programmer?

No. There is no such thing as a good programmer. All programmers produce buggy, hard to understand code.

Should I continue with Python or should I start with C or Java?. I've heard that Python is easy and fast, plus Nasa uses it. What do you think?

I think that "Nasa uses it" is a lousy argument.

I personally didn't like Python too much when I tried using it, I found doing simple tasks like opening a file being somewhat elaborate, compared to Node JavaScript.

Given the choices above, I would (and I mean me not you - so it only applies to me - but that's all the opinion I can give you), I would look into learning Java. My impression is that Java concepts are easy to understand and widely used across languages (Object-oriented, etc.). So in a way, Java feels like a "neutral" language.

Last edited by rolf (December 18 2017)

ThunderGladiator

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

It is the easiest, and yet it is in demand world wide (except in lebanon, where the only thing in demand is you know what)

vlatkozelka

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

It is the easiest, and yet it is in demand world wide (except in lebanon, where the only thing in demand is you know what)

I don't know what ... In my company we use any language/framework that is suitable for the job. I've even seen scala and haskell here.

Personally, I've never had a boss that was like "use this language not that". The only companies that do that are ones that offer minimum wage, and want to keep replacing employees often, fearing that the newcomers won't be able to work with some "alien" language/framework. Those companies are also dying if I'm not wrong (at least the ones I know).

duke-of-bytes

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Do you guys have any good resources for python coding for IT ? I won't know if any course online is good

VincentKeyboard

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

It's not entirely ready yet but this is a draft of a book being written by a university professor. http://python.cs.southern.edu/pythonbook/pythonbook.pdf

Joe

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Why not check the official tutorial?

VincentKeyboard

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

This is a biased opinion, but I also suggest learning C after Python.

duke-of-bytes

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

Why not check the official tutorial?

i want something for beginners as i know nothing about coding

VincentKeyboard

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

What kind of computer knowledge do you current have? Can you set up a compiler, etc...?

Start with C or java if python scares you.

C is very easy for people without previous programming knowledge. There aren't many concepts in C and once you are done with it, many other languages will feel like a continuation of what you learned in C.

Java is more comprehensive as it is a complete ecosystem. Here is a "from scratch" Java tutorial https://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial … index.html

Last edited by VincentKeyboard (August 21 2019)

rolf

Member

Re: What do you think about Python?

"Should I learn Python?"
I guess this is a timeless question.

Last edited by rolf (August 21 2019)