Python Essentials For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

The no-nonsense way to get started coding in the Python programming language Python Essentials For Dummies is a quick reference to all the core concepts in Python, the multifaceted general-purpose language used for everything from building websites to creating apps. This book gets right to the point, with no excess review, wordy explanations, or fluff, making it perfect as a desk reference on the job or as a brush-up as you expand your skills in related areas. Focusing on just the essential topics you need to know to brush up or level up your Python skill, this is the reliable little book you can always turn to for answers. Get a quick and thorough intro to the basic concepts of coding in Python Review what you've already learned or pick up essential new skills Create websites, software, machine learning, and automation for school or work Keep this concise reference book handy for jogging your memory as you code This portable Dummies Essentials book focuses on the key topics you need to know about the popular Python language. Great for supplementing a course, reviewing for a certification, or staying knowledgeable on the job. Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Introduction About This Book Foolish Assumptions Icons Used in This Book Where to Go from Here Chapter 1 Starting with Python Why Python Is Hot Choosing the Right Python Tools for Success Installing Python and VS Code Installing the Python extension Letting AI write your Python code Using GitHub Copilot Chapter 2 Using Interactive Mode, Getting Help, and Writing Apps Using Python’s Interactive Mode Opening Terminal Going into the Python Interpreter Entering commands Using Python’s built-in help Exiting interactive help Searching for specific help topics online Creating a Folder for Your Python Code Typing, Editing, and Debugging Python Code Writing Python code Saving your code Running Python in VS Code Learning simple debugging Closing a file Chapter 3 Python Elements and Syntax The Zen of Python Introducing Object-Oriented Programming Discovering Why Indentations Count, Big Time Using Python Modules Chapter 4 Building Your First Python Application Opening the Python App File Typing and Using Python Comments Understanding Python Data Types Numbers Integers Floats Words (strings) Booleans Working with Python Operators Arithmetic operators Comparison operators Boolean operators Creating and Using Variables Creating valid variable names Creating variables in code Manipulating variables Saving your work Running your Python app in VS Code Understanding What Syntax Is and Why It Matters Chapter 5 Working with Numbers, Text, and Dates Calculating Numbers with Functions Still More Math Functions Formatting Numbers Formatting with f-strings Showing dollar amounts Formatting percent numbers Formatting width and alignment Grappling with Weirder Numbers Manipulating Strings Concatenating strings Getting the length of a string Working with common string operators Manipulating strings with methods Uncovering Dates and Times Working with dates Calculating timespans Chapter 6 Controlling the Action Main Operators for Controlling the Action Making Decisions with if Adding else to your if logic Ternary operations Repeating a Process with for Looping through numbers in a range Looping through a list Bailing out of a loop Looping with continue Nesting loops Looping with while Starting while loops over with continue Breaking while loops with break Chapter 7 Speeding Along with Lists and Tuples Defining and Using Lists Referencing list items by position Looping through a list Seeing whether a list contains an item Getting the length of a list Adding an item to the end of a list Inserting an item into a list Changing an item in a list Combining lists Removing list items Clearing out a list Counting how many times an item appears in a list Finding a list item’s index Alphabetizing and sorting lists Reversing a list Copying a list What’s a Tuple and Who Cares? Working with Sets Chapter 8 Wrangling Bigger Chunks of Code Creating a Function Commenting a Function Passing Information to a Function Defining optional parameters with defaults Passing multiple values to a function Using keyword arguments (kwargs) Passing in an arbitrary number of arguments Returning Values from Functions Chapter 9 Sidestepping Errors Understanding Exceptions Handling Errors Gracefully Being Specific about Exceptions Keeping Your App from Crashing Adding an else to the Mix Using try . . . except . . . else . . . finally Raising Your Own Exceptions Chapter 10 Working with External Files Understanding Text and Binary Files Opening and Closing Files Reading a File’s Contents Looping through a File Looping with readlines() Looping with readline() Appending versus overwriting files Using tell() to determine the pointer location Moving the pointer with seek() Reading and Copying a Binary File Chapter 11 Juggling JSON Data Organizing JSON Data Understanding Serialization Loading Data from JSON Files Converting an Excel date to a JSON date Loading unkeyed JSON from a Python string Loading keyed JSON data from a Python string Changing JSON data Removing data from a dictionary Dumping Python Data to JSON Chapter 12 Interacting with the Internet Seeing How the Web Works Understanding the mysterious URL Exposing the HTTP headers Opening a URL from Python Posting to the web with Python Scraping the web with Python Storing the parsed content Chapter 13 Libraries, Packages, and Modules Understanding the Python Standard Library Using the dir() function Using the help() function Exploring built-in functions Exploring Python Packages Importing Python Modules Chapter 14 The Ten Most Essential Aspects of Python Being Pythonic Identifying the Importance of Indents Understanding Python Syntax Appreciating the Flexibility of Python Variables Seeing Lists as Your Friend Controlling Your Program Understanding Python Functions Figuring Out Errors Using Other People’s Modules Using the Web and AI When You Have Problems Index EULA