Understanding the Python Programming Language

In the first tutorial to learn python programming in Duniailkom we will get acquainted with the Python language, starting from the understanding of the python programming language, a brief history, as well as what are the advantages and reasons for learning Python.

Why Must Learn Python?

If someone asks “What programming language should you learn first?” Usually I will answer: Pascal. The reason is because Pascal language is structured and uses many commands in everyday English such as begin, end, for do, for down
to do, etc.

But the use of Pascal outside the academic field is very rare. There are only 2 modern applications that are quite popular based on the Pascal language, namely Delphi and Lazarus. Both are used to create desktop applications that also have to compete with Microsoft’s Visual Studio. As a result, it is not surprising that job vacancies in Pascal are very rare.

Another basic language choice is C or C ++. This couple of programming languages ​​is very mature and forms the basis of the majority of more modern programming languages ​​such as Java, PHP and JavaScript. C and C ++ languages ​​are also widely used in various fields, from operating systems to making games.

But commands in C or C ++ are rather complicated because they involve symbols such as curly braces {},% c,% d, and commands with abstract words such as void, cin or cout.

Now comes the third alternative: Python. This programming language arguably marries the best features available in Pascal, C and C ++. Python language commands are easy, neat and simple as in Pascal, even in some aspects much better.

And unlike Pascal, modern implementations of the Python language are also very diverse and growing. We can use Python to create a web (Django), data science (NumPy), data mining (Scikit-Learn), deep learning (PyTorch), to machine learning (TensorFlow). In the field of scientist or research, the Python language is very promising.

python language


 

Understanding the Python Programming Language

Citing Wikipedia, the Python Programming Language is an interpreted high-level programming language for general-purpose programming. Free translation: Python is a high-level programming language, runs on an interpreted system, and can be used for various types of purposes (general-purpose).

The term high-level programming language refers to the level of closeness of a programming language to the electrical codes used by computers. A programming language is called a high-level programming language (high-level programming language) because the command or program code used is similar to human language (English).

Almost all modern programming languages ​​enter into high-level languages, including Pascal, C ++, Java, PHP, JavaScript and Python. C language is still often called middle level programming language because some commands can directly access computer hardware, but because of this C language is also a little more complicated to learn.

Python uses interpreted processing methods, where the program code will be processed line by line directly from the program code (no need to compile). This is similar to scripting languages ​​like PHP and JavaScript.

Understanding the Python Programming Language


 

A Short History of Python

The Python programming language was first released by Guido van Rossum in 1991, which has been developed since 1989.

The initial selection of the name Python did not directly come from the name of a python, but a humorous event on the BBC in the 1980s with the title “Monty Python’s Flying Circus”. Monty Python is a comedy group that hosts the event. It so happened that Guido van Rossum was a fan of this event.

In 1994, Python 1.0 was released, which was followed by Python 2.0 in 2000. Python 3.0 came out in 2008.

When this tutorial was written, the latest version of Python is Python 3.8.2, which was just released in June 2018. The official website of python is at www.python.org.

official website python


 

Excellence of Python Programming Language

  • When compared with other programming languages, here are the advantages of the Python programming language and the reasons why you should learn Python:
  • Easy to learn. Python programming language has few keywords and simple structure so it is easy to learn for beginners.
  • Easy to read. Python requires the use of spaces to “juts” blocks of program code (indentation), so that the code is written neater. In other programming languages, indentation is not required.
  • Shorter orders. The program code used by python is much shorter than other programming languages ​​to solve the same problem.
  • Cross-platform. Python can be used on a variety of operating systems, including Windows, UNIX, Linux, Mac OS, etc. In the majority of uses, the program code written does not need to be changed in order to run on different operating systems.
  • Support multi-paradigms. Python can be written with procedural code or object programming (OOP).
  • Has many libraries. Library is a designation for additional program code for special things. Based on the web pypi.org, python has more than 140,000 libraries or packages.
  • Free. Python was developed as an open source project and can be used by anyone for free

With these various advantages, it never hurts to prepare yourself and add to the language skills of Python language knowledge.

also read : Python Certification: An Overview of Popular Programs and Their Value

also read : Why Do Developers Prefer Python Over Java?