Get Programming Learn to code with Python

Get Programming: Learn to code with Python teaches you the basics of computer programming using the Python language. In this exercise-driven book, you’ll be doing something on nearly every page as you work through 38 compact lessons and 7 engaging capstone projects. By exploring the crystal-clear illustrations, exercises that check your understanding as you go, and tips for what to try next, you’ll start thinking like a programmer in no time.

This book works perfectly alongside our video course Get Programming with Python in Motion, available exclusively at Manning.com: www.manning.com/livevideo/get-programming-with-python-in-motion

What’s Inside

• Programming skills you can use in any language
• Learn to code—no experience required
• Learn Python, the language for beginners
• Dozens of exercises and examples help you learn by doing

About the Reader

No prior programming experience needed.

Table of Contents

LEARNING HOW TO PROGRAM

Lesson 1 – Why should you learn how to program?

Lesson 2 – Basic principles of learning a programming language

UNIT 1 – VARIABLES, TYPES, EXPRESSIONS, AND STATEMENTS

Lesson 3 – Introducing Python: a programming language

Lesson 4 – Variables and expressions: giving names and values to things

Lesson 5 – Object types and statements of code 46

Lesson 6 – Capstone project: your first Python program-convert hours to minutes

UNIT 2 – STRINGS, TUPLES, AND INTERACTING WITH THE USER

Lesson 7 – Introducing string objects: sequences of characters

Lesson 8 – Advanced string operations

Lesson 9 – Simple error messages

Lesson 10 – Tuple objects: sequences of any kind of object

Lesson 11 – Interacting with the user

Lesson 12 – Capstone project: name mashup

UNIT 3 – MAKING DECISIONS IN YOUR PROGRAMS

Lesson 13 – Introducing decisions in programs

Lesson 14 – Making more-complicated decisions

Lesson 15 – Capstone project: choose your own adventure

UNIT 4 – REPEATING TASKS

Lesson 16 – Repeating tasks with loops

Lesson 17 – Customizing loops

Lesson 18 – Repeating tasks while conditions hold

Lesson 19 – Capstone project: Scrabble, Art Edition

UNIT 5 – ORGANIZING YOUR CODE INTO REUSABLE BLOCKS

Lesson 20 – Building programs to last

Lesson 21 – Achieving modularity and abstraction with functions

Lesson 22 – Advanced operations with functions

Lesson 23 – Capstone project: analyze your friends

UNIT 6 – WORKING WITH MUTABLE DATA TYPES

Lesson 24 – Mutable and immutable objects

Lesson 25 – Working with lists

Lesson 26 – Advanced operations with lists

Lesson 27 – Dictionaries as maps between objects

Lesson 28 – Aliasing and copying lists and dictionaries

Lesson 29 – Capstone project: document similarity

UNIT 7 – MAKING YOUR OWN OBJECT TYPES BY USING OBJECT-ORIENTED PROGRAMMING

Lesson 30 – Making your own object types

Lesson 31 – Creating a class for an object type

Lesson 32 – Working with your own object types

Lesson 33 – Customizing classes

Lesson 34 – Capstone project: card game

UNIT 8 – USING LIBRARIES TO ENHANCE YOUR PROGRAMS

Lesson 35 – Useful libraries

Lesson 36 – Testing and debugging your programs

Lesson 37 – A library for graphical user interfaces

Lesson 38 – Capstone project: game of tag

Appendix A – Answers to lesson exercises

Appendix B – Python cheat sheet

Appendix C – Interesting Python libraries

Review

“Accessible and intuitive. After going through the many examples in the book, I felt much more confident in my Python programming skills.” -Nicole Kogan, MIT

“A definitive resource for anyone wanting to grasp how to solve problems using Python.” -Vester Thacker, AIG Technologies

“Very helpful in creating a solid foundation of generic programming principles.” -Prabhuti Prakash, Atos

“Kick-starts programming concepts with Python-but useful to anyone getting started with programming.” -Sam Johnson, Intouch Solutions

“An easy-to-follow intro to Python.” -David Moravec, Mainstream Technologies –This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

About the Author

Ana Bell is a lecturer at MIT in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department, where she co-lectures the Introduction to Computer Science and Programming Using Python course aimed at students with no programming experience.