Learn Python the Hard Way

You Will Learn Python! Zed Shaw has perfected the worlds best system for learning Python. Follow it and you will succeed-just like the hundreds of thousands of beginners Zed has taught to date! You bring the discipline, commitment, and persistence; the author supplies everything else. In Learn Python the Hard Way, Third Edition, youll learn Python by working through 52 brilliantly crafted exercises. Read them. Type their code precisely. (No copying and pasting!) Fix your mistakes. Watch the programs run. As you do, youll learn how software works; what good programs look like; how to read, write, and think about code; and how to find and fix your mistakes using tricks professional programmers use. Most importantly, youll learn the following, which you need to start writing excellent Python software of your own: Installing a complete Python environment Organizing and writing code Basic mathematics Variables Strings and text Interacting with users Working with files Looping and logic Data structures using lists and dictionaries Program design Object-oriented programming Inheritance and composition Modules, classes, and objects Python packaging Debugging Automated testing Basic game development Basic web development Itll be hard at first. But soon, youll just get it-and that will feel great! This tutorial will reward you for every minute you put into it. Soon, youll know one of the worlds most powerful, popular programming languages. Youll be a Python programmer. Watch Zed, too! The accompanying DVD contains 5+ hours of passionate, powerful teaching: a complete Python video course!