Introduction to Python Programming Language, What is Python?, Key features of Python Language, Implementation of Python, Applications of Python Programming, Python Development Environment Setup, and Drawbacks of Python Language.
Introduction to Python Programming
1. What is Python?
2. Key features of Python Language
3. Implementation of Python
4. Applications of Python
6. Drawbacks of Python Language
1. What is Python?
Python is a Programming language, so the primary purpose of Python is Software Development.
Python was created by Guido Van Rossum in 1989, but publicly released in 1991, It is further developed by the Python Software Foundation, and Python official website is (python.org).
Python is not named after the snake Python, The father of Python – Guido Van Rossum said the name of the language was taken from the British comedy series “Monty Python’s Flying Circus”.
Python is a general-purpose, high-level, interpreted, interactive, object-oriented, open-source programming language.
Python is a general-purpose language – It is a programming language designed to be used for writing software in the widest variety of application domains.
Python is a high-level language – It is a programming language designed to simplify computer programming, high-level source code contains easy-to-read syntax that is later converted into a low-level language, which can be recognized and run by a specific CPU.
Python is an interpreted language – An interpreted language is a type of programming language for which most of its implementations execute instructions directly and freely, without previously compiling a program into machine-language instructions.
Python is interactive – Python supports Interactive mode Programming, It provides us with a quick way of running blocks or a single line of Python code.
Python is object-oriented – It is an object-oriented programming language and it also supports functional programming. It allows us to develop applications using an Object-Oriented approach. In Python, we can easily create and use classes and objects.
Python is open source – Python is developed under an OSI-approved open source license, making it freely usable and distributable, even for commercial use. Python’s license is administered by the Python Software Foundation.
2. Key features of Python Language
Key features of Python language are:
Free and Open Source:
Python language is freely available at the official web address (python.org). The source code is also available, therefore it is open source.
Object-Oriented Language:
Python supports object-oriented language and concepts of classes and objects that come into existence.
Easy to Learn and Use:
Python is easy to learn and use. It is a developer-friendly and high-level programming language.
Cross-platform Language:
Python can run equally on different platforms such as Windows, Linux, Unix, and Macintosh, etc. So, we can say that Python is a portable language.
Integrated:
It can be easily integrated with languages like C, C++, JAVA, etc.
Note: Python has so many other features also there, but here I mentioned key features only.
3. Implementation of Python
Python has a number of alternative implementations are available:
CPython: The default implementation of the Python programming language is CPython. As the name suggests CPython is written in C language.
IronPython: (Python running on .NET)
Jython: (Python running on the Java Virtual Machine)
PyPy: (A fast Python implementation with a JIT compiler)
Stackless Python: (Branch of CPython supporting micro-threads)
MicroPython: (Python running on microcontrollers)
Anaconda Python: Anaconda is a free and open-source distribution of the Python and R programming languages for scientific computing.
4. Applications of Python
Python is used to develop:
i. Desktop GUI (Graphical User Interface)
ii. Web and Internet Development (IoT – Internet of Things)
iii. Games and 3D Graphics
iv. Scientific and Numeric Applications
v. Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence
vi. Data Science and Data Visualization
vii. Enterprise Applications (Such as e-commerce, ERP and many more.)
viii. Network Programming
ix. Embedded Applications
x. Audio and Video Applications
xi. Education
xii. CAD (Computer-Aided Designing) Applications
xiii. Software Testing / Writing automated tests
xiv. Python for DevOps / System administration / Writing automation scripts.
5. Python Programming Environment Setup
Python environment is required to write & execute/run Python programs,
Steps (For Windows OS):
i) Download your operating system compatible Python Software from Python official web site (python.org)
ii) Install Python Software and set PATH while installation
iii) After installation you can get Python IDLE, launch IDLE, write & execute Python programs.
Note: Python IDLE is best for learning Python language, but for working (commercial purpose), download & install PyCharm IDE, and write & execute Python programs using pyCharm IDE.
6. Drawbacks of Python Language
i) Python has a slow speed of execution. It is slower than C, C++, and Java because it works with an interpreter, not the compiler.
ii) Python language is seen as less suitable for mobile development and game development.
iii) Python has high memory consumption and is not used in web browsers because it is not secure.
iv) Python’s database access layer is primitive and underdeveloped in comparison to popular technologies like JDBC and ODBC.
v) Python is a dynamically typed language so the data type of a variable can change anytime. A variable containing an integer number may hold a string in the future, which can lead to Runtime Errors.
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