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Slytherin House 2019

A Python learning community for University Library faculty and staff.

Books

Learn Python the Hard Way

You Will Learn Python!   Zed Shaw has perfected the world's best system for learning Python. Follow it and you will succeed-just like the hundreds of thousands of beginners Zed has taught to date! You bring the discipline, commitment, and persistence; the author supplies everything else.   In Learn Python the Hard Way, Third Edition, you'll learn Python by working through 52 brilliantly crafted exercises. Read them. Type their code precisely. (No copying and pasting!) Fix your mistakes. Watch the programs run. As you do, you'll learn how software works; what good programs look like; how to read, write, and think about code; and how to find and fix your mistakes using tricks professional programmers use. Most importantly, you'll learn the following, which you need to start writing excellent Python software of your own: Installing a complete Python environment Organizing and writing code Basic mathematics Variables Strings and text Interacting with users Working with files Looping and logic Data structures using lists and dictionaries Program design Object-oriented programming Inheritance and composition Modules, classes, and objects Python packaging Debugging Automated testing Basic game development Basic web development It'll be hard at first. But soon, you'll just get it-and that will feel great!   This tutorial will reward you for every minute you put into it. Soon, you'll know one of the world's most powerful, popular programming languages. You'll be a Python programmer.   Watch Zed, too! The accompanying DVD contains 5+ hours of passionate, powerful teaching: a complete Python video course!

Automate the Boring Stuff with Python

If you ve ever spent hours renaming files or updating hundreds of spreadsheet cells, you know how tedious tasks like these can be. But what if you could have your computer do them for you? In Automate the Boring Stuff with Python, you ll learn how to use Python to write programs that do in minutes what would take you hours to do by hand no prior programming experience required. Once you ve mastered the basics of programming, you ll create Python programs that effortlessly perform useful and impressive feats of automation to: Search for text in a file or across multiple files Create, update, move, and rename files and folders Search the Web and download online content Update and format data in Excel spreadsheets of any size Split, merge, watermark, and encrypt PDFs Send reminder emails and text notifications Fill out online forms Step-by-step instructions walk you through each program, and practice projects at the end of each chapter challenge you to improve those programs. Open Access.

Think Python

If you want to learn how to program, working with Python is an excellent way to start. This hands-on guide takes you through the language a step at a time, beginning with basic programming concepts before moving on to functions, recursion, data structures, and object-oriented design. This second edition and its supporting code have been updated for Python 3. Through exercises in each chapter, you'll try out programming concepts as you learn them. Think Python is ideal for students at the high school or college level, as well as self-learners, home-schooled students, and professionals who need to learn programming basics. Beginners just getting their feet wet will learn how to start with Python in a browser. Start with the basics, including language syntax and semantics Get a clear definition of each programming concept Learn about values, variables, statements, functions, and data structures in a logical progression Discover how to work with files and databases Understand objects, methods, and object-oriented programming Use debugging techniques to fix syntax, runtime, and semantic errors Explore interface design, data structures, and GUI-based programs through case studies

Begin to Code with Python

This full-colour book will inspire you to start solving problems and creating programs with Python, even if you have absolutely no programming experience. It's not just friendly and easy: it's the first Python beginner's guide that puts you in control of your own learning, and empowers you to build unique programs to solve problems you care about.   Microsoft has completely reinvented the beginning programmer's tutorial, reflecting deep research into how today's beginners learn, and why other books fall short. Begin to Code with Python is packed with innovations, including its "Snaps" library of pre-built operations that are easy to combine your own unique programs, Cookie Cutter templates that give you a flying start, and "Make Something Happen" projects that help you build skills by creating your own programs, not programs someone else has handed you.   Throughout, Begin to Code with Python balances playful exposition and illustration of programming fundamentals with your own creative input - and you'll never be more than a page or two away from making something unique and personal to you. It will help you... Understand the basics of coding, from simple data storage to more complex and useful programs Discover how Python works using the Visual Studio environment Master advanced techniques, including classes and object-based solutions design Extend your code with Python's powerful libraries Build web and cloud-based applications, as well as graphical user interfaces and games Test and debug your code with "What can go wrong" sections Understand the social aspects of professional development, and build career-ready skills from the start  

Head First Python

Want to learn the Python language without slogging your way through how-to manuals? With Head First Python, you'll quickly grasp Python's fundamentals, working with the built-in data structures and functions. Then you'll move on to building your very own webapp, exploring database management, exception handling, and data wrangling. If you're intrigued by what you can do with context managers, decorators, comprehensions, and generators, it's all here. This second edition is a complete learning experience that will help you become a bonafide Python programmer in no time. Why does this book look so different? Based on the latest research in cognitive science and learning theory, Head First Pythonuses a visually rich format to engage your mind, rather than a text-heavy approach that puts you to sleep. Why waste your time struggling with new concepts? This multi-sensory learning experience is designed for the way your brain really works.

Lean Python: Learn Just Enough Python to Build Useful Tools

Learn only the essential aspects of Python without cluttering up your mind with features you may never use. This compact book is not a "best way to write code" type of book; rather, the author goes over his most-used functions, which are all you need to know as a beginner and some way beyond. Lean Python takes 58 Python methods and functions and whittles them down to 15: as author Paul Gerrard says, "I haven't found a need for the rest." What You'll Learn Discover lean Python and how to learn just enough to build useful tools Use Python objects, program structure, I/O, modules and more Handle errors and exceptions  Test your code Access the Web; do searching; and persist data Who This Book Is For This book is aimed at three categories of reader: The experienced programmer - if you already know a programming language, this book gives you a shortcut to understanding the Python language and some of its design philosophy.  You work in IT and need a programming primer - you might be a tester who needs to have more informed technical discussions with programmers. Working through the examples will help you to appreciate the challenge of good programming.  First-timer - you want a first book on programming that you can assimilate quickly to help you decide whether programming is for you.

Python for Kids for Dummies

The kid-friendly way to learning coding with Python Calling all wanna-be coders! Experts point to Python as one of the best languages to start with when you're learning coding, and Python For Kids For Dummies makes it easier than ever. Packed with approachable, bite-sized projects that won't make you lose your cool, this fun and friendly guide teaches the basics of coding with Python in a language you can understand. In no time, you'll be installing Python tools, creating guessing games, building a geek speak translator, making a trivia game, constructing a Minecraft chat client, and so much more. Whether you don't have the opportunity to take coding classes at school or in camp'or just simply prefer to learn on your own?Python For Kids For Dummies makes getting acquainted with this popular coding language fast and easy. It walks you step-by-step through basic coding projects and provides lots of hands-on tasks that give you a sweet sense of accomplishment when you complete them. What's not to love about that? Navigate the basics of coding with the Python language Create your own applications and games Find help from other Python users Expand your technology skills with Python If you're a pre-to-early-teen looking to add coding skills to your creativity toolbox, Python For Kids For Dummies is your sure-fire weapon for getting up and running with one of the hottest programming languages around.

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