Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Python for Beginners

pythonforbeginners.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 62 posts

Re: Python for Beginners

#11

Post by elbear »

companyhen wrote: post #8
swapnilt wrote: post #2

I think Python is one of the easiest languages to pick up with a plethora of content available to start. Yet I have seen some crunch in number python programmers in the market lately. Companies struggling to hire python guys. Not sure why?

I started a job as a web designer in Dec 2011 only knowning HTML/CSS. I picked up a little PHP and JS knowledge.. not much, but working with WordPress it kind of just happens. I tried Learn Python the Hard Way, but when I finished the book I didn't feel like I had the skills to start a project, so I read the Django Book. I am more of a designer than a developer, I really want to get over the hump and start writing co…

How are you seeking help when you get stuck? It's really important to have someone that can help you go over the big hurdles. It doesn't have to be a specific person in particular. You can go on irc.freenode.org #python and ask questions there. People are helpful most of the time.

Re: Python for Beginners

#12

Post by companyhen »

elbear wrote: post #11
companyhen wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I started a job as a web designer in Dec 2011 only knowning HTML/CSS. I picked up a little PHP and JS knowledge.. not much, but working with WordPress it kind of just happens. I tried Learn Python the Hard Way, but when I finished the book I didn't feel like I had the skills to start a project, so I read the Django Book. I am more of a designer than a developer, I really want to get over the hump and start writing co…

How are you seeking help when you get stuck? It's really important to have someone that can help you go over the big hurdles. It doesn't have to be a specific person in particular. You can go on irc.freenode.org #python and ask questions there. People are helpful most of the time.

Thanks. I've just been checking StackOverflow, and I hang out on IRC from time to time.. I had a programming mentor who I met via Reddit, but he went MIA on helping me out after a few months payment. :[

Re: Python for Beginners

#13

Post by lazyjones »

swapnilt wrote: post #2

I think Python is one of the easiest languages to pick up with a plethora of content available to start. Yet I have seen some crunch in number python programmers in the market lately. Companies struggling to hire python guys. Not sure why?

Possibly because the demand has increased? We're a Perl shop and have absolutely no chance of finding professional developers on the market, we've actually considered switching to Python (despite the language's similar to Perl deficiencies: multithreading (GIL) and lacking performance, but I digress), but I suppose we won't be any more successful trying to hire people if we do (this is my impression from looking at job offers and talking to students).

Seems like the only choices for now are Java and PHP, at least here in Austria - and I'll probably stop programming myself if we switch to any of these.

Re: Python for Beginners

#14

Post by riz_ »

From the Lists Chapter:

Lists are very easy to create, these are some of the ways to make lists:

emptyList = [ ]

strlist = ['one, two, three, four, five']

I find the "strlist" example very misleading, as a beginner might think we are creating a list of five strings, when it is actually just one string with some commas in it.

Re: Python for Beginners

#16

Post by neuroguy »

codingblues wrote: post #9
danso wrote: post #5

This is a nice layout but I'm afraid the blog structure is less than optimal. For a beginner, the priority of lessons is not their chronology of publishing, but of their logical place in the learning process. Also, the taxonomy needs work...I don't think this is what I have in mind when I see the "basics" category of a beginners reference to Python: http://www.pythonforbeginners.com/category/basics/ Basics for beginn…

agreed... despite of a nice interface, the site does lack organization and some super beginner stuff, I did overlook the absence of those...

Super Beginner stuff is on the standard python tutorial. That normally doesn't need to be on every website.

Re: Python for Beginners

#17

Post by neuroguy »

companyhen wrote: post #12
elbear wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How are you seeking help when you get stuck? It's really important to have someone that can help you go over the big hurdles. It doesn't have to be a specific person in particular. You can go on irc.freenode.org #python and ask questions there. People are helpful most of the time.

Thanks. I've just been checking StackOverflow, and I hang out on IRC from time to time.. I had a programming mentor who I met via Reddit, but he went MIA on helping me out after a few months payment. :[

Find programming projects that you want to work on, and just start programming. Sometimes you will need to look up how to do X every line and sometimes every 5 lines, but the way to learn to program is by getting started and getting used to structures and control.

Re: Python for Beginners

#19

Post by neuroguy »

codingblues wrote: post #3
swapnilt wrote: post #2

I think Python is one of the easiest languages to pick up with a plethora of content available to start. Yet I have seen some crunch in number python programmers in the market lately. Companies struggling to hire python guys. Not sure why?

really trumps me... almost every coder I have ever met who has tried hands on python loves it...(easy to see why) and there isn't any scarcity of em. yet, its proving difficult to find a python guy to hire for our startup...

Where are you looking? There is a massive community of python developers on linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=25827

Re: Python for Beginners

#20

Post by pcote »

riz_ wrote: post #14

From the Lists Chapter: Lists are very easy to create, these are some of the ways to make lists: emptyList = [ ] strlist = ['one, two, three, four, five'] I find the "strlist" example very misleading, as a beginner might think we are creating a list of five strings, when it is actually just one string with some commas in it.

Likely an autopilot bug. It's almost second nature for a lot of coders to do this when making a list of strings.

strlist = 'one, two, three, four, five'.split(", ")

That habit probably just kicked in a little when putting in that example.

Post reply on HN