2  Python, IDE’s, Spyder, and Script Files

Python is a high-level, interpreted programming language known for its simplicity, readability, and versatility. Python is widely used in various domains, including web development, data science, artificial intelligence, automation, scientific computing, and more.

2.1 Which editors and IDEs are available for Python?

Many editors and integrated development environments (IDEs) are available:

  1. IDLE (from Python install)

  2. PyCharm (specifically made for Python)

  3. Spyder which comes from the Anaconda Distribution package (specifically for Python)

  4. VS Code (integration of using multiple high level languages)

  5. Jupyter notebooks (for testing and collaboration of code snippets)

  6. Python may also be used in RStudio with the reticulate package.

2.2 The Spyder IDE

The Anaconda distribution is a free, open-source distribution of the Python and R programming languages. It is widely used for scientific computing, data science, and machine learning applications. Anaconda simplifies package management and deployment by providing a pre-packaged collection of libraries and tools tailored for these fields.

In this book, we use Spyder from the Anaconda distribution.

2.3 Spyder script files

Open a Spyder script file and save it to your working directory. Call it practice1.py

Tip

Your script file will remain in your Spyder session even after you close it without saving!

Use the hashtag (#) symbol to make comments. The words in your comment should appear green.

Try This! 
print("Hello Python")

2.4 Reflection questions

  1. Python is used in many fields like data science, web development, and AI. Which of these areas are you most interested in exploring, and why?

  2. Why might a beginner prefer using Spyder with the Anaconda distribution rather than installing Python and packages manually?

  3. How does Spyder make it easier to write, test, and manage Python code?

  4. How do script files make programming projects more organized and reusable?

  5. How can comments (lines starting with #) improve your code, even though they are ignored during execution?