Why You Shouldn’t Be Ignoring Python

Many decades ago in the beginning of this year, a cohort of mine and I travelled to the Best Buy in the South of town to achieve true 3080 oneness. On the drive there, I mentioned that I had a general disdain for Python. I explained it was because I had difficulty understanding how writing so closely to plain English was a boon to a programming language. I elaborated that it made the challenge of writing Python into a medley of imposter syndrome and concern for what logistically contained me. After his head exploded (don’t worry, he recovered), we had a short discussion on the power afforded by such a language. Listening to someone who spent more of their time in Python than I had made me reconsider my position and give Python the old college try. With a little more heft/umph/gusto this time.

What I have found from the people who’ve discussed it with me, the podcasts that cover ideas and libraries like NumPy and SciPy, the process of writing, and the code blocks I’ve found online is this:

1. If you want a language that will allow an easy point of entry and still challenge you in 30 years, there’s Python.
2. If you want a high level capability to do literally anything you want, there’s Python.
3. If you love to laugh and read but hate all that meddling about in compilation time, there’s Python.
4. If you want to learn the language our future robot overlords will use, there’s Python.

I posit that Python is the strongest and most adaptable language on the market.

But what is this illustrious snek language?

Python is high-level.

What does that mean? It means you don’t have to worry about memory management. The trash collection services in Python are top notch. I would live there myself except there’re a lot of wild rams roaming the hillside. Loose ram is the downside of a lot of trash collection. Nobody is perfect.

Python is an interpreted language.

This means the language processes functionally on command. The upshot of which is altering your code and running it again will not require recompilation of the program. You can just run from the command line of whatever interface you are using. Good stuff for great efficiency.

Python is capable of object oriented, structured, and functional programming.

The sheer volume of different directions the language can go and still work is mind boggling. This is due primarily to the expansive nature of libraries in Python.

Python has well over 200k libraries supporting it and all the resources you desire, plus allows you the potential to see more coming onto the market.

The standard library in Python is more than enough for anyone who is starting out into programming. If you can comprehend logic, you can comprehend the beginner phases of making a class. Some of the more in-depth procedures require math knowledge, but that’s putting the cart ahead of the horse. Python really lays the foundation out for you. And new libraries are posted on Github all the time.

Python is one of the most beloved languages in programming.[1]

So now that you know what Python is,

let’s talk about what it can do.

Python’s primary library alone supports connecting to relational databases, unit testing, HTTP, creating GUI, etc. The whole of the language was built on the premise that having a base library that covers a lot and is extensible is a far more approachable and simpler way to solve many problems.

Python is frequently used in supporting web development with frameworks you’ve probably heard of like Django, Web2Py, or Flask. Many more, obviously. Having the capability of processing code from top to bottom at runtime follows parallel to the majority of functioning web applications. So it’s a good fit for web development.

The previously mentioned SciPy and NumPy are heavily used in scientific computing and are an opening line to machine learning. Further in with artificial intelligence, you find Python libraries like TensorFlow and Keras. As I mentioned in my previous negative remarks toward Python (so uncultured), Python is so smooth that it is commonly used in natural language processing. Not to mention the avenues these libraries open up for image processing. Okay, I mentioned it.

Python is the Santa Clause of programming. It’s everywhere because it’s so adaptable. Among some of its placements as a scripting language: Blender, Maya, Capella, Installers for different packages and systems (FreeBSD, MacOS, etc.) all the way to exploit testing in security, where it is used extensively.[2]

Yeah, but how is it going to make me laugh?

Two of the major sells of Python as a beginner language are its responsibility to the reader in demanding good notations and its reliance on proper spacing in order to be interpreted.

And that’s where the fun is for wordsmiths like us. Many programmers will write Monty Python quotes and references in their code. Google went so far as to name a project designed to speed up the Python interpreter “Unladen Swallow.” That’s a nod to the creator’s desire to keep the language easier to digest and enjoyable.

So why should you be so interested in Python?

Because it’s fun, it’s in just about everything, and it’s definitely the language that is going to generate the AI Takeover.

Sources:

[1] https://insights.stackoverflow.com/survey/2020/

[2] https://www.securecoding.com/blog/penetration-testing-python/