The language that a software developer uses when communicating with his computer to get what he wants is called programming language. Thanks to the commands written in the programming language, the computer understands what it has to do and processes the given commands. Today, there are more than 800 different programming languages used by programmers, and Python, which we will tell you today, is one of these 800 languages.
If you are wondering what Python is, which is used by Netflix, Instagram, Dropbox, Spotify and even Google, let’s take a look together.
What is Python and what is it used for?
Simply put, Python is an object-oriented, general-purpose high-level programming language with dynamic semantics. So that means it can be used to build just about anything, provided it’s supported with the right tools.
Python’s highly built-in data structures combined with dynamic typing and dynamic linking make it highly attractive for use as a scripting or glue language for rapid application development and interconnecting existing components. Python’s simple, easy-to-learn syntax makes it more readable, which reduces program maintenance costs. Python also supports modules and packages that encourage program modularity and code reuse. The Python interpreter and standard comprehensive library are freely available for all major platforms, and you don’t have to pay for distribution.
From a professional point of view, Python; It is perfect for backend internet development, data analysis, artificial intelligence and scientific computing. Many developers use Python to create productivity tools, desktop apps, and games, so if you ever want to learn Python or get stuck in the learning process, there are loads of helpful resources to browse.
What is the working principle of Python?
Programmers are often hit with Python for the increased productivity it provides. Since there is no build step in Python, the edit-test-debug cycle is incredibly fast. Python programs are easy to debug: any error or bad input will never cause a segmentation fault. Instead, it raises an exception when the interpreter discovers an error. When the program does not catch the exception, the interpreter prints a stack trace. A source-level debugger allows examining local and global variables, evaluating arbitrary expressions, setting breakpoints, stepping through the code one line at a time, and so on.
The debugger is written in Python’s native language, testifying to Python’s introspective power. On the other hand, often the fastest way to debug a program is to add a few print statements to the source: the quick edit-test-debug cycle makes this simple approach very effective.
So, is Python an easy language to learn?
Taking its name from the famous comedy/satire series Monthy Python and which we can describe as ‘beginner-friendly’, Python is designed to be easy to understand and fun to use. Considering that fun is a great motivator and makes the often tedious learning process easier, we wouldn’t be wrong to say that you can quickly build prototypes and tools with Python, and most users find coding in Python satisfying. These features have made Python popular with software beginners and overtake Java as the most popular input language at top US universities.
Being a very high level language, Python is like English, which requires a lot of syntax learning for beginners. Python handles a lot of complexity for you and is also very beginner friendly as it allows beginners to focus on learning programming concepts and not worry about too many details.
We can say that Python, which is a dynamically typed language, is an extremely flexible language. This flexibility means that there are no strict rules on how to create properties, and although Python’s philosophy is based on solving problems in the easiest and cleanest way, you will have more options for solving problems by resorting to different methods. What’s more, Python handles your errors quite moderately, meaning you can edit and run your program until you get to the problematic part.
What are the cons of Python?
Since Python is a dynamically typed language, something can easily have more than one meaning depending on the context in which it is used. As a Python application grows and becomes more complex, it can become harder to maintain as bugs become harder to track down and fix, so it takes experience and knowledge to know how to design your code or write unit tests to make it easy to maintain.
Also, this can slow Python’s performance a bit and make it sluggish, as it is very flexible and the machine has to reference a lot to be completely sure of what the definition of something is.
In any case, alternative implementations of Python exist, such as the faster PyPy. It is also worth noting that while these alternatives are not yet as fast as Java, they greatly increase the speed.
Python communities:
- 5th largest community on StackOverflow
- 3rd largest community on Meetup
- GitHub’ 4th most used language
When you step into the programming world, you soon realize that one of the most important key points of the programming community is support, as the developer community is entirely based on getting and providing help when needed. That is, the size of the community is directly proportional to the probability of getting help, and the larger the community, the more people develop useful tools to facilitate the development process.
5th largest community on StackOverflow
If you’re a beginner at coding, StackOverflow, a question-and-answer site, will undoubtedly become your go-to spot in no time. Python has over 85,900 followers on StackOverflow and over 500,000 questions about it. Additionally, Python-related questions are the 3rd most likely to be answered, compared to other popular programming languages.
3rd largest community in Meetup
Meetup with Python’s over 608,000 members in total. com has more than 1300 groups, making Python the 3rd largest community in Meetup by programming languages. You can network through Meetup, learn from other developers and benefit from mentoring services if you wish.
GitHub’ 4th most used language
The more useful projects there are, the more likely it is that someone has already and well built the functionality you want, which will greatly speed up your development process. More than 950 Python projects have 500+ stars.
Python is also known to have a large number of libraries that assist in data analysis and scientific computing. In addition, for those of you who want to make simple games, PyGames is a nice game engine for creating games.
The career opportunities of Python, which is very popular in its sector:
According to AngelList, a site for startups and job seekers, Python is the 2nd most requested skill and has the highest average salary. With the rise of big data, Python developers are in high demand as data scientists, especially since Python can be easily integrated into web applications to perform machine learning tasks.
What does the future of Python promise?
According to the TIOBE index, Python ranks 4th in the list of the 100 most popular programming languages. Another programming language, Ruby on Rails, and more recently Node. With the rise of js, the use of Python as the main prototyping language for backend internet development has dwindled somewhat, especially since it has a fragmented MVC ecosystem, but with big data becoming more and more important, Python is in demand more than ever before, especially the web. It has become a skill that can be integrated into applications.
As an open source project, Python is actively worked on with a moderate update cycle, releasing new versions each year to ensure it remains fit for purpose.
The ability of a programming language to stay fit for purpose also depends on keeping the language fresh and fresh. In terms of search volume, Python has risen to #1 among other languages for anyone wanting to learn it. Interest in Python grew by 22.1% in 2015. Looking at the trend, we can safely say that in terms of serving its purpose, Python will continue to hold the strings in the future with the help of its large audience.
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