More Wrestling with Pyhon

Last year Warren, Simon, Robert, Mike and myself did a sequence of 6 sources for local teachers about programming with Python. They were great fun to deliver and we've now started the second sequence, with even more teachers and some new material. 

I've even gone and bought the domain www.wrestlingwithpython.com. This is where we are going to host all the content that we write over the weeks. I've even found a way of using the a new fangled feature of my new blog site. You can sign up for a newsletter and I'll send you alerts when anything interesting happens, python wise. 

How to use Python in Visual Studio 2013

I've taken quite a shine to the Python language. Although I'm still strongly wedded to C# think that Python is also a great placed to do stuff. A bit like swapping the sensible Ford Focus for a Mazda MX5 for the weekend kind of fling.

What you might not know is that there is an implementation of Python that works a treat on .NET (so that you can combine Python and other languages), and that there is also a lovely plugin for Visual Studio that lets you write, and more importantly debug, Python in "The Best Place to Write Code in the Universe and Space".

I've written a tiny howto that tells you how to get started. You can find it here.

Pythons Duly Wrestled

We had our last “Wrestling with Python” session today. Simon, Robert, Warren, Mike and myself have been helping some teachers from local schools get to grips with the Python programming language. You can find the notes and exercises from the course here.

The six sessions have flown by (particularly the one that took place while I was in Seattle…) We gave out completion certificates and talked about continuing into the future. Everyone seemed keen to come back, which is nice.

The Python programming language is definitely growing on me. Of course my heart belongs to C#, but I do quite like writing Python programs. The C# language is a bit like your mum, always concerned with your welfare, fussing a bit but making sure that everything is just right. Python on the other hand is a bit like your crazy auntie who doesn’t make a scene if you forget to comb your hair and suggests going of and things like parachute jumps. She’s great fun to be around, but if you are actually looking to do something properly you’ll want to work with mum.

Actually I don’t have particularly strong opinions about programming languages. My concept of the “best” language is very simple. The best language is the one that they will pay you the most cash to write programs in. I will quite happily write JavaScript if the money is right. And I might even reprogram my keyboard to produce cash till sounds when I type so that I can remind myself why I’m doing it…..

With programming languages it is often a matter of “horses for courses” and I reckon that a proper programmer should have a good working knowledge of at least two or three, and be prepared to learn a new one if the occasion demands it.

Python is a great tool for learning, it is possible to “play” with Python code in a way that is rather fetching, and it was fun introducing the teachers to the business of programming. With a bit of luck we’ll do some more in the future. If you are a local teacher who wants to get involved in the next tranche of sessions, let me know and I’ll put you on the list.

Wrestling with Python

I’m only a bit sorry about the title. And the fact that the first program that we wrote was an “adder”. And yes, I do know that the language was named in honour of the TV show, not the snake.

Anyhoo, we had our first Python session for teachers tonight. A great bunch of folks turned up, wrote some Python, made it work and went home. If you are interested to find out what we got up to, you can find the slides and the lab notes here.

It’s not too late to sign up. If you are a teacher in the Hull area who would like to learn more about Python and has Tuesday evenings free then you can find out more here.