How to learn Python.

[Sir_Rimo]

As a student I have studied C++ before a little, and now I'm studying Java. but for my job, I must learn to use Python. I'm reading some books, and also study the Python Programming Language -- Official Website tutorial. but I wanted to ask you all to tell me what I may need to know before starting it. What is special to know about this language that I must have in mind?
I'd be so happy to read your Ideas!
thanks alot.
Rimo

[Void]

Read as much as you can about it and jump right into it. That is how I learn best. Set a small programming goal in Python and try to accomplish it and build on it from there.

[Sir_Rimo]

Originally Posted by Void

Read as much as you can about it and jump right into it. That is how I learn best. Set a small programming goal in Python and try to accomplish it and build on it from there.

Thanks very much dear void, That's what I'm starting.
My team manager asked me to do it like this, he gave me a project to do and went away!!!
but with your sayings, I just get the idea how to do it. I must achieve the goals. thanks very much. you encouraged me alot!

[techni68]

I actually have never heard of Python..what applications use this?

[Sir_Rimo]

Originally Posted by techni68

I actually have never heard of Python..what applications use this?

Python is exactly a programing language! I had never heard of it before I found this new job as a programer.
I'm learning it now, and as an explanation, I can say this Python has formed by making everything easy! the founders have tried to make everything easy, which made some things confusing in my idea.
You can find everything about it in it's official website. Python Programming Language -- Official Website

[romanrobot]

How I'm doing it, and I definitely do not advocate this, I'm working though a beginners guide and taking notes. The guide I'm using is Beginning Python from Novice to Professional by Magnus Lie Hetland. Great guide, very informative and well paced, I would suggest it as a resource. But working through a guide and taking notes is the slowest way of doing it. To compound problems I took a week off from learning just after I finished an introduction to strings.
Creativity is essential. Let every new lesson be an inspiration for a program. It helps to wonder far and beyond what you know, in my opinion. And that stands for learning anything, I guess.
In the end its not so much what I learn but the exposure to thinking like a programmer that's important for me. If there's anything I've learned from Python its thinking of things in their simplest possible form. If there is a problem or something overly elaborate in the code its either a mistype, a syntax error, or I was coding to an arbitrary example. What did I learn from learning Python? Think logically and think generally. Do not pigeonhole your conceptions ever.

[kisna]

If you know little bit of it then I recommend you looking a small already made programmes. And try to change it.This is how I do.

Just read more documentations, tutorials and more practise, you will be a good programer.

[Matt]

So I am learning Python (rather successfully) entirely from articles on the internet and an eBook of "Beginning Python" by Magnus Lie Hetland. I find the latter to be very well composed and easy to understand, though use of the interactive interpreter (IDLE; to experiment and test new learnings) is essential while learning. I also found learning python, which provides lots of great tutorials (I used it to get introduced to PyGTK+Glade).

[Sharke]

I started with an excellent and well renowned book "Learning Python - an Introduction to Computer Science" by John Zelle.

It's really a computer science book which happens to use Python as it's example language, Python now generally considered to be the best language to introduce beginners to the basics of programming. I guess they used to use LISP....I think Python is related to LISP in some ways.

The examples are excellent and the exercises he sets really get you thinking. I really enjoyed going through this book.

But also I find it helpful to dive into 2 or 3 books at a time and read different subjects on different levels simultaneously. This helps me get a broader picture of the language and its uses. I would recommend the books "Learning Python" and "Programming Python" by Mark Lutz, the former being an excellent introduction (although I think not for complete beginners like it suggests) and the latter being a huge book covering many advanced and practical topics in much depth. Browsing this book whets my appetite and allows me to see just what can be possible with the language - this is important to me because I easily tire of trivial examples which I can't imagine as part of any kind of useful project.

Lastly I would suggest the "WxPython in action" which is providing me with a very clear introduction to GUI programming using these widgets.