Introduction to Python

Introduction to Python

• Python was developed by Guido van Rossum in released in 1991 at the National Research Institute for Mathematics and Computer Science in the Netherlands.
• Python is derived from many other languages, including ABC, Modula-3, C, C++, Algol-68, SmallTalk, and UNIX shell and other scripting languages.
• Python is copyrighted. Like Perl, Python source code is now available under the GNU General Public License (GPL).

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 can be treated in a procedural way, an object-oriented way or a functional way.

What is Python 

• Python is a high-level, interpreted, interactive and object-oriented scripting language. Python is designed to be highly readable. It uses English keywords frequently whereas the other languages use punctuations. It has fewer syntactical constructions than other languages.

• Python is Interpreted: Python is processed at runtime by the interpreter. You do not need to compile your program before executing it. This is similar to PERL and PHP.

• Python is Interactive: You can actually sit at a Python prompt and interact with the interpreter directly to write your programs.

• Python is Object-Oriented: Python supports Object-Oriented style or technique of programming that encapsulates code within objects.

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