--Originally published at TEC GDL 2016

Dear reader,

Thank you for visiting my page once more. Today I will focus on the pure basics of the Python programming language. I will explain the different types there are in Python and what they are used for. Until this point I realized that I have not actually tried to understand the language of Python. Most times I just picked a random topic and started to write about it without actually trying to understand what I am doing. This starts NOW.

In Python, everything is an object. Each object is classified into different kinds of things. The way these objects are classified is to call them different classes or data types.

The main, so-called, native datatypes that are preinstalled in Python will further be explained one after another (this is only Part I of this series):

• Strings

Strings (denoted as ‘str‘, sequence of letters) are surrounded by quotation marks (single ‘, double ” or triple ”’ quotes).
The reason for this is, that when e.g. printing a sentence using an apostrophe (as is “I’m smart”), Python would confuse the single quotes. Thus, you would surround the string with double quotes.
(The same works the other way around: When you want to e.g. quote someone, use ‘ single quotes. Additionally, use triple quotes when framing a longer string.)

• Numbers (integers, floats)

Numbers are, of course, also often used within programs. In Python numbers are either classified as ‘int’ or ‘float’.
– ‘int‘ meaning integer numbers (like 1,2,3..)
– ‘float‘ numbers with a decimal point (like 1.25)

Python actually lets you find out what type a certain object is using the ‘type’ function.
See below:

• Boolean (True/False)

Booleans are either True or False. There are two constants installed within Python which can

Continue reading "Project 5: Basic Types & Their Use – Part I" →

--Originally published at TEC GDL 2016

For the second program I chose to build directly on the basic output covered in the first tutorial. This is why I chose to dig deeper into one of the mastery topics called Basic User Input. Here, I learned how to run a program that allows the user to enter their own information.

The first basic input was to programm the possibility of entering a name. This can be done by typing:
person= input(‘Welcome, please enter your name:’)
print(‘Thank you’, person)
– By typing this, the program will then give the output: Thank you, (e.g.) James.

So basically, I decided the term “person” to be taking on the different names to be entered into the system. In the next step I added the input of age into the Atom window. This way it is easily possible to build up a conversation with the person who enters the program. I could do this further and add further variables for the basic input but this gives quite a good overview on the topic already.

Additionally, here is a quick explanation to all of you on how to open the files through the terminal on a Mac:
– Create a draft & edit it whenever you want.
– Save it to any directory (I always choose desktop for the sake of simplicity)
– Open ‘Terminal’ on Mac
– Type ‘cd’ (short for change directory) + ‘Desktop’ (the directory where you saved the draft)
– Type ‘python3 ____’, where ____ should be the file name
– Terminal runs the program

Sources:

http://anh.cs.luc.edu/python/hands-on/3.1/handsonHtml/io.html

--Originally published at TEC GDL 2016

Today in class I started to get into the spheres of the programming language called “Phython”. Compared to other programming language such as Java or C++, Python is known to be  more of a general-purpose tool and thus perfect for total beginners like I am.

By the way: for any of you interested in widening their musical spectrum and those of you who would like to see more of my hometown, make sure to check out the following HipHop song by one of my favorite Germany rap groups (Their name really translates exactly to: Absolute Beginners – Exactly the way I feel right now)

 

Now, let’s get into Python and the first things I learned while using the IDLE software!
I decided to start off with the first major topic on the list which is the ‘Use of comments’. . I started out with programming a single line comment for this blogpost.

The way how to use a single line comment works the following:
You open the IDLE software and type  print(“Hello World“). Here you can see my first output:

I also tried to figure out how a multiple line comment works but in the end I wasn’t able to do this within my Python 3.5.2. IDLE window. I will ask our tutor Ken next time if he could help me with this.

I hope you liked my first little tutorial and feel free to shoot me some messages via Twitter (@tecjames) or comment on this post if you have any questions!

Sources used for this post:
http://www.afterhoursprogramming.com/tutorial/Python/Comments/
https://www.codecademy.com/en/forum_questions/505ba3cfc6addb000200e33c

--Originally published at TEC GDL 2016

Today in class I started to get into the spheres of the programming language called “Phython”. Compared to other programming language such as Java or C++, Python is known to be  more of a general-purpose tool and thus perfect for total beginners like I am.

By the way: for any of you interested in widening their musical spectrum and those of you who would like to see more of my hometown, make sure to check out the following HipHop song by one of my favorite Germany rap groups (Their name really translates exactly to: Absolute Beginners – Exactly the way I feel right now)

 

Now, let’s get into Python and the first things I learned while using the IDLE software!
I decided to start off with the first major topic on the list which is the ‘Use of comments’. . I started out with programming a single line comment for this blogpost.

The way how to use a single line comment works the following:
You open the IDLE software and type  print(“Hello World“). Here you can see my first output:

I also tried to figure out how a multiple line comment works but in the end I wasn’t able to do this within my Python 3.5.2. IDLE window. I will ask our tutor Ken next time if he could help me with this.

I hope you liked my first little tutorial and feel free to shoot me some messages via Twitter (@tecjames) or comment on this post if you have any questions!

Sources used for this post:
http://www.afterhoursprogramming.com/tutorial/Python/Comments/
https://www.codecademy.com/en/forum_questions/505ba3cfc6addb000200e33c